Free Genie
FREE GENIE is an artistic intervention and conversation piece dealing with the spiritual value of water and its appropriation by the bottled water industries world wide.
The Artwork
The artwork consists of 60 selected, unique, secondhand waterglasses engraved with terms and expressions referring to spiritual experiences with water. The engravings quote actual brand names and marketing slogans of products of the bottled water industries.
FREE GENIE reclaims and de-commercializes the spiritual value of water. It invites to connect to the life-giving, healing, renewing (e.g.) aspects of local (tap) water with a simple, personal drinking experience. The art intervention enhances intimate connections to water and serves as a conversation piece for communities at workshops or gatherings.
FREE GENIE was created by Regina Hügli in 2023, the design of the engravings was implemented in cooperation with Design Büro Baustelle, Vienna.
Background
The fundamental, deep connection between water and life/death shows itself in a spiritual relationship of humans to water and water bodies in many cultures and religious contexts.
However by treating water as a commercial good, a resource, this relationship to water fades. Water as a commodity is an enormous economic and political factor. Revenue in the Bottled Water segment amounts to US$ 342.4 billion in 2023. The market is expected to grow annually by 5.24%.
Quite many marketing strategies of drinking water industries refer to a spiritual relationship towards water - thus selling not only water, but also its spiritual value. Brand names and slogans addressing qualities of renewal, purity, healing, or even more specific spiritual wording, invite consumers to buy not only hydration but a reminiscence of a spiritual experience. The connection to water and life is commercially appropriated. FREE GENIE interferes by freeing the genies from their commercialized context.
The data concerning brands and slogans below is footed on an internet research by Regina Hügli 2023/2024.
FREE GENIE #ABSOLUTE
Brand Name: Absolute
Company: Asia Brewery Incorporated, Makati City, Philippines
Market: Philippines
Asia Brewery Inc. is a major player in the Philippines’ beverage and industrial packaging industry with an annual revenue of 12.0 M Dollar. They aim to provide safe distilled water to every Filipino family at an affordable price.
The Philippines and Australia are the markets where bottled water is the most expensive, according to an analysis by the website GlobalProductPrices.com 2022.
FREE GENIE #ADAMSALE
Brand Name: Adam's Ale
Company: Beggar's Velvet, UK
Market: International
Premium Water for the international market at 42 GBP a bottle (0,75l). The brand Beggars’ Velvet, founded in 2014, produces a line of subversive housewares, playing with epigrams and old slang vocabulary. “Adam’s Ale” is old English slang for drinking water and refers to the diet of the biblical Adam.
FREE GENIE #ALFA&OMEGA
Brand Name: Alfa & Omega Drinking Water
Company: Alfa n Omega Beverages Pvt. Ltd., Hyderabad, Andra Pradesh, India
Market: India, local
Mineral water sold in Hyperabad, the capital of the Indian state of Telangana, and the fourth-most populous city in India with a population of 6.9 million residents, and 9,7 million in the metropolitan region.
The city's water supply is based on groundwater. Greater Hyderabad faces severe water crisis, the groundwater table has been dropping sharply in the last years.
Spiritual connotation of the product name: Alpha (Α or α) and omega (Ω or ω) are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, and a title of Christ and God in the Book of Revelation.
FREE GENIE #ALTISSIMAPURISSIMA
Brand Name: Levissima
Slogan: Altissima, Purissima
Translation: the highest, the purest (Latin)
Company: SanPellegrino Group, Milano, Italy, as part of Nestlé, Switzerland.
Market: International.
The natural mineral water from Alpine sources at Parco Naturale dello Stelvio (IT) is a classic Italian water and a brand successfully representing the natural pureness of water internationally.
It is consumed by ten million Italian families (source: GFK eurisko consumer panel) and sold in 150 countries on five continents.
Spiritual connotation: The qualities “the highest, the purest” resonate with Christian terminology. “Altissimus” is the Latin translation of the Hebrew/Aramaic words found in the Old Testament for the concept of “highest God”, while the expression “purissima” – the purest – is a quality connotated with Virgin Mary, mother of Christ.
FREE GENIE #ANGEL
Brand Name: Angel Drinking Water
Company: Angel Drinking Water, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania
Market: Tanzania
Angel Drinking Water is a local brand selling and delivering purified water from protected underground wells. Tanzania faces a severe water and sanitation crisis: out of its population of 65 million people, 58 million people (88% of the population) lack access to safe water, and 49 million people (74%) lack access to a safe toilet. (source: water.org)
FREE GENIE #AQUADOR
Brand Name: Aqua D´Or Mineral Water
Translation: Golden Water (Italian)
Company: Danone, Paris, FR
Market: International
The Premium Water from a groundwater well in Jutland, Denmark, costs 5,78 Euro per bottle (1l). Aqua d'Or owned by Danone is Scandinavia's largest producer of natural mineral water and soft drinks, offering high quality products.
According to the company’s website, the Aqua D’Or source can be traced back to the last ice age, the water was filtered during 300 years of journey through the Jutland heath.
FREE GENIE #AQUAMANTRA
Brand Name: Aquamantra Premium Natural Spring Water
Company: Aquamantra Inc., Farifax, CA, US
Market: US, International
According to its distributor, Aquamantra is a premium natural spring water infused with ”Universal Energy” (e.g. the mantras ”I am grateful, I am loved”). Prize online: 46 $ per bottle.
Spiritual connotation: A mantra is a word or sound that is believed to have a special spiritual power in Buddhist or Hindu context.
FREE GENIE #AQUARAPHA
Brand Name: Aqua Rapha
Company: Aqua Rapha Investment Nigeria Ltd
Market: Nigeria
Aqua Rapha Investment Ltd. is a top bottled water company in Eastern Nigeria, owned by the spiritual director of the Adoration Ministry in Enugu Nigeria (AMEN). AMEN is a religious organization founded by the inspiration of the holy spirit and guided by Rev. Fr. Ejike Camilus Anthony Mbaka.
Despite Nigeria's immense wealth in water resources, the country faces a significant water crisis due to a massive pollution of water bodies, mismanagement and distribution problems.
FREE GENIE #AQUIESDONDETODOCOMIENZA
Brand Name: Pureza Vital, Pure Life
Slogan: Aqui es donde todo comienza.
Translation: Everything starts from here. (Spanish)
Brand: Nestlé S.A., Switzerland
Market: International
The international brand "Pure Life" by Nestlé is available in more than 40 countries and is the world's best-selling water. Groundwater from local municipal and well sources is purifed, mineralized, bottled and sold in the countries of extraction. Nestlé has an annual revenue of 4170 million dollars with its drinking water products and ranks third among the global market leaders in the bottled drinking water industry.
Spiritual connotation: ”Everything starts from here.” A reference to the biblical story of creation in the book of Genesis, and the book of Revelation, where God refers to himself as the Alpha and the Omega - the beginning and the end of existence and time.
FREE GENIE #AURA
Brand Name: Aura Water
Company: Lidskoe Pivo, Lida, Belarus, part of the Olvi PLC, Finland.
Market: International
Aura water is a still drinking water treated with reverse osmosis and UV irradiation. The brand claims it can “revive natural beauty and improve well-being”.
Lidskoe Pivo in Belarus is a leading beer and beverage producing company with a long history. Since 2008 it has been part of the Finnish Olvi Group. Aura Water is sold in twenty countries on three continents.
FREE GENIE #AVATON
Brand Name: Avaton
Company: Bright Stone Ltd, UK
Market: International
The Premium Water from Artesian Springs at Mount Athos, Greece, is sold for 4,39 € per bottle (0,75l). The UNESCO world heritage site of Mount Athos in northeastern Greece has been an important centre of Eastern Orthodox monasticism for centuries. The product’s claim: “This is a water as distinct as the place that creates it.”
Spiritual connotation: “Avaton” in Greek means an inaccessible and unapproachable place, sacred and inviolable, e.g. the holy district of a temple.
FREE GENIE #AWAKENING
Brand Name: Awake Water
Company: Awake Water, Sydney, Australia
Market: International.
The company aims to offer energized, “structured” water, which is claimed to be healthier than untreated water.
The natural spring water used is taken from a deep source having a very long filtration cycle, so, according to the company’s website, it has “essence and taste of true nature, as it once was prior to human interference.” The spring water is then treated by a electromagnetic waves resonator to structure it and sold online for 14 $ for gallon of 10l.
