The Week in Consumer Packaged Goods: June 13, 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.

Aiming to capitalize on Gen Z’s demand for iced coffee and unusual flavor combinations, Nescafé has partnered with Swoon, the youth-focused brand known for its zero-sugar citrus beverages, to create a limited-time collaboration: Espresso Lemonade. The new offering represents another example of CPGs moving to productize social media beverage hacks — in this case, TikTok’s so-called Thunderbolt, a concoction that mixes, yes, espresso and lemonade. Notably, Nestlé USA isn’t introducing this as a bottled SKU but rather a specially packaged drink kit, which includes two 300-mL bottles of espresso concentrate (black and vanilla), two 12-ounce cans of Swoon lemonade and a recipe card. The kits are slated to arrive in three separate drops — on June 13, 20 and 27 at noon ET — and will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis via a dedicated campaign portal here.

Previously:

• “Nescafé launches Espresso Concentrate for café-style iced beverages at home,” from the Jan. 10 edition of this column.
• “Nescafé leans into a TikTok trend with release of limited-edition Affogato Kits,” from the June 21, 2024 edition of this column.

More CPG flavor innovations and collabs:

• “Wendy’s Baconator Goes Snack-Sized in Cheez-It’s Latest Flavor” (Food & Wine)
• “Bite Into Summer With Jeni’s Ice Cream & Rock Band Goose’s Tasty ‘Goose Tracks’ Ice Cream” (Billboard)

Back in 2020, Mars teamed up with the consumer electronics firm Razer on a novel pilot project: a line of fortified chewing gum aimed at video game enthusiasts, sold under the brand name Respawn. Now, the two companies are expanding their partnership and developing a “full portfolio of snack products” explicitly geared toward gamers. This new joint venture represents a remarkable turn for Razer, which originally pitched competitive gamer drinks as an April Fool’s marketing stunt in 2010. (Customer response suggested real demand, leading the company to spin up Respawn as a dedicated CPG label.) In proving that its specialty branding and product expertise translates across categories, Razer has effectively secured a deal with Mars by positioning itself as a direct line to gamers — a demographic marker that could apply to 40% of all global consumers by 2040, according to McKinsey.

More CPG brand partnerships and collabs:

• “Eos and Blue Moon Debut New Valencia Orange Lip Balm” (Happi)
• “Hershey’s Challenges Pokémon Fans With Limited-Edition Release” (Parade Magazine)

When it comes to franchise-exclusive marketing, few beverage brands are savvier than Mtn Dew; its Baja Blast flavor is synonymous with Taco Bell, while extended tie-ins with Sam’s Club (Berry Monsoon) and 7-Eleven (Solar Flare) have developed cult followings. Now Mtn Dew is aiming to build on those successes with the rollout of Dragon Fruit, a new flavor available only at Walmart stores. This tropical take on the classic Dew formula, slated for a June 15 release, will be offered in both 20-ounce bottles and 12-packs of 12-ounce cans. Meanwhile, the brand is also planning a non-exclusive hot-weather release: Summer Freeze — inspired by classic frozen bomb pops and swathed in red, white and blue (and originally introduced in 2023) — will return for a limited time

Previously:

• “Mtn Dew releases personal care line with Blind Barber to promote new Baja Cabo Citrus flavor,” from the April 11 edition of this column.
• “Mtn Dew celebrates the coming of summer with new limited-time America-themed flavors and a giveaway,” from the June 14, 2024 edition of this column.

More product launches and expansions:

• “Diet Cherry Coke is coming back, but only at certain stores” (USA Today)
• “Luxco launches smoked Tequila” (The Spirits Business)
• “Trader Joe’s Just Announced a New Dip — and It’s Packed Full of Protein” (Food & Wine)
• “A pickle-flavored ramen now exists” (CNN Business)
• “Celebrate National Martini Day with Philadelphia cream cheese stuffed olives” (FoodSided)

In a nod to the booming hot sauce market —particularly within the breakfast category — Heinz has launched a large-scale, omnichannel push to promote the concept of ketchup as a morning-time condiment, Ad Age’s Erika Wheless reports. Central to this new “Rise and Heinz” campaign is an IRL component, which involves placing special bottles of ketchup — packaged to look like maple syrup containers — at select Waffle House locations and local diners in major markets across the country. Other key elements include a 15-second spot, digital out-of-home New York City subway placements, Reddit ads, a special branded Wordle game on The New York Times website and social content featuring comedian and actor Gil Ozeri.

Previously: “Kraft Heinz launches Heinz Verified to incentivize restaurants committed to ‘quality’,” from the May 16 edition of this column.

More CPG campaigns:

• “M&M’s promotes cross-generational unity with new creative platform” (Marketing Dive)
• “Grey Goose, Zoe Saldaña Unveils Immersive Leisure-Led Campaign” (DesignRush)
• “Häagen-Dazs Urges People to Go Slow — No Summer Break Required” (Adweek)
• ICYMI: “Tom Brady Goes Full-On Hulk For Gopuff’s GOAT Gummies” (MediaPost)
• ICYMI: “Absolut’s colorful ‘Born to Mix’ campaign celebrates dance and cocktails” (Ad Age)