CORONA, Calif. -- Monster Energy will delay the rollout of its new hybrid beverage Monster Hydro until May at the earliest as the beverage maker tries to build inventory for a national debut.
The delay, reported first by beverage analyst Bonnie Herzog of Wells Fargo, follows the fall launch of Mutant Monster, which led to much frustration from retailers who said they experienced out-of-stock issues and battles with Monster about where in the cold vault the drink should be stocked.
"We have concerns about the ability for Monster’s new innovation to have any meaningful impact on sales this year," said Herzog, senior analyst with the New York-based investment firm, in a recent research report, "suggesting the recent slowdown in the energy category may persist."
Mutant Monster is a hybrid drink that combines the energy drink and carbonated soft drink categories, taking direct aim at Mountain Dew drinkers. Monster Hydro, originally scheduled to launch in March, is a three-way hybrid, combining bottled water, isotonics and energy drinks.
The multi-category nature of the drinks leaves retailers wondering the best place to position the new drinks in the cold vault. Some prefer locations next to other Monster-branded beverages to drive trial by Monster customers, while others want a bottled water with other brands in that category, for example.
“We’re trying to figure out where [Monster Hydro is] going to fit best in the cooler,” Dean Zurliene, Monster’s director of category management, small store, said during CSP's Convenience Retailing University conference in February.
Monster Energy told Bloomberg the product-launch delay is necessary because it needs more time to build additional pipeline and replenishment inventory to meet expected demand.
“Monster is developing a track record of delaying new items,” one c-store retailer told Herzog. That "may hurt its ability to successfully launch new products going forward," Herzog said.
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