A bottle that creates the sensation of flavour through scent has become a viral hit across Europe, but Air Up now faces a harder challenge: turning online attention into everyday customer habits. The Munich-founded start-up says it has sold more than 15 million bottles and over 200 million interchangeable pods as it builds the next stage of its business.
Air Up’s growth has been powered by social media, with more than 12 million TikTok posts and billions of views linked to the brand. Its investor base includes Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis and PepsiCo, while its products are now available through 15,000 points of sale.
However, the company’s chief executive, Cristina Kenz, says the focus is no longer simply on generating hype. The priority is making the bottle-and-pod system easy enough to use repeatedly in its main markets.
How Air Up’s scent-based drinking system works
Air Up does not add conventional flavouring or sugar to the water in its bottles. Instead, its interchangeable pods are fitted near the bottle’s mouthpiece and are designed to create a perception of flavour through aroma alone.
The company describes this approach as “scentaste”. Users drink plain water while the scent from the pod contributes to the brain’s perception of taste. Air Up says its purpose is to encourage people to drink more water without relying on sugar or artificial ingredients.
The system places the brand between reusable drinkware and the broader functional beverage market. Customers buy the bottle and can then choose from different pod varieties, creating a repeat-purchase model rather than a single one-off sale.
From viral product to daily habit
For consumer brands, viral popularity can produce rapid awareness but does not automatically guarantee long-term demand. Air Up’s management has identified three stages in its development: hype, virality and habit building.
The first two stages helped the product attract attention online and secure distribution. The third stage is more commercially demanding because customers need to continue using the bottle and buying pods over time.
Kenz compared accessibility to the effort required to maintain a gym routine. A product may support a healthy goal, she said, but people are less likely to use it consistently if it is difficult to access. Air Up is therefore seeking to place its products where consumers already shop.
- The company has sold more than 15 million bottles.
- More than 200 million pods have been sold.
- Air Up products are available at 15,000 points of sale.
- The business is concentrating on Germany, France, Italy and the UK.
Why distribution matters to the business model
Air Up’s pod system depends on repeat usage. A bottle sale introduces customers to the brand, but ongoing pod purchases are central to maintaining engagement with the product.
That makes distribution an important part of the company’s strategy. Wider availability can reduce the friction involved in replacing pods, trying a new scent or purchasing another bottle. It may also help Air Up move beyond social-media audiences and reach consumers who have never encountered the brand online.
The company’s four priority markets—Germany, France, Italy and the UK—give it a substantial European base while allowing management to concentrate resources. Rather than expanding rapidly into every market that shows interest, Air Up says it wants to understand how its model can be repeated consistently.
Investors and possible international expansion
Air Up has attracted notable backing from entertainment figures and the consumer-goods sector. Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis and PepsiCo are among the investors associated with the company.
Kenz’s experience at PepsiCo, Danone, Kraft Heinz and the business behind Burger King has also shaped Air Up’s approach. Her background is rooted in fast-moving consumer goods, where distribution, brand recognition and repeat purchases are essential to long-term growth.
The company receives interest from potential partners in markets including South Korea, Mexico, Vietnam and Japan. Those approaches could support future expansion, but Air Up is currently treating international growth as a later step rather than an immediate priority.
The logic is straightforward: if the business can establish repeatable customer behaviour in its existing markets, it may be easier to launch successfully elsewhere. Expansion without that model could create reach without creating lasting demand.
Could Air Up list on a stock exchange?
A possible initial public offering has been discussed, but it is not currently a priority for the company. If Air Up eventually chose to list, Kenz indicated that she would prefer a European stock market to the United States.
For now, the company’s attention remains on strengthening its core business. That means improving access to its products, encouraging regular use and demonstrating that pod purchases can continue beyond the initial social-media trend.
What Air Up’s growth says about viral consumer brands
Air Up’s story illustrates both the opportunity and the risk of social-commerce growth. Viral content can introduce a product to millions of potential customers quickly, but sustained success depends on factors that are less visible online:
- Whether customers return after their first purchase
- Whether replacement products are easy to find
- Whether the product delivers a convincing everyday benefit
- Whether the pricing and distribution model can support expansion
- Whether demand remains strong after social-media attention declines
Air Up has already moved beyond the early start-up phase in terms of sales and distribution. Its next test is proving that a novelty-driven product can become part of consumers’ routines across several countries.
Conclusion: Air Up’s next challenge is consistency
Air Up has built a significant European following by combining scent-based flavour perception, social-media visibility and a refillable pod system. Its sales and investor support provide a strong platform, but the company’s long-term prospects will depend on habit building rather than virality alone.
For now, Air Up is concentrating on Germany, France, Italy and the UK before committing to wider expansion. The key takeaway is that the brand is no longer asking whether it can attract attention; it is testing whether that attention can become a durable global consumer business.
