Coca-Cola Dasani

2004

Dasani water, already a massive brand in the United States, was introduced into the British market in 2004. It  was positioned as "pure, still water" achieved through a "highly sophisticated purification process." Coca-Cola invested a staggering £7 million into the UK launch, convinced that its brand power alone would convince Britons to ditch their highly-regarded tap water for a bottled alternative.

Turns out the purified water was not from a spring or alpine glacier, it was water sourced from a public tap at a factory in Sidcup, south east of London. Coca-Cola was immediately mocked as a bumbling scam artist hawking ordinary tap water at a 500x markup. Coke executives persisted, protesting that the water was not just tap water, but the result of a highly sophisticated purification process.

Adding insult to absurdity, Coca-Cola's US-centric marketing team failed to grasp British English. Their slogan, "Water With Spunk," intended to convey energy, unfortunately used a word that is common UK slang for semen. The resulting ridicule guaranteed that the filtered tap water would never be taken seriously.

Only 38 days after launch, authorities found that a batch of Dasani contained unsafe levels of bromate The contamination was reportedly an accidental byproduct of Coca-Cola’s vaunted "purification" process.

Coca cola  was forced to recall half a million bottles and withdrew Dasani from the UK market. The failure was so complete it became a textbook case of marketing mismanagement and how Coke had broken the cardinal rule of taking its customers for granted.

Additional info:

The Guardian - Coke cock-up is biggest ever

CBS News - Coke Pulls Water From UK Shelves