FREE GENIE #BALANCE
Brand Name: Balance Spring Water
Company: Balance Trading Company, Australia
Market: Australia
The spring water is infused with Australian wildflowers is sold for 3 $ per bottle (1l).
FREE GENIE #BARAKA
Brand Name: Baraka Water
Translation: Blessing (Arabic)
Company: Nestlé Waters, Switzerland
Market: Egypt.
Baraka Water sells purified groundwater from Banha, Egypt and is the first bottled water brand in Egypt, founded 1980.
Baraka Water and Pure Life by Nestlé were involved in a scandal in Egypt in 2016 when the products were declared “unfit for human consumption” by the authorities, after laboratory tests on samples revealed they did not comply with standards.
FREE GENIE #BEBETELAVIDA
Brand Name: Ciel
Slogan: Bébete la vida
Translation: Drink life (Spanish)
Company: The CocaCola Company, US
Market: Morocco, Mexico, Angola
Ciel is the top selling brand of mineral water by CocaCola, the world leader of bottled water industries with an annual revenue of 4600 million dollars.
What makes the brand really big is the fact that Mexico currently has the highest per capita consumption of bottled water worldwide. In Mexico, 72 million people (57% of the population) lack access to safe water. (source: water.org)
FREE GENIE #BLISS
Brand Name: Bliss Water
Company: Bliss Water Ltd., Nairobi, Kenia
Market: Nakuru and Nairobi region, Kenia
Bliss is one of the largest bottled water brands and water supplier in Kenia, selling groundwater which has undergone five steps of filtration.
With a population of 54 million, 15 million Kenyans lack access to safe water. Growing water demand and water scarcity have turned into a notable challenge for public health.
FREE GENIE #BODH
Brand Name: Bodh Waters
Meaning: awakening, enlightenment (Sanskrit)
Brand: Sunlight Beverages Pvt. Ltd., Delhi, India, Delhi
Market: International
Bodh Waters claims to offer “the taste of spirituality”, as it sells natural spring water from Himalayan mountains, Buthan. Quoting its website: "All spiritual traditions throughout history have recognised the importance of water in cleansing the body, mind and spirit. Bodh through the practise of water memory upholds the divine on a molecular level which connects you to the natural world, promoting a sense of peace and harmony between you and the universe.”
The brand is a member of the International Fine Waters Society (FWS), which was founded in 2008 to enhance the visibility of water brands offering natural, unprocessed products with terroir and unique characteristics. Bodh Water, prize per bottle: 849 Rs (10 dollars).
FREE GENIE #CIEL
Brand Name: Ciel
Translation: Heaven, Sky (French)
Brand: The CocaCola Company, US
Market: Morocco, Mexico, Angola.
Ciel is the top selling brand of mineral water by CocaCola, the world leader of bottled water industries with an annual revenue of 4600 million dollars.
What makes the brand really big is the fact that Mexico currently has the highest per capita consumption of bottled water worldwide. In Mexico, 72 million people (57% of the population) lack access to safe water. (source: water.org)
FREE GENIE #CLOUDJUICE
Brand Name: King Island Cloud Juice
Company: Cloud Juice, Currie, King Island, Tasmania
Market: International
Cloud Juice sells rainwater from King Island in Tasmania as a Premium Water for connoisseurs worldwide. It is bottled in a 750ml Bordeaux style glass bottle and its character is said to change with temperature “from sweetly refreshing when chilled, to an elegant velvet when served at room temperature”.
The extravagant water for the best dining tables around the globe” is sold for 90 $ per bottle (0,75l) and advertised by the slogan “Some people feel the rain, others just get wet”.
FREE GENIE #CONECTAMENTEYCUERPO
Brand Name: Ciel
Slogan: Conecta Mente y Cuerpo
Translation: Connects mind and body (Spanish)
Company: The CocaCola Company, US
Market: Morocco, Mexico, Angola.
Ciel is the top selling brand of mineral water by CocaCola, the world leader of bottled water industries with an annual revenue of 4600 million dollars.
What makes the brand really big is the fact that Mexico currently has the highest per capita consumption of bottled water worldwide. In Mexico, 72 million people (57% of the population) lack access to safe water. (source: water.org)
FREE GENIE #EARTHSFINESTWATER
Brand Name: Fiji
Slogan: Earth's finest water.
Company: FIJI Water Company LLC., as part of The Wonderful Company, Los Angeles US
Market: US, International
FIJI Water sells artesian source water from Fiji islands with the slogan “Bottled at the source, untouched by man”. It is very popular in US as a life style product and has a cult following of celebrities, business people and U.S. presidents. FIJI Water has been in the background of many pop-culture moments.
FIJI Water, or “Earth’s Finest Water,” is able to create an image that whoever purchases FIJI Water is part of an “elite” group. It is sold for 3,38 $ per bottle (1l). The brand has an annual revenue of 43.0 Million Dollar (2022).
FREE GENIE #ESSENTIA
Brand Name: Essentia
Translation: Essence (Latin)
Company: Essentia Water LLC., Bothell, US., bought by Nestlé in 2021
Market: US, International
Essentia is a Premium Water in the section of functional waters (ionized, alkaline). Essentia claims to be “overachieving H2O” and presents itself as a “hydroboost” with testimonials of successful creatives and athletes.
It has made an annual revenue of 192 million dollars in 2020, what made it attractive to the global player Nestlé. It is one of the highest ranked products in international contest of alkaline waters.
FREE GENIE #ETERNAL
Brand Name: Eternal
Company: Eternal Beverages, US
Market: US
Naturally alkaline spring water from the Shasta-Trinity Alps and the Great Smokey Mountains, US. Eternal Water – or “Nature’s perfect water” - is one of the fastest growing premium waters in the category sourced bottled water in the US.
FREE GENIE #FORTHESEEKERS
Brand Name: Power Water
Slogan: For the Seekers. For the Doers. Unleash your Power.
Company: Powerade, The CocaCola Company, Atlanta, Georgia, US
Market: International.
Power Water is an electrolyte water beverage in the category of functional waters by the Brand Powerade of CocaCola. CocaCola is the global leader of the bottled drinking water industries with an annual revenue of 4600 million dollars on the water sector.
FREE GENIE #FOUNTAINOFYOUTH
Brand Name: Aur'a Natural Mineral Spring Water
Slogan: Fountain of Youth.
Company: Aur'a Gold Water Ltd. UK
Market: International
Premium Water from naturally alkaline sources at Transylvania's Golden Hawk Mountains (RO), enriched with gold and silver nanoparticles while crossing an underground ore.
“Aur” comes from the Latin word “aurum” which signifies “gold” and the “A” stands for “argentum”, the Latin word for “silver” – both vital nanoparticles present in Aur’a Natural Gold Water.
FREE GENIE #FUTURE
Brand Name: Future Aqua
Company: Future Aqua & Espy Pulpy, Jaipur, India
Market: India
Future Aqua is a small local company in Jaipur with a product range of mango juice and bottled water, prized 13 rupies/bottle (0,13 €), sold nation-wide.
Rajasthan is an inherently water-scarce state of India, which depends heavily on groundwater, recharged by rainfall only. Due to an ongoing massive overexploitation of groundwater and heat waves, the capital Jaipur has suffered a severe water crisis in 2024.
FREE GENIE #GIFTOFMOTHERNATURE
Brand Name: Aur'a Natural Mineral Spring Water
Slogan: Gift from Mother Nature.
Company: Aur'a Gold Water Ltd. UK
Market: International
Premium Water from naturally alkaline sources at Transylvania's Golden Hawk Mountains (RO), enriched with gold and silver nanoparticles while crossing an underground ore.
“Aur” comes from the Latin word “aurum” which signifies “gold” and the “A” stands for “argentum”, the Latin word for “silver” – both vital nanoparticles present in Aur’a Natural Gold Water.
FREE GENIE #GLORIAPATRI
Brand Name: Gloria Patri
Translation: Gloria Be to the Father (Latin)
Company: Promineral S.A., Furnas, San Miguel, Portugal
Market: International
Volcanic water from Serra do Trigo, Azores Archipelago. Gloria Patri is listed by the International Fine Water Society, which was founded in 2008 to foster natural, unprocessed water products with terroir and unique characteristics.
Spiritual connotation: “Gloria Patri” is a short hymn of praise to God in various Christian liturgies. “Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.” The hymn is of unknown origin, a.o. mentioned in Psalm 29:2.
FREE GENIE #GUSTULPURITATII
Brand Name: Aqua Carpatica
Slogan: Gustul purității
Translation: Taste of purity (Romanian)
Company: Aqua Carpatica USA Inc., Phoenix, Arizona, US, partially owned by PepsiCo
Market: International.
