Apollinaris Water

Weaving heritage with gastronomy and wine-world credibility: re-positioning Coca-Cola’s Appolinaris – once the drink of Queen Victoria – as the water that refreshes both palate and mind.

Client: Coca-Cola Germany

Year: 2020

Categories: Branding, Campaigns, Packaging, Strategy

Background

Once synonymous with regal refinement, Apollinaris had drifted into supermarket anonymity. In gastronomy, still seen as premium; in retail, just another bottle of water. The brand needed a full-scale premium repositioning. Apollinaris is also part of the Coca-Cola portfolio – an international top-level assignment.

Brief

Redesign the brand from bottle to billboard: new packaging, rich storytelling and a campaign to make Apollinaris unmistakable again. Coca-Cola’s goal was to re-establish Apollinaris as a Masterbrand within its portfolio, appealing to an audience of conscious connoisseurs who value understatement and sophistication.

Solution

We distilled Apollinaris to its essence: a source discovered by a vintner, crowned by a queen. Premium design, playful claims and heritage storytelling — all in service of pure, unmistakable clarity, positioning Apollinaris as a refreshment for the mind — a conscious choice for true connoisseurs.

“Working with Ruska Martin was a truly inspiring experience. They deeply understood our brand—its heritage, values, and vision—and translated that into a fresh, modern design that felt both authentic and forward-thinking.

Their creative and thoughtful approach to expanding our brand into new product lines was impressive. The collaboration was smooth, energizing, and full of great ideas. A fantastic team delivering outstanding work”

Ulrike Henkes

Marketing Coca-Cola

Photos: Appolinaris, Ruska Martin, (Alexander Hermann)

A bottle to be displayed

We put the iconic red triangle back where it belongs: front and centre, together with a refined typographic system, silver foil detailing and a sculpted glass silhouette signal premium from the first glance to the last drop. The result: a bottle that finally feels as exceptional as the water inside.

The design delivers such premium presence that even PET bottles hold their place on the finest tables – a deliberate counterpoint to the noisy competition.

Turns out…

… sometimes the way forward is straight back to the source. By elevating heritage with contemporary clarity – in design, story and spirit – Apollinaris reclaimed its crown and re-entered the conversation, winning over both sales teams and sommeliers.