Entrepreneur produces drink in different varieties, flavour
Branding and packaging are very essential in this era of globalisation and competition as they help to expose consumers to different brands of various products.
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A consumer’s choice of product is now more dependent on factors such as brand name, packaging, price and content, and local manufacturers are gradually adopting packaging and branding as effective tools of communication and marketing of their products.
One of such manufacturers in the country is a 25-year-old entrepreneur and graduate from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ms Edna Anim, the producer of Sobbs Drink.
Making the difference
While others call it soboloo or sobolooo, she calls it Sobbs.
It is the brand name for the ordinary soboloo drink, a locally produced drink mainly made from bissap leaves and ginger, with additional value to give soboloo different flavours using different fruits to make it stand out. It is also packaged and branded neatly and nicely in a bottle designed in a feminine shape.
“My mother suggested the name ‘Sob’ and then my father proposed that we alter the spelling because it was similar to the word 'sob' which contradicted the joy and happiness brought to our consumers, so we added an extra 'b' and the official brand name became Sobbs,” she explained.
Available in six different varieties namely, Sobbs Apple, Sobbs Prekese, Sobbs Pineapple, Sobbs Guava, Sobbs Moringa and Sobbs Sugar free, Ms Anim said she had added other fruits to give it different flavours and a unique taste.
It is shrink-wrapped in a pack of 12, in transparent wrapping material, making it more appealing.
Beginning of ideas
The Sobbs idea started on campus where she pursued Communication Design.
She said she realised that the producers were not bottling them, but were either selling them in polythene bags or in plastic cups.
From this, Edna sensed a business opportunity in the beverage industry by producing to satisfy consumers with that great tasty drink they yearned for, and she decided to produce the beverage in a well-packaged and branded bottle.
She then proceeded to do further investigations and research on the preparation of the drink. Her friends who were studying biochemistry at KNUST helped with research on the preservation of the drink. She said her family helped her with the preparation procedures.
Instead of moving from one office to the other in search of employment after school, Edna continued her business with friends and family as her first clients, who also encouraged her to go commercial.
“I started the production in my last semester in school in 2014 after I had the idea,” she said.
Skills and knowledge
To make her product unique, she applied the skills and knowledge she acquired from the university to create designs for her branding and packaging.
Currently operating in a production house at Awoshie in Accra, Edna said Sobbs originally began with one variety, which was the Sobbs pineapple, but eventually new ideas came from research and conversations with customers hence the addition of the other five varieties.
Asked how she was competing with other local manufacturers, as well as importers of other ‘soft drinks’, she said the unique brand would help the product to survive on the market and even become one of the best in Ghana and beyond.