Pristine spring water from the protected Bajenaru Spring, Carpathian mountains (RO). Aqua Carpatica is advertised with the slogans “Experience waterlove” and “The water that loves you back.”. It has won 63 international awards for its taste.
PepsiCo is ranked #2 among the market Leaders of the global bottled water industries, with an annual revenue of 4500 M dollar in the water sector.
FREE GENIE #HANA
Brand Name: Hana Water
Translation: Bliss, happiness (Arabic)
Company: Hana Food Industries Company, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Market: Saudi Arabia
Hana Water is advertised by the slogan “the source of happiness” and offers purified, mineralized water from groundwater wells in the Qassim region, Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia is one of the most arid countries in the world. The demand for water is very high due to the growing population, industry, and agriculture. Water consumption in Saudi Arabia ranks among the highest in the world. Overexploitation of groundwater has led to a situation where there's almost no water left, and soil salinization has become a serious concern. (source for water situation: website Gulf Cooperation Council)
FREE GENIE #HAYAT
Brand Name: Hayat
Translation: Life (Turkish)
Company: Danone, Paris, France
Market: Turkey
The spring water of Sekerpinar (Toros mountains) and Sakarya-Hendek (Keremali Mountains) in Turkey is one of the most popular Turkish water brands.
Produced for the first time in 1984, Hayat Su is one of the most established companies in the packaged/bottled water sector in Turkey. It has joined Danone in 1997, which is ranked #4 in the global bottled water industries.
FREE GENIE #HEAVENDROPS
Brand Name: Heaven Drops Packaged Drinking Water
Company: Speedy Wheels PVT.LTD, Kolkata, India
Market: Kolakata region, India
A local bottled water company and delivery service for 20 l cans in the region of Kalkota, India. Kalkota, like many other Indian cities, undergoes a massive overexploitation of its groundwater resources, which leads to increasing seasonal water shortages in several districts of the city.
FREE GENIE #HEAVENLYWATER
Brand Name: Heavenly Water
Company: Heavenly Water N.V., Hawaii
Market: Hawaii
The Hawaiian brand Heavenly Water sells desalted sea-water, taken from “the beautiful untouched ocean around us”, filtrated and purified by reverse-osmosis.
FREE GENIE #IAMLOVED
Brand Name: Aquamantra Premium Natural Spring Water
Slogan: Stimulate your soul. I am loved. I am grateful.
Company: Aquamantra Inc., Farifax, CA, US
Market: International
According to its distributor, Aquamantra is a premium natural spring water infused with ”Universal Energy” (e.g. the mantras ”I am grateful, I am loved”). Prize online: 46 $ per bottle.
Spiritual connotation: A mantra is a word or sound that is believed to have a special spiritual power in Buddhist or Hindu context.
FREE GENIE #ITSPUREGENIUS
Brand Name: Smart Water
Slogan: It's pure genius.
Company: Glaceau, The CocaCola Company, Atlanta, Georgia, US
Market: US, International
Smart Water belongs to the category of functional waters and offers distilled water with electrolytes added.
It is one of the top water brands of US by the global leader of the bottled water industry, the Coca Cola Company.
FREE GENIE #JIBU
Brand Name: Jibu
Translation: Answer (Kiswahili)
Company: Jibu Inc., Nairobi, Kenia/ Kigali, Rwanda/ Colorado Springs, US
Market: Kenia, Burundi,Ghana, Rwanda, Tanzania,Uganda,Zambia, DRC Bukavu, DRC Goma
Jibu, Inc offers filtered, purified tap water. It is a for-profit social enterprise that prioritizes impact in communities. The hybrid approach stimulates responsible economic growth and independence. While drinking water is the immediate focus, the ultimate goal is to launch a network of independent franchise owners.
Growing water demand and water scarcity have turned into a notable challenge in Kenya. Climate change, population growth, urbanization, water pollution, and poor management of water resources have aggravated the issue of the water crisis, which affects economic activities, food security, education, and health.
15 million people lack access to safe water, 37 million people lack access to a safe toilet. (source: water.org
FREE GENIE #JOY
Brand Name: Joy Water
Company: Joy Water, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Market: Ethiopia
Joy water is a local company offering and delivering purified bottled water in Addis Ababa region.
As one of Africa’s fastest growing cities, Addis Ababa’s demand for water has sky rocketed over recent decades due to population growth, rural to urban migration, and growing water demand from industry.
It is estimated that existing water supply from groundwater, springs and surface water of the Awash river basin only meets about 60% of the city’s water demand, leaving much of the population under-served.
(source: reachwater.uk)
FREE GENIE #LIQUIDDEATH
Brand Name: Liquid Death
Company: Supplying demand Inc.
Market: International
The British canned water brand sells spring water of sources at Frankenmarkt, Austria. When launching the brand in 2017, the company looked for "the dumbest name" to sell water.
Liquid Death with its taglines “Don't be scared, it's just water!” or “Murder your thirst” is economically very successful; in 2023 it made an annual revenue of 263 million Dollar.
The success of the brand is based on the marketing strategy of selling the product in cans like alcohol and of subversing the usual tropes of bottled water marketing which emphasize the life-giving qualities of water
FREE GENIE #MAGNIFICAT
Brand Name: Magnificat
Company: Promineral SA. Portugal
Market: International
Magnificat is a Premium Water bottling spring water of the dormant Furnas volcano, St. Miguel, Azores. The spring was baptized “Magnificat” in the 18th century.
Magnificat is listed by the International Fine Water Society, which was founded in 2008 to enhance the visibility of water brands offering natural, unprocessed products with terroir and unique characteristics.
Spiritual connotation: "Magnificat anima mea dominum" (Latin: my soul magnifies the Lord) is a canticle known as the Song of Mary, Gospel of Luke (1:46-55). It is traditionally incorporated into the liturgical services of the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, Lutheran Churches and the Anglican Communion.
FREE GENIE #MIRACLE
Brand Name: Miracle
Company: Miracle, Karachi, Pakistan
Market: Pakistan
Miracle is a Pakistani brand offering and delivering water for private households and offices. In Pakistan 21 million of people don't have access to clean drinking water in their daily life (population: 221 million).
FREE GENIE #NATURALLYINTELLIGENT
Brand Name: VodaVoda
Slogan: "Trust Nature. Nature knows best. Naturally intelligent."
Company: VodaVoda, Banja Vrujcj, Serbia
Market: Serbia
Artesian Spring Water of Vrujcj Space, Serbia, sold with the Slogan “Naturally intelligent - Nature knows best”.
The marketing narrative describes water/nature as a supportive, godlike entity. Quoting the brand’s website: “When stress becomes the norm and tranquility the exception; when answers elude us and questions abound; when doubts grow loud and support remains silent; when decisive steps are needed and we feel we cannot do it alone – nature takes our hand and gives as a boost.”
FREE GENIE #NATURESBLESSING
Brand Name: Boon Water
Slogan: Nature's Blessing
Company: Boon Water, Paterson, US
Market: US
Premium Water for the US market, being advertised by the remoteness and purity of its sources “Isolated in the mountains of Sakarya, Turkey, at an altitude of 1,060 meters, far away from any human pollution, lies the facility that produces Boon Water.”
FREE GENIE #NEVERFAILSPRINGWATER
Brand Name: Neverfail Spring Water
Company: Neverfail Springwater QLD PTY LTD, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, Queensland, Australia
Market: Australia
Neverfail Springwater is the market leader of spring water delivery to homes and offices in Australia, offering water from subterranean sources.
Australia is the driest inhabited continent in the world, but has a strong record of water management and investment. This is supported by a national and collaborative approach through the National Water Grid Fund (NWGF), which is, together with states and territory governments, working to ensure reliable access to safe water for all Australians.
This approach also takes in account the cultural and spiritual values of water and water bodies important for First Nations culture and identity.(source: nationalwatergrid.gov.au)
FREE GENIE #ORIGIN
Brand Name: Origin
Company: Origin TM Water, Blue Triton Brand, US
Market: US
Origin is an American spring-to-table water, advertised by the slogan "Spring Water that doesn't have to cross an ocean to get to your table. American springs for American tables. A celebration of care, craft, and conversation.”
FREE GENIE #PARADISE
Brand Name: Paradise Drinking Water
Company: Paradise Drinking Water, Santa Ana, CA, US
Market: Southern California, US
Paradise is a drinking water supplier of Southern California, US, offering spring water and purified water for home and office delivery. Its slogan: "The Taste and Pure Refreshment of Paradise."
