Founders Makers reimagines Hi*Ball for the UK market

US drink brand Hi*Ball has crossed the pond with a new identity designed by London-based creative agency Founders Makers, as it enters the UK market with ambitions to disrupt a crowded beverage category.

Owned by Tilray Brands, Hi*Ball’s UK debut marks the brand’s first move outside the US and the first step in a planned global expansion. Rather than simply transplanting its existing identity, Founders Makers has rebuilt the brand from the ground up – reshaping its positioning, packaging and go-to-market strategy to appeal to British consumers.

For a product that sits somewhat awkwardly between two established categories, the challenge for Founders Markers was not only to rethink the design but also to try to carve out a new space for the brand. Notably, the word ‘seltzer’ is entirely absent from the branding and packaging.

“Hi*Ball already had a loyal following in the US, but a successful product in one market doesn’t automatically translate to another,” said Charlie Holman, strategy director at Founders Makers. “Our job wasn’t to copy the American brand across; it was to understand what would make it relevant in the UK.”

Hi*Ball is a clear, lightly flavoured sparkling drink that contains natural caffeine sourced from guarana and ginseng, alongside B vitamins, with zero sugar, sweeteners, calories or preservatives. Although it packs as much caffeine as a flat white, the brand wanted to communicate performance without falling into the familiar trappings of traditional energy drinks.

Consumer research informed the development of the UK flavour line-up, landing on peach, wild berry, lemon lime and vanilla. The agency also redesigned the packaging, moving away from the bulkier US format towards a cleaner, more premium can silhouette intended to stand apart on British shelves.

The new brand platform, ‘refresh your energy’, positions Hi*Ball as a bridge between functional and sparkling flavoured drinks, the growing demand for which is evidenced by the recent launches of brands such as Gaptooth Soda and Dickie’s Ginger. Founders Makers centred the identity around the descriptor ‘sparkling energy water’, ensuring the product’s dual nature is immediately legible.

The visual system is built around the Hi*Ball wordmark and its star device, with bright single-colour flavour coding across a silver, near-transparent can that references the clarity of the liquid inside. A prominent ‘0’ highlights the brand’s zero-sugar, zero-sweetener proposition, while retaining a sense of functional credibility.

The identity has been designed as a flexible system that extends beyond packaging, with applications across digital, social, retail environments, sampling units and community partnerships. The UK launch will also serve as a blueprint for Hi*Ball’s eventual roll out into European, Middle Eastern and Asia-Pacific markets.