Women’s wellness is one of the buzziest functional beverage areas, yet most of the category focuses on stick packs and supplements – leaving a white space in RTD that Greater Than wants to fill by centering its hydration brand on women’s daily wellness.
Research by the Gatorade Sports Science Institute found that while women have a lower whole-body sweating rate than men, the science is still limited when determining whether life stage changes (i.e., menstruation, pregnancy, perimenopause, and menopause) impact hydration.
Yet, the white space for women’s wellness products is significant. Half of women say they are dissatisfied with existing food and beverage options, while research found that nearly all (92.3%) women are looking for more specific products to address their health goals.
The $4.8 billion women’s health beverage market is expected to reach $9.1 billion by 2034, with a CAGR of 7.2% between 2024 and 2034. Targeted nutrition is a driving factor behind this segment, including hormone regulation, bone health, cardiovascular function, skin health and reproductive wellness, according to Market Intelo.
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Powdered beverages dominate the category
Supplement powders are more common in the category than RTD beverages. The distinction is largely regulatory. According to the FDA, supplements are products taken for a specific health or nutrition benefit, while beverages are conventional foods consumed primarily for enjoyment, hydration or refreshment.
Serving size and daily intake are also distinguishing factors between supplements and beverages, according to FDA. Products designed to be consumed in larger volumes (i.e. an RTD drink) are more likely to be classified as beverages, whereas powders taken in measured doses (capsules, mixes, shots) are more easily positioned as supplements.
Brands such as Perelel and Momsanity are leveraging the supplement format to target pregnant and postpartum consumers with products designed to support specific wellness needs.
Supplement Perelel’s Cellular Hydration powders are formulated by OB/GYNs and contain collagen and hyaluronic acid, according to the company.
Momsanity’s Creatine + Hydration supplement powder contains micronized creatine monohydrate along with electrolytes to support energy, hydration, muscle performance, and overall wellness, per the company.
Powdered supplement brand MixHers provides a broader portfolio for women, describing itself as offering “hormone-friendly support for every stage of womanhood.” The brand offers mixes for health and nutrition, sexual wellness, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), postpartum, and menopause.
Beyond powder mixes, the women’s health category has space to innovate in other formats, such as RTD beverages.
Greater Than bets on women’s hydration
One brand attempting to fill that gap is Greater Than, which recently repositioned its 15-year-old conventional hydration beverage business as one built specifically for women’s everyday wellness.
Greater Than’s beverages contain evaporated coconut water and prebiotic fiber from plant-based soluble tapioca fiber, along with natural flavors, cane sugar and monk fruit juice concentrate. The brand offers four flavors: Strawberry Lemonade, Grape, Pineapple Coconut and Orange mango
While existing hydration brands were built around sports and male athletes, Greater Than discovered through 16,000 reviews of its products that women were underserved, said Heather Howell during the Summer Fancy Food Show earlier this month.
“We discovered an underserved consumer and built the brand around her,” Howell explained.
Rather than competing strictly as a sports drink, Greater Than positions itself as a daily wellness beverage. Howell argues that women were looking for benefits that extended beyond hydration alone, including fiber, fruits and vegetables, magnesium, and other wellness-supporting ingredients.
“We just decided we would go ahead and start to interview our customers and ask them, ‘What do they want?’” she said, adding that sleep was one area where their audience asked for more support.
Howell points out that the women’s wellness beverage category is no different than the supplement space, where “you’ve got men’s vitamins, women’s vitamins.” Notably, Howell views the supplement space as Greater Than’s competitor rather than conventional hydration brands.
“We’re very clear about our mission, and really, it’s hydration for her,” she said.