California has experienced two major droughts in the last decade and expects more extremely dry periods to come due to changing climate. Therefore 2024 California has imposed permanent water restrictions on cities and towns for the first time in state history. The policy requires hundreds of urban water suppliers to reduce the amount of water they provide up to nearly 40% in some cities over the next 15 years. (source: Californiacity-ca.gov).
FREE GENIE #PORVENIR
Brand Name: Agua Mineral Porvenir
Translation: Future (Spanish)
Company: Agua Mineral Porvenir, Casablanca, Chile
Market: Chile
The brand sells premium natural spring water and mineral water from Valle Casablanca, Chile.
FREE GENIE #PUREELEMENT
Brand Name: LunAqua
Slogan: Pure Element.
Company: Red Bull, Salzburg, Austria
Market: International
Red Bull launched LunAqua in 2001 – a premium water of natural spring water from Vorarlberg, Austria, bottled “under the glare of the full moon”. The “symbiosis of water and moon” was bottled 13 times a year.
The marketing narrative implied that with the power of the full moon, spring water reached its highest bioenergetic power. The brand was not very successful and has been withdrawn from production.
FREE GENIE #PURELIFE
Brand Name: Pure Life
Company: Nestlé SA. Switzerland
Market: International
The brand "Pure Life" by Nestlé is available in more than 40 countries and is the world's best-selling water. Nestlé has an annual revenue of 4170 billion dollars with its drinking water products and ranks third among the global market leaders in the drinking water industry.
FREE GENIE #PURELOVE
Brand Name: Absolute - Pure Distilled Drinking Water
Slogan: Pure Water. Pure Love.
Company: Asia Brewery Incorporated, Makati City, Philippines
Market: Philippines
Asia Brewery Inc. is a major player in the Philippines’ beverage and industrial packaging industry with an annual revenue of 12.0 M Dollar. They aim to provide safe distilled water to every Filipino family at an affordable price.
The Philippines and Australia are the markets where bottled water is the most expensive, according to an analysis by the website GlobalProductPrices.com 2022.
FREE GENIE #SALUS
Brand Name: Salus
Translation: health, well-being, welfare, salvation (Latin).
Company: Danone, Paris, France
Market: Uruguay
Salus is a natural mineral water from Fuente de Puma, Sierras de Minas, Uruguay, sold by Danone. The company ranks fourth among bottled water market leaders worldwide, with an annual revenue of 3900 million dollar.
Spiritual connotation of the brand name: Salus was the Roman goddess of safety and well-being (welfare, health and prosperity) of both the individual and the state.
FREE GENIE #SOHAT
Brand Name: Sohat
Translation: health, soundness of body (Arabic)
Company: Nestlé Waters, Switzerland
Market: Lebanon, UAE, Saudi Arabia
Sohat, the leading brand of bottled water in Lebanon, offers natural mineral water of the Falougha Source, Lebanon. Lebanon is a water-scarce country with uncertain bulk water supply sources. Groundwater is exploited at unsustainable levels, and the coastal aquifers suffer from seawater intrusion.
For decades, the Lebanese population has been subject to severe water supply shortages, often receiving access to only 1-3 hours of water per day, due to the country’s limited water resources, infrastructure deficit, and suboptimal water resources management. The population thus relies on expensive bottled and tanker water, which disproportionately affects the poor. (Source: worldbank.org)
FREE GENIE #THEWATERTHATLOVESYOUBACK
Brand Name: Aqua Carpatica
Slogan: "Taste the water that loves you back."
Company: Aqua Carpatica USA Inc. Phoenix, Arizona, Romanian company partially owned by PepsiCo.
Market: International
Pristine spring water from the protected Bajenaru Spring, Carpathian mountains (RO). Aqua Carpatica is advertised with the slogans “Experience waterlove” and “The water that loves you back.”. It has won 63 international awards for its taste.
PepsiCo is ranked #2 among the market Leaders of the global bottled water industries, with an annual revenue of 4500 M dollar in the water sector.
FREE GENIE #THORSPRING
Brand Name: Thorspring
Company: Kemmerer Bottling Group, Illinois, US
Market: US
Thorspring is a premium water for the US market bottling glacial spring water in Iceland.
Spiritual connotation: Thor is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, and fertility.
FREE GENIE #TIANTANGZHISHUI
Brand: various Chinese water brands
Slogan: Tiantang zhi shui
Translation: Water of Heaven (Chinese)
Market: China
"Water of Heaven" is the slogan of Chinese drinking water brands bottling glacial spring water in Tibet. Bottled water from Tibet is sold across China, often as a high-end product, trading on Tibet's reputation as spiritually and environmentally pure.
In the last two decades China has become the world’s largest bottled water consumer and a major producer. Although it currently makes up a small proportion of China’s annual bottled water production, water from Tibet’s mountain glaciers is seen as the new point of growth for China’s booming bottled water industry.
FREE GENIE #UNLEASHYOURPOWER
Brand Name: Power Water
Slogan: "Unleash your Power. For the Seekers. For the Doers."
Company: Powerade, The CocaCola Company, Atlanta, Georgia, US
Market: International
Power Water is an electrolyte water beverage in the category of functional waters by the brand Powerade of CocaCola. CocaCola is the global leader of the bottled drinking water industries with an annual revenue of 4600 million dollars on the water sector.
FREE GENIE #URSTROMQUELLE
Brand Name: Urstromquelle Mineralwasser
Translation: Source of the Primordial Current (German)
Company: Red Bull GmbH, Rauch Fruchtsäfte GmbH
Market: International
The natural spring “Urstromquelle” in Brandenburg, Germany, is referred to since 1364. The brand Brandburger Urstromquelle was founded in 1995 and is based in Mark, Germany. In March 2023, the brand was acquired by Red Bull and Rauch Fruchtsäfte GmbH.
FREE GENIE #VEDICA
Brand Name: Vedica - Himalayan Spring Water
Translation: Full of Knowledge (Sanskrit)
Company: Bisleri, India
Market: International
The natural mineral water is bottled at the foothills of the Himalayas in Uttarakhand. It is sold by Bisleri International to demanding consumers in India and internationally with the slogan “full of attitude”.
Bisleri International is ranked tenth in the global bottled water industries with ca. a 250 million dollar revenue. In India, it is so popular that Bisleri is used as a generic term for mineral water.
Spiritual connotation: “Vedica” (Sanskrit) referes to knowledge from the Vedas, a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism.
The advertising story of Vedica Himalayan Spring Water embraces spiritual terminology: “It began with a quest. To find the purest water in the world. A pilgrimage that witnessed the sacred purity of the mighty Himalayas. (…) Where every drop of water was blessed.”
FREE GENIE #VIRGEN
Brand Name: Virgen Natural Mineral Water
Translation: Virgin (Spanish)
Company: Virgen Water, Hergiswil, Switzerland
Market: Switzerland
Virgen is a premium water for an elite of conoisseurs, bottled at the Arequita hills in Uruguay, sold in Switzerland with the slogan "For people who have good things first."
FREE GENIE #WATEROFLIFE
Brand Name: Aur'a Natural Mineral Spring Water
Slogan: Water of life.
Company: Aur'a Gold Water Ltd. UK
Market: International
Premium Water from naturally alkaline sources at Transylvania's Golden Hawk Mountains (RO), enriched with gold and silver nanoparticles while crossing an underground ore.
“Aur” comes from the Latin word “aurum” which signifies “gold” and the “A” stands for “argentum”, the Latin word for “silver” – both vital nanoparticles present in Aur’a Natural Gold Water.
FREE GENIE #ZAMZAM
Brand Name: East Tehran Zamzam Water
Company: ZamZam Iran Co.
Market: Iran
Spiritual connotation: The Zamzam Well (Arabic: بئر زمزم, ) is a holy well located within the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is located 20 m east of the Kaaba, the holiest place in Islam.
According to Islamic traditions, the Zamzam spring first miraculously sprouted to provide water to Hagar and her infant son Ismail after being left alone in the desert. God caused the spring to bubble up wherever the angel Jibrael struck his wing upon God’s command.
Millions of Muslims from around the world visit the Zamzam well each year while performing Hajj or Umrah pilgrimages. For followers of Islam, the water holds a unique significance, because it carries blessings due to its spiritual origins and proximity to the sacred spaces of Mecca.
