You can now drink Capri Sun out of a boring bottle

For the first time in over two decades, Capri Sun is expanding its single serving offerings with a colorful new bottle—but don’t worry, the iconic pouch is here to stay.

Capri Sun’s new bottles are hitting shelves nationwide today at Kroger, Circle K, some Walmart locations, and regional convenience stores like Meijer and Hy-vee. They come in the brand’s three most popular flavors: Fruit Punch, Pacific Cooler, and Strawberry Kiwi. According to the company, each bottle contains about double the liquid contents of a traditional pouch, at 12 fluid ounces. However, for those interested in a smaller serving size and that classic form factor, Capri Sun pouches aren’t actually going anywhere (in fact, Capri Sun sells over six million of the mini beverages every day.) 

Instead of replacing the pouch, the new bottles are actually Capri Sun’s attempt to get pick-up in the convenience store market, an area where its normally delightful packaging has caused the juice to be overlooked amongst a sea of other, more easy-to-drink options.

Kristina Hannant, Capri Sun’s director of marketing, says the brand has actually tried to stock pouches at convenience stores, but found that “consumers weren’t reaching for them as often when faced with many other bottled options.” That makes sense, given that Capri Suns weren’t exactly designed to be displayed in a traditional beverage aisle or crammed into a cup holder on a long road trip. The pouch is all about the tactile experience, one that’s particularly enchanting for young kids (stabbing the pouch with the straw; crunching its plastic exterior; perhaps using it as a projectile) but less so for parents in the driver’s seat.

“Designed specifically to fit the shelves and coolers of convenience stores, the Capri Sun bottles cater to the busy, on-the-go lifestyle of today’s families with a resealable cap that parents can appreciate—especially given 53% of parents prefer beverages their kids can drink on the go and many find that bottles help with preventing spills,” Hannant says, referring to a statistic from market research firm Numerator. 

The bottles were also made to cater to a group of Capri Sun’s most dedicated and outspoken followers: According to a press release, “Between 2020 and 2023, a staggering 76% of suggestions received by the Capri Sun call center were about fans wanting a bigger product size.” Presumably to maintain product recognition, the bottles’ design is essentially a copy-pasted version of each flavor’s corresponding pouch, though it’s still a bit disconcerting to see Capri Sun’s branding outside the usual context.

Logically, Capri Sun’s new bottles make sense as a supplementary offering. But, until proven otherwise, we’re inclined to argue that half of the Capri Sun’s nostalgic factor really comes down to the fact that anything tastes more magical out of a pouch.

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