The extravaganza of the business of bottled water

Inflation is bad, but this is just ridiculous. There is a bottle of water that costs USD 100k. To add insult to injury there is also such a thing water sommelier, who this guy Martin Riese, is claiming to be the first American to hold that title (look out Neil Armstrong). He cofounded Beverly Hills 9OH2O, sells a bottle from the “Luxury Collection, Diamond Edition” for USD 100,000 (which you can actually order online here). This is the sad state of affairs of the bottled water business, into which Sophie Elmhirst delves with a very engaging piece for The Guardian. In the past 20 years, bottled water became the world’s fastest-growing drinks market: The global market was valued at USD 157 bn in 2013, with expectations it will reach USD 280 bn by 2020. The writer traces the boom back to Perrier’s Orson Wells ad back in 1979 as part of a USD 5 mn campaign in America, when Perrier’s sales in the US were multiplied by 30 in three years.