Free Genie
FREE GENIE is an artistic intervention and conversation piece dealing with the spiritual value of water and its appropriation by the bottled water industries world wide.
The Artwork
The artwork consists of 60 selected, unique, secondhand waterglasses engraved with terms and expressions referring to spiritual experiences with water. The engravings quote actual brand names and marketing slogans of products of the bottled water industries.
FREE GENIE reclaims and de-commercializes the spiritual value of water. It invites to connect to the life-giving, healing, renewing (e.g.) aspects of local (tap) water with a simple, personal drinking experience. The art intervention enhances intimate connections to water and serves as a conversation piece for communities at workshops or gatherings.
FREE GENIE was created by Regina Hügli in 2023, the design of the engravings was implemented in cooperation with Design Büro Baustelle, Vienna.
Background
The fundamental, deep connection between water and life/death shows itself in a spiritual relationship of humans to water and water bodies in many cultures and religious contexts.
However by treating water as a commercial good, a resource, this relationship to water fades. Water as a commodity is an enormous economic and political factor. Revenue in the Bottled Water segment amounts to US$ 342.4 billion in 2023. The market is expected to grow annually by 5.24%.
Quite many marketing strategies of drinking water industries refer to a spiritual relationship towards water - thus selling not only water, but also its spiritual value. Brand names and slogans addressing qualities of renewal, purity, healing, or even more specific spiritual wording, invite consumers to buy not only hydration but a reminiscence of a spiritual experience. The connection to water and life is commercially appropriated. FREE GENIE interferes by freeing the genies from their commercialized context.
The data concerning brands and slogans below is footed on an internet research by Regina Hügli 2023/2024.
FREE GENIE #ABSOLUTE
Product Name: Absolute
Brand: Asia Brewery Incorporated, Makati City, Philippines
Type of Water: Distilled Water
Market: Philippines
About the Company: "providing world-class distilled water to every Filipino family at an affordable price." Starting from a humble vision to break the beer monopoly in 1982, Asia Brewery Inc. (ABI) is now a major player in the Philippines’ beverage and industrial packaging industry. Annual Revenue 12.0 M Dollar
FREE GENIE #ADAMSALE
Brand Name: Adam's Ale
Company: Beggar's Velvet, UK
Market: International
Premium Water for the international market at 42 GBP a bottle (0,75l). The brand Beggars’ Velvet, founded in 2014, produces a line of subversive housewares, playing with epigrams and old slang vocabulary. “Adam’s Ale” is old English slang for drinking water and refers to the diet of the biblical Adam.
FREE GENIE #ALFA&OMEGA
Brand Name: Alfa & Omega Drinking Water
Company: Alfa n Omega Beverages Pvt. Ltd., Hyderabad, Andra Pradesh, India
Market: India, local
Mineral water sold in Hyperabad, the capital of the Indian state of Telangana, and the fourth-most populous city in India with a population of 6.9 million residents, and 9,7 million in the metropolitan region.
The city's water supply is based on groundwater. Greater Hyderabad faces severe water crisis, the groundwater table has been dropping sharply in the last years.
Spiritual connotation of the product name: Alpha (Α or α) and omega (Ω or ω) are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, and a title of Christ and God in the Book of Revelation.
FREE GENIE #ALTISSIMAPURISSIMA
Brand Name: Levissima
Slogan: Altissima, Purissima
Translation: the highest, the purest (Latin)
Company: SanPellegrino Group, Milano, Italy, as part of Nestlé, Switzerland.
Market: International.
The natural mineral water from Alpine sources at Parco Naturale dello Stelvio (IT) is a classic Italian water and a brand successfully representing the natural pureness of water internationally.
It is consumed by ten million Italian families (source: GFK eurisko consumer panel) and sold in 150 countries on five continents.
Spiritual connotation: The qualities “the highest, the purest” resonate with Christian terminology. “Altissimus” is the Latin translation of the Hebrew/Aramaic words found in the Old Testament for the concept of “highest God”, while the expression “purissima” – the purest – is a quality connotated with Virgin Mary, mother of Christ.
FREE GENIE #ANGEL
Brand Name: Angel Drinking Water
Company: Angel Drinking Water, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania
Market: Tanzania
Angel Drinking Water is a local brand selling and delivering purified water from protected underground wells. Tanzania faces a severe water and sanitation crisis: out of its population of 65 million people, 58 million people (88% of the population) lack access to safe water, and 49 million people (74%) lack access to a safe toilet. (source: water.org)
FREE GENIE #AQUADOR
Brand Name: Aqua D´Or Mineral Water
Translation: Golden Water (Italian)
Company: Danone, Paris, FR
Market: International
The Premium Water from a groundwater well in Jutland, Denmark, costs 5,78 Euro per bottle (1l). Aqua d'Or owned by Danone is Scandinavia's largest producer of natural mineral water and soft drinks, offering high quality products.
According to the company’s website, the Aqua D’Or source can be traced back to the last ice age, the water was filtered during 300 years of journey through the Jutland heath.
FREE GENIE #AQUAMANTRA
Brand Name: Aquamantra Premium Natural Spring Water
Company: Aquamantra Inc., Farifax, CA, US
Market: US, International
According to its distributor, Aquamantra is a premium natural spring water infused with ”Universal Energy” (e.g. the mantras ”I am grateful, I am loved”). Prize online: 46 $ per bottle.
Spiritual connotation: A mantra is a word or sound that is believed to have a special spiritual power in Buddhist or Hindu context.
FREE GENIE #AQUARAPHA
Brand Name: Aqua Rapha
Company: Aqua Rapha Investment Nigeria Ltd
Market: Nigeria
Aqua Rapha Investment Ltd. is a top bottled water company in Eastern Nigeria, owned by the spiritual director of the Adoration Ministry in Enugu Nigeria (AMEN). AMEN is a religious organization founded by the inspiration of the holy spirit and guided by Rev. Fr. Ejike Camilus Anthony Mbaka.
Despite Nigeria's immense wealth in water resources, the country faces a significant water crisis due to a massive pollution of water bodies, mismanagement and distribution problems.
FREE GENIE #AQUIESDONDETODOCOMIENZA
Brand Name: Pureza Vital, Pure Life
Slogan: Aqui es donde todo comienza.
Translation: Everything starts from here. (Spanish)
Brand: Nestlé S.A., Switzerland
Market: International
The international brand "Pure Life" by Nestlé is available in more than 40 countries and is the world's best-selling water. Groundwater from local municipal and well sources is purifed, mineralized, bottled and sold in the countries of extraction. Nestlé has an annual revenue of 4170 million dollars with its drinking water products and ranks third among the global market leaders in the bottled drinking water industry.
Spiritual connotation: ”Everything starts from here.” A reference to the biblical story of creation in the book of Genesis, and the book of Revelation, where God refers to himself as the Alpha and the Omega - the beginning and the end of existence and time.
FREE GENIE #AURA
Brand Name: Aura Water
Company: Lidskoe Pivo, Lida, Belarus, part of the Olvi PLC, Finland.
Market: International
Aura water is a still drinking water treated with reverse osmosis and UV irradiation. The brand claims it can “revive natural beauty and improve well-being”.
Lidskoe Pivo in Belarus is a leading beer and beverage producing company with a long history. Since 2008 it has been part of the Finnish Olvi Group. Aura Water is sold in twenty countries on three continents.
FREE GENIE #AVATON
Brand Name: Avaton
Company: Bright Stone Ltd, UK
Market: International
The Premium Water from Artesian Springs at Mount Athos, Greece, is sold for 4,39 € per bottle (0,75l). The UNESCO world heritage site of Mount Athos in northeastern Greece has been an important centre of Eastern Orthodox monasticism for centuries. The product’s claim: “This is a water as distinct as the place that creates it.”
Spiritual connotation: “Avaton” in Greek means an inaccessible and unapproachable place, sacred and inviolable, e.g. the holy district of a temple.
FREE GENIE #AWAKENING
Brand Name: Awake Water
Company: Awake Water, Sydney, Australia
Market: International.
The company aims to offer energized, “structured” water, which is claimed to be healthier than untreated water.
The natural spring water used is taken from a deep source having a very long filtration cycle, so, according to the company’s website, it has “essence and taste of true nature, as it once was prior to human interference.” The spring water is then treated by a electromagnetic waves resonator to structure it and sold online for 14 $ for gallon of 10l.
FREE GENIE #BALANCE
Brand Name: Balance Spring Water
Company: Balance Trading Company, Australia
Market: Australia
The spring water is infused with Australian wildflowers is sold for 3 $ per bottle (1l).
