Erewhon’s $12 Water Joke Reveals the 1 Thing Premium Brands Need More Than Ingredients

People thought plain hose water tasted like honey and hibiscus. For founders, the real lesson is how much work a strong brand can do before the product even arrives.

EXPERT OPINION BY TEMILOLA AGBEDE

An employee organizes bottles of Erewhon-branded spring water in Manhattan Beach, California. Photo: Getty Images

A woman on Hollywood Boulevard tried a sample and called it “the freshest water I’ve ever had.” Another described tasting honey and hibiscus. A third caught something nutty in the smell. None of them were drinking Erewhon’s actual $12 “Sacred Water,” a 12-ounce blend of coconut water, jasmine tea, holy basil, anise, cardamom, and raw honey that runs a dollar an ounce. They were drinking water straight from a garden hose, which Guillermo........

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