BUS343 Week 1 Assignment – Red Bull

International Marketing– BUS343

Introductions

Red Bull is familiar with expanding into foreign markets and proof is in the pudding. Red Bull is currently available in 171 countries but it hasn’t always been a cake walk for the energy drink giant. As with Red Bull, any company entering a foreign market will encounter hurdles that cannot be controlled but successful companies must adapt to them.

Red Bull

With the launch of Red Bull came the emergant of a new product category – Energy Drinks. Red Bull was developed by Dietrich Mateschitz and launched in Austria on April 1st, 1987 (Red Bull, 2018). Red Bull’s most famous slogan is “Red Bull gives you wings” and used to be accompanied by cartoon commercials depicting Red Bull actually giving people wings but was assumed metaphorically.

Red Bull is composed of Caffeine, Taurine, B Vitamins, Sweeteners and Alpine water. Red Bull released two new flavors just in time for Valentine’s Day, Red Bull Peach Edition and Red Bull Pear Sugarfree Edition. With this release Red Bull has also developed mocktail recipes to showcase the versatility of the new line of energy drinks (Barnes, 2019).

The company’s expansion over the past 31 years is substantial as Red Bull available worldwide (Red Bull, 2018). A few of the notable expansions include selling its products in Germany in 1994, the United Kingdom in 1995, and the United States in 1997 (Marketline, 2018). They are also planning on expanding into European and Far East markets in the near future (Barnes, 2019).

Controllable and uncontrollable elements

There are many elements that a company can control when distributing a product internationally but there are also many elements that marketers cannot be controlled. Marketers can typically control elements that relate to the product, the price of the product, any promotions, where to sell the product and conducting research. Some common elements that cannot be controlled include; the competition, politics, laws, and consumer behavior. Due to many uncontrollable elements present in most sales environments, marketers must adapt to the ever-changing marketplace (Cateora, 2016). When a company expands into an international market, they are faced with not only the uncontrollable elements of the overall business market but of each foreign countries unique uncontrollable elements.

Red Bull has overcome many foreign and domestic obstacles throughout their 31-year history. One of the biggest uncontrollable elements Red Bull endured was getting banned in France by the government due to health issues. Red Bull adapted their formula to exclude Taurine but eventually after 12-years the ban was lifted. In 2008, due to an absence of proof that the energy drink was harmful by the European Union, the ban was lifted (Reizeclub, 2019).

Conclusion

Red Bull’s 31-year adventure has come with its fair share of ups and downs but has adapted and diligently fought for its success. Every company treading in international territory will encounter elements outside of their control. Only those willing to alter their strategies will succeed.

References

Barnes, A. (2019). Red Bull Gives You Hearts and Wings In 2019: Falling In Love With New Flavors. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/amybarnes/2019/02/06/red-bull-gives-you-hearts-and-wings-in-2019-falling-in-love-with-new-flavors/#3629fbb714e8https://www.forbes.com/sites/amybarnes/2019/02/06/red-bull-gives-you-hearts-and-wings-in-2019-falling-in-love-with-new-flavors/#3629fbb714e8

Cateora, P. (2016). International marketing (17th ed.). Retrieved from https://redshelf.com/

Marketline (2018). Company Profile: Red Bull GmbH.

Red Bull, (n.d.). Milestones 2017. Retrieved from https://energydrink-us.redbull.com/en/red-bull-history

Reizebclub, (2019). Banned in France. Retrieved from https://reizeclub.com/red-bull-banned-france/