FREE GENIE #BARAKA
Brand Name: Baraka Water
Translation: Blessing (Arabic)
Company: Nestlé Waters, Switzerland
Market: Egypt.
Baraka Water sells purified groundwater from Banha, Egypt and is the first bottled water brand in Egypt, founded 1980.
Baraka Water and Pure Life by Nestlé were involved in a scandal in Egypt in 2016 when the products were declared “unfit for human consumption” by the authorities, after laboratory tests on samples revealed they did not comply with standards.
FREE GENIE #BEBETELAVIDA
Brand Name: Ciel
Slogan: Bébete la vida
Translation: Drink life (Spanish)
Company: The CocaCola Company, US
Market: Morocco, Mexico, Angola
Ciel is the top selling brand of mineral water by CocaCola, the world leader of bottled water industries with an annual revenue of 4600 million dollars.
What makes the brand really big is the fact that Mexico currently has the highest per capita consumption of bottled water worldwide. In Mexico, 72 million people (57% of the population) lack access to safe water. (source: water.org)
FREE GENIE #BLISS
Brand Name: Bliss Water
Company: Bliss Water Ltd., Nairobi, Kenia
Market: Nakuru and Nairobi region, Kenia
Bliss is one of the largest bottled water brands and water supplier in Kenia, selling groundwater which has undergone five steps of filtration.
With a population of 54 million, 15 million Kenyans lack access to safe water. Growing water demand and water scarcity have turned into a notable challenge for public health.
FREE GENIE #BODH
Brand Name: Bodh Waters
Meaning: awakening, enlightenment (Sanskrit)
Brand: Sunlight Beverages Pvt. Ltd., Delhi, India, Delhi
Market: International
Bodh Waters claims to offer “the taste of spirituality”, as it sells natural spring water from Himalayan mountains, Buthan. Quoting its website: "All spiritual traditions throughout history have recognised the importance of water in cleansing the body, mind and spirit. Bodh through the practise of water memory upholds the divine on a molecular level which connects you to the natural world, promoting a sense of peace and harmony between you and the universe.”
The brand is a member of the International Fine Waters Society (FWS), which was founded in 2008 to enhance the visibility of water brands offering natural, unprocessed products with terroir and unique characteristics. Bodh Water, prize per bottle: 849 Rs (10 dollars).
FREE GENIE #CIEL
Brand Name: Ciel
Slogan: Conecta Mente y Cuerpo
Translation: Connects mind and body (Spanish)
Company: The CocaCola Company, US
Market: Morocco, Mexico, Angola.
Ciel is the top selling brand of mineral water by CocaCola, the world leader of bottled water industries with an annual revenue of 4600 million dollars.
What makes the brand really big is the fact that Mexico currently has the highest per capita consumption of bottled water worldwide. In Mexico, 72 million people (57% of the population) lack access to safe water. (source: water.org)
FREE GENIE #CLOUDJUICE
Brand Name: King Island Cloud Juice
Company: Cloud Juice, Currie, King Island, Tasmania
Market: International
Cloud Juice sells rainwater from King Island in Tasmania as a Premium Water for connoisseurs worldwide. It is bottled in a 750ml Bordeaux style glass bottle and its character is said to change with temperature “from sweetly refreshing when chilled, to an elegant velvet when served at room temperature”.
The extravagant water for the best dining tables around the globe” is sold for 90 $ per bottle (0,75l) and advertised by the slogan “Some people feel the rain, others just get wet”.
FREE GENIE #CONECTAMENTEYCUERPO
Product Name: Ciel
Translation: Heaven (French)
Slogan: Conecta Mente y Cuerpo
(Connects Mind and Body, Spanish)
Brand: The CocaCola Company, US
Type of Water: purified, decarbonated bottled water
Market: Morocco, Mexico, Angola. Ciel is the top selling brand of mineral water by CocaCola, the market leader of the global water industries with an annual revenue of 4600 million dollars. What makes the brand really big is the fact that Mexicans are the world's largest consumer of bottled water, in small individual bottles (1.5 liters or less) and jugs (large bottles of 20 liters)
FREE GENIE #EARTHSFINESTWATER
Brand Name: Fiji
Slogan: Earth's finest water.
Company: FIJI Water Company LLC., as part of The Wonderful Company, Los Angeles US
Market: US, International
FIJI Water sells artesian source water from Fiji islands with the slogan “Bottled at the source, untouched by man”. It is very popular in US as a life style product and has a cult following of celebrities, business people and U.S. presidents. FIJI Water has been in the background of many pop-culture moments.
FIJI Water, or “Earth’s Finest Water,” is able to create an image that whoever purchases FIJI Water is part of an “elite” group. It is sold for 3,38 $ per bottle (1l). The brand has an annual revenue of 43.0 Million Dollar (2022).
FREE GENIE #ESSENTIA
Brand Name: Essentia
Translation: Essence (Latin)
Company: Essentia Water LLC., Bothell, US., bought by Nestlé in 2021
Market: US, International
Essentia is a Premium Water in the section of functional waters (ionized, alkaline). Essentia claims to be “overachieving H2O” and presents itself as a “hydroboost” with testimonials of successful creatives and athletes.
It has made an annual revenue of 192 million dollars in 2020, what made it attractive to the global player Nestlé. It is one of the highest ranked products in international contest of alkaline waters.
FREE GENIE #ETERNAL
Brand Name: Eternal
Company: Eternal Beverages, US
Market: US
Naturally alkaline spring water from the Shasta-Trinity Alps and the Great Smokey Mountains, US. Eternal Water – or “Nature’s perfect water” - is one of the fastest growing premium waters in the category sourced bottled water in the US.
FREE GENIE #FORTHESEEKERS
Brand Name: Power Water
Slogan: For the Seekers. For the Doers. Unleash your Power.
Company: Powerade, The CocaCola Company, Atlanta, Georgia, US
Market: International.
Power Water is an electrolyte water beverage in the category of functional waters by the Brand Powerade of CocaCola. CocaCola is the global leader of the bottled drinking water industries with an annual revenue of 4600 million dollars on the water sector.
FREE GENIE #FOUNTAINOFYOUTH
Brand Name: Aur'a Natural Mineral Spring Water
Slogan: Fountain of Youth.
Company: Aur'a Gold Water Ltd. UK
Market: International
Premium Water from naturally alkaline sources at Transylvania's Golden Hawk Mountains (RO), enriched with gold and silver nanoparticles while crossing an underground ore.
“Aur” comes from the Latin word “aurum” which signifies “gold” and the “A” stands for “argentum”, the Latin word for “silver” – both vital nanoparticles present in Aur’a Natural Gold Water.
FREE GENIE #FUTURE
Brand Name: Future Aqua
Company: Future Aqua & Espy Pulpy, Jaipur, India
Market: India
Future Aqua is a small local company in Jaipur with a product range of mango juice and bottled water, prized 13 rupies/bottle (0,13 €), sold nation-wide.
Rajasthan is an inherently water-scarce state of India, which depends heavily on groundwater, recharged by rainfall only. Due to an ongoing massive overexploitation of groundwater and heat waves, the capital Jaipur has suffered a severe water crisis in 2024.
FREE GENIE #GIFTOFMOTHERNATURE
Brand Name: Aur'a Natural Mineral Spring Water
Slogan: Gift from Mother Nature.
Company: Aur'a Gold Water Ltd. UK
Market: International
Premium Water from naturally alkaline sources at Transylvania's Golden Hawk Mountains (RO), enriched with gold and silver nanoparticles while crossing an underground ore.
“Aur” comes from the Latin word “aurum” which signifies “gold” and the “A” stands for “argentum”, the Latin word for “silver” – both vital nanoparticles present in Aur’a Natural Gold Water.
FREE GENIE #GLORIAPATRI
Brand Name: Gloria Patri
Translation: Gloria Be to the Father (Latin)
Company: Promineral S.A., Furnas, San Miguel, Portugal
Market: International
Volcanic water from Serra do Trigo, Azores Archipelago. Gloria Patri is listed by the International Fine Water Society, which was founded in 2008 to foster natural, unprocessed water products with terroir and unique characteristics.
Spiritual connotation: “Gloria Patri” is a short hymn of praise to God in various Christian liturgies. “Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.” The hymn is of unknown origin, a.o. mentioned in Psalm 29:2.
