It’s just water in a can. How did Liquid Death become a billion-dollar brand?

return2ozma@lemmy.world to Not The Onion@lemmy.world – 362 points –
It’s just water in a can. How did Liquid Death become a billion-dollar brand?
nbcnews.com
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It's only a dollar here and I like that it comes in a can, not a plastic bottle simply because it gets colder faster and stays colder longer.

It’s only a dollar here

for... water.

This is the baffling part. I live in a country that periodically grades the taste of regional water supplies, in addition to testing for solids and the usual. And I live in a part of that country consistently known for really great-tasting tap water.

It's baffling that they'd sell water in a can. Please don't tell me it's bottled in Atlanta, where they bottle the worst-tasting coca-cola in the world, or it'll be extra-baffling.

Maybe the appeal is the "cool factor". Here's 2 examples I could think of. At work, you want to stand out from the "water bottle" people. At parties/bars maybe you don't want to drink alcohol, but still want something in your hand while you're mingling.

It's honestly a fine product. It's just overpriced by about 2 or 3 times what it should be.

The appeal was people who don't drink alcohol get some water that lets them fit in with the drinkers at first glance.

And it doesn't make it clear they're judging everyone around them for lack of palate and sense.

(Maybe that's just me)

I mean, buying a bottle of water is at least a dollar too.

At the super market? I pay 0,29€ for 1,5l or 0,15€ for 0,5l.

If it is at a gas station 1$ seems really cheap though.

Agreed, but you won't find this stuff in a gas station for $1. That's not how you make a billion dollars.

Some people live in places where the tap water tastes like chemical asshole. Or they travel. Whatever the reason, buying water happens.

That's not how thermodynamics work. It's either transferring heat more efficiently, or not. But always the same, in both directions.

It's probably "felt thermodynamics". The can feels colder, so it is colder.

How cold a beverage is, is a measure of how quickly it absorbs heat from your hand.

Explain insulation and conduction.

Insulation and conduction are opposites. Vacuum (empty space) and stagnant air are great insulators, that's how double walled bottles insulate.

Aluminum conducts heat quickly for the same reason it conducts electricity well. It has a relatively low heat capacity too so it doesn't take much energy to heat or cool it so it will more quickly heat or cool its contents.

Toss that alu can in the freezer to cool it quickly, then put it in an insulated colster to keep it cold.

I like that it comes in a can, not a plastic bottle simply because it gets colder faster and stays colder longer.

If it feels colder in your hand, it means the opposite of what you assume: It absorbs heat from your hand faster, so the stays colder shorter.

Imagine instead you hold a perfectly insulated container. You could not feel wether the inside is hot or cold, or else the insulation would be faulty.

So if you really want to have a drink that stays colder longer, grab something which does not give away how cold it is, quite literally.