Red Bull Gives You Wiiiings

Red Bull marketed its energy drink in more than 70 countries. The nonalcoholic drink contained the amino acid taurine, B-complex vitamins, caffeine, and carbohydrates - not bull testicles or any other rumored ingredients.

Red Bull claimed that the body needed more taurine (an amino acid) than was produced naturally during physical exertion. (Infact Taurine was initially found in bulls, but is today produced synthetically.) From the outset, Mateschitz took to guerrilla marketing, a tactic that ultimately became Red Bull's trademark...

The drink maker planned to further boost sales by introducing the product in new countries, particularly in Latin America and Africa. In less than three years, Red Bull had single-handedly established and then lifted the booming energy drink category from a base of $12 million in (wholesale) dollar sales to $42 million in 1998 and $75 million in 1999.

Others soon followed, building energy drinks into a $130 million business. Red Bull's market share stood at 65% in 2004, with worldwide sales of about $1 billion. Even so it was increasingly felt that some of Red Bull's problems were the result of its own success...