FREE GENIE #GUSTULPURITATII
Brand Name: Aqua Carpatica
Slogan: Gustul purității
Translation: Taste of purity (Romanian)
Company: Aqua Carpatica USA Inc., Phoenix, Arizona, US, partially owned by PepsiCo
Market: International.
Pristine spring water from the protected Bajenaru Spring, Carpathian mountains (RO). Aqua Carpatica is advertised with the slogans “Experience waterlove” and “The water that loves you back.”. It has won 63 international awards for its taste.
PepsiCo is ranked #2 among the market Leaders of the global bottled water industries, with an annual revenue of 4500 M dollar in the water sector.
FREE GENIE #HANA
Brand Name: Hana Water
Translation: Bliss, happiness (Arabic)
Company: Hana Food Industries Company, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Market: Saudi Arabia
Hana Water is advertised by the slogan “the source of happiness” and offers purified, mineralized water from groundwater wells in the Qassim region, Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia is one of the most arid countries in the world. The demand for water is very high due to the growing population, industry, and agriculture. Water consumption in Saudi Arabia ranks among the highest in the world. Overexploitation of groundwater has led to a situation where there's almost no water left, and soil salinization has become a serious concern. (source for water situation: website Gulf Cooperation Council)
FREE GENIE #HAYAT
Brand Name: Hayat
Translation: Life (Turkish)
Company: Danone, Paris, France
Market: Turkey
The spring water of Sekerpinar (Toros mountains) and Sakarya-Hendek (Keremali Mountains) in Turkey is one of the most popular Turkish water brands.
Produced for the first time in 1984, Hayat Su is one of the most established companies in the packaged/bottled water sector in Turkey. It has joined Danone in 1997, which is ranked #4 in the global bottled water industries.
FREE GENIE #HEAVENDROPS
Brand Name: Heaven Drops Packaged Drinking Water
Company: Speedy Wheels PVT.LTD, Kolkata, India
Market: Kolakata region, India
A local bottled water company and delivery service for 20 l cans in the region of Kalkota, India. Kalkota, like many other Indian cities, undergoes a massive overexploitation of its groundwater resources, which leads to increasing seasonal water shortages in several districts of the city.
FREE GENIE #HEAVENLYWATER
Brand Name: Heavenly Water
Company: Heavenly Water N.V., Hawaii
Market: Hawaii
The Hawaiian brand Heavenly Water sells desalted sea-water, taken from “the beautiful untouched ocean around us”, filtrated and purified by reverse-osmosis.
FREE GENIE #IAMLOVED
Brand Name: Aquamantra Premium Natural Spring Water
Slogan: Stimulate your soul. I am loved. I am grateful.
Company: Aquamantra Inc., Farifax, CA, US
Market: International
According to its distributor, Aquamantra is a premium natural spring water infused with ”Universal Energy” (e.g. the mantras ”I am grateful, I am loved”). Prize online: 46 $ per bottle.
Spiritual connotation: A mantra is a word or sound that is believed to have a special spiritual power in Buddhist or Hindu context.
FREE GENIE #ITSPUREGENIUS
Brand Name: Smart Water
Slogan: It's pure genius.
Company: Glaceau, The CocaCola Company, Atlanta, Georgia, US
Market: US, International
Smart Water belongs to the category of functional waters and offers distilled water with electrolytes added.
It is one of the top water brands of US by the global leader of the bottled water industry, the Coca Cola Company.
FREE GENIE #JIBU
Brand Name: Jibu
Translation: Answer (Kiswahili)
Company: Jibu Inc., Nairobi, Kenia/ Kigali, Rwanda/ Colorado Springs, US
Market: Kenia, Burundi,Ghana, Rwanda, Tanzania,Uganda,Zambia, DRC Bukavu, DRC Goma
Jibu, Inc offers filtered, purified tap water. It is a for-profit social enterprise that prioritizes impact in communities. The hybrid approach stimulates responsible economic growth and independence. While drinking water is the immediate focus, the ultimate goal is to launch a network of independent franchise owners.
Growing water demand and water scarcity have turned into a notable challenge in Kenya. Climate change, population growth, urbanization, water pollution, and poor management of water resources have aggravated the issue of the water crisis, which affects economic activities, food security, education, and health.
15 million people lack access to safe water, 37 million people lack access to a safe toilet. (source: water.org
FREE GENIE #JOY
Brand Name: Joy Water
Company: Joy Water, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Market: Ethiopia
Joy water is a local company offering and delivering purified bottled water in Addis Ababa region.
As one of Africa’s fastest growing cities, Addis Ababa’s demand for water has sky rocketed over recent decades due to population growth, rural to urban migration, and growing water demand from industry.
It is estimated that existing water supply from groundwater, springs and surface water of the Awash river basin only meets about 60% of the city’s water demand, leaving much of the population under-served.
(source: reachwater.uk)
FREE GENIE #LIQUIDDEATH
Brand Name: Liquid Death
Company: Supplying demand Inc.
Market: International
The British canned water brand sells spring water of sources at Frankenmarkt, Austria. When launching the brand in 2017, the company looked for "the dumbest name" to sell water.
Liquid Death with its taglines “Don't be scared, it's just water!” or “Murder your thirst” is economically very successful; in 2023 it made an annual revenue of 263 million Dollar.
The success of the brand is based on the marketing strategy of selling the product in cans like alcohol and of subversing the usual tropes of bottled water marketing which emphasize the life-giving qualities of water
FREE GENIE #MAGNIFICAT
Brand Name: Magnificat
Company: Promineral SA. Portugal
Market: International
Magnificat is a Premium Water bottling spring water of the dormant Furnas volcano, St. Miguel, Azores. The spring was baptized “Magnificat” in the 18th century.
Magnificat is listed by the International Fine Water Society, which was founded in 2008 to enhance the visibility of water brands offering natural, unprocessed products with terroir and unique characteristics.
Spiritual connotation: "Magnificat anima mea dominum" (Latin: my soul magnifies the Lord) is a canticle known as the Song of Mary, Gospel of Luke (1:46-55). It is traditionally incorporated into the liturgical services of the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, Lutheran Churches and the Anglican Communion.
FREE GENIE #MIRACLE
Brand Name: Miracle
Company: Miracle, Karachi, Pakistan
Market: Pakistan
Miracle is a Pakistani brand offering and delivering water for private households and offices. In Pakistan 21 million of people don't have access to clean drinking water in their daily life (population: 221 million).
FREE GENIE #NATURALLYINTELLIGENT
Brand Name: VodaVoda
Slogan: "Trust Nature. Nature knows best. Naturally intelligent."
Company: VodaVoda, Banja Vrujcj, Serbia
Market: Serbia
Artesian Spring Water of Vrujcj Space, Serbia, sold with the Slogan “Naturally intelligent - Nature knows best”.
The marketing narrative describes water/nature as a supportive, godlike entity. Quoting the brand’s website: “When stress becomes the norm and tranquility the exception; when answers elude us and questions abound; when doubts grow loud and support remains silent; when decisive steps are needed and we feel we cannot do it alone – nature takes our hand and gives as a boost.”
FREE GENIE #NATURESBLESSING
Brand Name: Boon Water
Slogan: Nature's Blessing
Company: Boon Water, Paterson, US
Market: US
Premium Water for the US market, being advertised by the remoteness and purity of its sources “Isolated in the mountains of Sakarya, Turkey, at an altitude of 1,060 meters, far away from any human pollution, lies the facility that produces Boon Water.”
FREE GENIE #NEVERFAILSPRINGWATER
Brand Name: Neverfail Spring Water
Company: Neverfail Springwater QLD PTY LTD, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, Queensland, Australia
Market: Australia
Neverfail Springwater is the market leader of spring water delivery to homes and offices in Australia, offering water from subterranean sources.
Australia is the driest inhabited continent in the world, but has a strong record of water management and investment. This is supported by a national and collaborative approach through the National Water Grid Fund (NWGF), which is, together with states and territory governments, working to ensure reliable access to safe water for all Australians.
This approach also takes in account the cultural and spiritual values of water and water bodies important for First Nations culture and identity.(source: nationalwatergrid.gov.au)
FREE GENIE #ORIGIN
Brand Name: Origin
Company: Origin TM Water, Blue Triton Brand, US
Market: US
Origin is an American spring-to-table water, advertised by the slogan "Spring Water that doesn't have to cross an ocean to get to your table. American springs for American tables. A celebration of care, craft, and conversation.”
