The Week in Consumer Packaged Goods: May 2, 2025 edition

Welcome to The Week in Consumer Packaged Goods, a weekly roundup for marketers from Quad Insights that covers the latest must-know news surrounding the CPG space.

Degree has re-released its Cool Rush antiperspirant, restoring the original scent after a New Coke-esque drama involving social media posts, public apologies and an official petition. The Unilever-owned brand tweaked the formula for its flagship product last year, prompting a massive backlash across TikTok and Reddit; a customer-led Change.org campaign launched in November, and the brand promised to rectify its mistake in an Instagram post the following month. Instead of eating crow, Degree is leaning into what it’s calling a “brand course-correction” — the rollout of the new (old) scent, called Original Cool Rush, includes a parade on Saturday (May 3) in San Jose, California and partnerships with athletes and creators as part of the #CoolRushIsSoBack social campaign.

More launches and expansions:

• “Scentair Adds New Trio of Sustainably Produced Home Fragrances” (Happi)
• “Branch Basics makes mass retail debut at Target with lower prices, marketing blitz” (Modern Retail)
• “Garnier Launches Affordable Honey Water Hair Care Line” (Trend Hunter)

International Delight’s knack for collaborations — its coffee creamer line includes Hershey’s, Almond Joy and Reese’s tie-ins — continues with its latest offering, a flavored iced coffee created in partnership with Cinnabon. To promote this new release, the brands are running a sweepstakes for some seriously unique branded merch: a limited-edition collection of alarm clocks, featuring an integrated minifridge (for chilling canned iced coffees) and an attached aromatic diffuser (which emits a custom Cinnabon scent). The giveaway will remain open through May 20 on International Delight’s Instagram, while the new flavor is available now in 15-ounce cans at convenience, grocery and dollar stores nationwide.

Previously: “International Delight partners with ‘Love is Blind’ stars for ‘ultimate blind date,’” from the Jan. 31 edition of this column.

More brand collabs:

• “The Baconator Cheez-It is Set to Launch by End of Summer” (Trend Hunter)
• “You Can Now Buy a 14-Karat Kraft Macaroni Necklace for Mom, and It’s Not a Joke” (Food & Wine)
• “Disney Pairs Well With SPAM in New ‘Lilo & Stitch’ Collab” (The Hollywood Reporter)
• ICYMI: “Sunday Swagger Announces New Collaboration with Guinness” (Licensing International)
• ICYMI: “Wells and Ferrara Partner To Bring Gen-Z Trolli Fans Into New Category” (Consumer Goods Technology)

The Louisville-based Mary Dowling Whiskey Company is using Mother’s Day as a springboard for an ambitious brand tie-in: a new historical fiction book, published by Post Hill Press. The 312-page novel, “Mother of Bourbon: The Greatest American Whiskey Story Never Told,” traces the dramatic life of the company’s namesake, a prolific distiller who rose to fame (and infamy) during the heady days of pre-Prohibition bourbon. “Mother of Bourbon” is available now in hardcover at Barnes & Noble and on Amazon, as well as in Louisville’s Carmichael’s Bookstore, for $30.

Previously: “Macy’s acquires rights to develop TV adaptation of best-selling novel ‘When Women Ran Fifth Avenue,’” from the March 21 edition of The Week in Commerce Marketing.

More brand activations and promotions:

• “Poppi Makes First Foray Into Gaming To Promote New Alpine Blast Flavor” (MediaPost)
• “Mike and Ike, Hot Tamales Candies Hit the Road with Marvel’s ‘Thunderbolts’” (DesignRush)

That’s the share of the U.S. carbonated soft drink market (in terms of sales volume) that Sprite now controls. The brand surpassed Pepsi last year to become the nation’s third-most popular soft drink after Coca-Cola and Dr Pepper, according to recent figures from Beverage Digest published in Adweek. (See more industry and marketing stats in the latest edition of The Weekly 10 from Quad Insights.)

More beverage statistics:

• “Energy drink brand Alani Nu surpasses $1 billion in sales as the functional beverage craze keeps on soaring” (Fast Company)
• “Ghost energy drinks drive sales boost at Keurig Dr Pepper” (Food Dive)
• “Ready-to-drink beverages soon to be a $1T market” (Dairy Foods Magazine)

Coffee mate piqued the internet’s interest last year with its orange creamsicle creamer, a super-limited-edition summertime release that quickly sold out. The Nestlé-owned brand is bringing back the unique flavor with a new name — and a revised market position, per Allrecipes. Now called Orange Crème Pop, the creamer is returning as a dirty soda mixer, with refreshed packaging that specifically touts its compatibility with Orange Crush. Coffee mate is also reissuing its Coconut Lime Dirty Soda Creamer — another erstwhile limited-edition release, designed as a Dr Pepper mixer — suggesting the DIY dairy soft drink trend isn’t going away anytime soon. Available in 28-ounce bottles for $4.49 each, both Coffee mate dirty soda creamers are on sale now at Albertsons locations, with rollout at Target and Kroger in June.

Previously: “Coffee mate collaborates with HBO’s ‘The White Lotus’ on two limited-time coffee creamers,” from the Dec. 20, 2024 edition of this column.

More food and flavor innovations:

• “Chicken of the Sea introduces new intense flavor” (Drug Store News)
• “Popular Ready-to-Drink Brand On the Rocks Launches Sparkling Canned Cocktails in 3 Flavors” (Bottle Raiders)
• “Gallo expands RTD range with Lucky One” (The Spirits Business)
• “Red Bull announces Summer Edition White Peach” (Beverage Industry)
• “Snack Factory introduces limited-edition s’mores pretzel crisps” (FoodBev Media)
• “Topo Chico Launches Margaritas In 4 Refreshing Flavors Just In Time For Summer” (Tasting Table)

More campaigns and content:

• “Neutrogena pitches rejuvenating skincare to those old enough to remember ‘Beverly Hills, 90210’” (Ag Age)
• “Pantene turns Alix Earle’s viral TikTok post into collection, campaign” (Marketing Dive)
• ICYMI: “Billie Debuts Scratch And Sniff Armpit Billboards” (MediaPost)

More CPG operations and innovations:

• “Kind Snacks launches recyclable paper wrapper pilot program” (Packaging Dive)
• “Hometown Food to buy Chef Boyardee from Conagra for $600 million” (Food Business News)
• “Berry Global and Nestlé Purina Design Recycled Pet Treat Packaging” (Clean the Sky)