In February, Fruit Shoot introduced a new sports cap across Fruit Shoot bottles.
However, this wasn’t an ordinary change. We took extraordinary steps to make sure everyone could continue to enjoy this much-loved brand.
We became aware of the effect alterations to Fruit Shoot packaging can have on consumers, particularly those in the neurodivergent community, after a previous design switch from coloured to transparent bottles left kids questioning whether it was the same product they’d previously loved.
This became a particular issue for parents of autistic children, with many who use Fruit Shoot to keep their families hydrated struggling, as their kids rejected the new bottles.
With over 700,000 autistic youngsters in the UK, Fruit Shoot wanted to make sure that the transition to the new cap was as easy as possible for everyone.
To ensure maximum support was in place during the change, Fruit Shoot partnered with relevant experts including the National Autistic Society, parent influencer of two boys with autism, James Hunt and our employee network, B-Seen.
The new cap is easier to recycle and easier for smaller hands to drink from, and the tethered design helps keep the spout clean between uses.
Critically, the liquid remained exactly the same. This was a key message the campaign needed to land.
Launching the collaboration, Fruit Shoot and the National Autistic Society created freely available online resources, including the popular social story tool – a cartoon strip style explanation of what was changing and why, for families to use at home and on the go. Several influencers, popular within neurodiverse communities, were engaged to help make sure we reached as many people who may be affected as possible.
This case study and insights have been shared via the Business Disability Forum with its 250+ members. Taking inspiration from the campaign, social stories have been created for younger visitors to Britvic factories to help prepare them for tour experiences.
Social media influencer James Hunt is a dad to two boys, Tommy and Jude, who are both autistic and non-verbal. James shares his everyday life to help other parents not feel so alone. James advocates for autism awareness through his content and blog. He has won two Bloody Awesome Parents Awards and has been a brilliant partner in developing this campaign, really championing proactive brand approaches to product changes and helping Fruit Shoot support the community as much as possible. Resources are still available on the Fruit Shoot website and include a short video of James explaining the changes.