FREE GENIE #PARADISE
Brand Name: Paradise Drinking Water
Company: Paradise Drinking Water, Santa Ana, CA, US
Market: Southern California, US
Paradise is a drinking water supplier of Southern California, US, offering spring water and purified water for home and office delivery. Its slogan: "The Taste and Pure Refreshment of Paradise."
California has experienced two major droughts in the last decade and expects more extremely dry periods to come due to changing climate. Therefore 2024 California has imposed permanent water restrictions on cities and towns for the first time in state history. The policy requires hundreds of urban water suppliers to reduce the amount of water they provide up to nearly 40% in some cities over the next 15 years. (source: Californiacity-ca.gov).
FREE GENIE #PORVENIR
Brand Name: Agua Mineral Porvenir
Translation: Future (Spanish)
Company: Agua Mineral Porvenir, Casablanca, Chile
Market: Chile
The brand sells premium natural spring water and mineral water from Valle Casablanca, Chile.
FREE GENIE #PUREELEMENT
Brand Name: LunAqua
Slogan: Pure Element.
Company: Red Bull, Salzburg, Austria
Market: International
Red Bull launched LunAqua in 2001 – a premium water of natural spring water from Vorarlberg, Austria, bottled “under the glare of the full moon”. The “symbiosis of water and moon” was bottled 13 times a year.
The marketing narrative implied that with the power of the full moon, spring water reached its highest bioenergetic power. The brand was not very successful and has been withdrawn from production.
FREE GENIE #PURELIFE
Brand Name: Pure Life
Company: Nestlé SA. Switzerland
Market: International
The brand "Pure Life" by Nestlé is available in more than 40 countries and is the world's best-selling water. Nestlé has an annual revenue of 4170 billion dollars with its drinking water products and ranks third among the global market leaders in the drinking water industry.
FREE GENIE #PURELOVE
Brand Name: Absolute - Pure Distilled Drinking Water
Slogan: Pure Water. Pure Love.
Company: Asia Brewery Incorporated, Makati City, Philippines
Market: Philippines
Asia Brewery Inc. is a major player in the Philippines’ beverage and industrial packaging industry with an annual revenue of 12.0 M Dollar. They aim to provide safe distilled water to every Filipino family at an affordable price.
The Philippines and Australia are the markets where bottled water is the most expensive, according to an analysis by the website GlobalProductPrices.com 2022.
FREE GENIE #SALUS
Brand Name: Salus
Translation: health, well-being, welfare, salvation (Latin).
Company: Danone, Paris, France
Market: Uruguay
Salus is a natural mineral water from Fuente de Puma, Sierras de Minas, Uruguay, sold by Danone. The company ranks fourth among bottled water market leaders worldwide, with an annual revenue of 3900 million dollar.
Spiritual connotation of the brand name: Salus was the Roman goddess of safety and well-being (welfare, health and prosperity) of both the individual and the state.
FREE GENIE #SOHAT
Brand Name: Sohat
Translation: health, soundness of body (Arabic)
Company: Nestlé Waters, Switzerland
Market: Lebanon, UAE, Saudi Arabia
Sohat, the leading brand of bottled water in Lebanon, offers natural mineral water of the Falougha Source, Lebanon. Lebanon is a water-scarce country with uncertain bulk water supply sources. Groundwater is exploited at unsustainable levels, and the coastal aquifers suffer from seawater intrusion.
For decades, the Lebanese population has been subject to severe water supply shortages, often receiving access to only 1-3 hours of water per day, due to the country’s limited water resources, infrastructure deficit, and suboptimal water resources management. The population thus relies on expensive bottled and tanker water, which disproportionately affects the poor. (Source: worldbank.org)
FREE GENIE #THEWATERTHATLOVESYOUBACK
Brand Name: Aqua Carpatica
Slogan: "Taste the water that loves you back."
Company: Aqua Carpatica USA Inc. Phoenix, Arizona, Romanian company partially owned by PepsiCo.
Market: International
Pristine spring water from the protected Bajenaru Spring, Carpathian mountains (RO). Aqua Carpatica is advertised with the slogans “Experience waterlove” and “The water that loves you back.”. It has won 63 international awards for its taste.
PepsiCo is ranked #2 among the market Leaders of the global bottled water industries, with an annual revenue of 4500 M dollar in the water sector.
FREE GENIE #THORSPRING
Brand Name: Thorspring
Company: Kemmerer Bottling Group, Illinois, US
Market: US
Thorspring is a premium water for the US market bottling glacial spring water in Iceland.
Spiritual connotation: Thor is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, and fertility.
FREE GENIE #TIANTANGZHISHUI
Brand: various Chinese water brands
Slogan: Tiantang zhi shui
Translation: Water of Heaven (Chinese)
Market: China
"Water of Heaven" is the slogan of Chinese drinking water brands bottling glacial spring water in Tibet. Bottled water from Tibet is sold across China, often as a high-end product, trading on Tibet's reputation as spiritually and environmentally pure.
In the last two decades China has become the world’s largest bottled water consumer and a major producer. Although it currently makes up a small proportion of China’s annual bottled water production, water from Tibet’s mountain glaciers is seen as the new point of growth for China’s booming bottled water industry.
FREE GENIE #UNLEASHYOURPOWER
Brand Name: Power Water
Slogan: "Unleash your Power. For the Seekers. For the Doers."
Company: Powerade, The CocaCola Company, Atlanta, Georgia, US
Market: International
Power Water is an electrolyte water beverage in the category of functional waters by the brand Powerade of CocaCola. CocaCola is the global leader of the bottled drinking water industries with an annual revenue of 4600 million dollars on the water sector.
FREE GENIE #URSTROMQUELLE
Brand Name: Urstromquelle Mineralwasser
Translation: Source of the Primordial Current (German)
Company: Red Bull GmbH, Rauch Fruchtsäfte GmbH
Market: International
The natural spring “Urstromquelle” in Brandenburg, Germany, is referred to since 1364. The brand Brandburger Urstromquelle was founded in 1995 and is based in Mark, Germany. In March 2023, the brand was acquired by Red Bull and Rauch Fruchtsäfte GmbH.
FREE GENIE #VEDICA
Brand Name: Vedica - Himalayan Spring Water
Translation: Full of Knowledge (Sanskrit)
Company: Bisleri, India
Market: International
The natural mineral water is bottled at the foothills of the Himalayas in Uttarakhand. It is sold by Bisleri International to demanding consumers in India and internationally with the slogan “full of attitude”.
Bisleri International is ranked tenth in the global bottled water industries with ca. a 250 million dollar revenue. In India, it is so popular that Bisleri is used as a generic term for mineral water.
Spiritual connotation: “Vedica” (Sanskrit) referes to knowledge from the Vedas, a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism.
The advertising story of Vedica Himalayan Spring Water embraces spiritual terminology: “It began with a quest. To find the purest water in the world. A pilgrimage that witnessed the sacred purity of the mighty Himalayas. (…) Where every drop of water was blessed.”
FREE GENIE #VIRGEN
Brand Name: Virgen Natural Mineral Water
Translation: Virgin (Spanish)
Company: Virgen Water, Hergiswil, Switzerland
Market: Switzerland
Virgen is a premium water for an elite of conoisseurs, bottled at the Arequita hills in Uruguay, sold in Switzerland with the slogan "For people who have good things first."
FREE GENIE #WATEROFLIFE
Brand Name: Aur'a Natural Mineral Spring Water
Slogan: Water of life.
Company: Aur'a Gold Water Ltd. UK
Market: International
Premium Water from naturally alkaline sources at Transylvania's Golden Hawk Mountains (RO), enriched with gold and silver nanoparticles while crossing an underground ore.
“Aur” comes from the Latin word “aurum” which signifies “gold” and the “A” stands for “argentum”, the Latin word for “silver” – both vital nanoparticles present in Aur’a Natural Gold Water.
FREE GENIE #ZAMZAM
Brand Name: East Tehran Zamzam Water
Company: ZamZam Iran Co.
Market: Iran
Spiritual connotation: The Zamzam Well (Arabic: بئر زمزم, ) is a holy well located within the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is located 20 m east of the Kaaba, the holiest place in Islam.
According to Islamic traditions, the Zamzam spring first miraculously sprouted to provide water to Hagar and her infant son Ismail after being left alone in the desert. God caused the spring to bubble up wherever the angel Jibrael struck his wing upon God’s command.
Millions of Muslims from around the world visit the Zamzam well each year while performing Hajj or Umrah pilgrimages. For followers of Islam, the water holds a unique significance, because it carries blessings due to its spiritual origins and proximity to the sacred spaces of Mecca.