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Taking the surprise economy to another level, Singapore beverage company Out of the Box caters to consumers who respond to “What would you like to drink?” with a non-committal “anything” or “whatever”. Two weeks ago, the company launched two complementary brands: Anything and Whatever. Anything is fizzy and comes in six flavours (Cola with Lemon, Apple, Fizz Up, Cloudy Lemon and Root Beer) and Whatever is non-carbonated (Ice Lemon Tea, Peach Tea, Jasmine Green Tea, White Grape Tea, Apple Tea, Chrysanthemum Tea). The surprise part? Consumers don’t know which flavour they’re getting until they take a sip. Cans are simply labelled Anything and Whatever, and the list of ingredients is limited to generic wording: carbonated water, sugar, permitted flavouring, permitted colouring, preservative, tea extract, fruit juice concentrate. Judging from the buzz on Singapore forums, teens immediately got the concept and are loving it. Novel product to launch elsewhere, as the drink for people who don’t know what they want? The key, of course, is to produce products that are good enough to guarantee repeat sales. We think established food and beverage brands could have fun with this one, too, and would have the benefit of working from a brand consumers already trust. How about Snapple or Stonyfield Yoghurt marketing surprise six-packs filled with random flavours? Could be a good way to get customers to try new varieties of any FMCG. Spotted by: Brenton Wong