Bryan, a longtime Naked Juice customer, noticed that that Strawberry Kiwi Kick brand he always bought had a different colored cap. He writes, “Alas, the ‘Kick’ is no more. Gone are the supplements, including plain ol’ Vitamin C. Strawberry Kiwi Kick is just fruit juice.” When he contacted them to complain, they responded that their “devotees” preferred it that way, and they sent him a coupon and a temporary tattoo. Because if there’s anything that says “we take your input seriously,” it’s a temporary tattoo. (Or maybe they’re trying to tell him what they expect of real devotees.)

Bryan writes:

I was grocery shopping last weekend when I noticed that the bottle for Naked Juice’s “Strawberry Kiwi Kick” had a different-colored cap. This is my favorite Naked Juice product, thanks to the added guarana, green tea and B vitamins, so I was paying enough attention to notice that something on the bottle had changed. Curious, I picked up a bottle to see if this meant a change to what was IN the bottle.

Alas, the “Kick” is no more. Gone are the supplements, including plain ol’ Vitamin C. Strawberry Kiwi Kick is just fruit juice.

I contacted Naked Juice through their Web site to ask them what happened to the Kick part of the beverage. After all, the “Kick” branding seems to imply a boost from the supplements, just like the “Motion” in Orange Mango Motion or the “Rush” in Black & Blueberry Rush, etc, each of which also used to contain energetic supplements. I told them that if the supplements have been removed permanently, I’d be skipping their brand altogether and buying an organic energy drink and fresh fruit instead.

Naked responded with some rah-rah about how their “devotees” preferred a focus on the quality of the juices rather than on the boosts. A full copy of our correspondence is forwarded below. They also mailed me a coupon for a free 15.2 ounce bottle of the Naked Juice flavor of my choice (used on a classic-formula bottle of SKK, still available from a few local retailers who apparently don’t turn their stock as often) and, for some reason, a temporary tattoo of the Naked Juice logo.

Here’s part of the response Bryan received:

As you seem to have noticed, our Energy flavors are now a part of our Well Being family of juices. We changed the ingredients in our Energy flavors, including Strawberry Kiwi Kick, which makes them a better fit for the Well Being family. You can check out our changes to the former Energy drinks at the following web address (just click on “Our Juices”): [link to nakedjuice website]

We made the decision to change the formula based on feedback from our devotees who said we should focus more on the juices and less on the boosts. We’ll share your comments with our marketing team and let them know that you’d like us to reintroduce the Energy formula.

Bryan points out that the prices for the drinks remain the same. “[There’s] no discount in price to reflect the elimination of several ingredients. Of course, I’m sure they’d explain it by saying the remaining juice is of a higher quality than what they were using before.”