JOHANNESBURG – The PRIME energy drink frenzy has hit the country, with some consumers reporting that it’s sold out at Checkers stores, where it’s being sold for a fraction of the initially reported price.
Checkers is the country’s official retail partner of the drink, which went on sale last night for almost R40 each.
The drink is owned by popular YouTube stars, KSI and Logan Paul.
In scenes reminiscent of Black Friday, people – particularly parents, across the country woke up bright and early to queue outside Checkers stores to be the first to buy the popular PRIME energy drink.
The drink has taken the world by storm, retailing for up to the equivalent of R1,000 each on resale sites in the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
Trends analyst Bronwyn Williams said that the popularity of Prime was rooted in how scarce it was to find.
“Teenagers, like all human beings, but particularly younger people, are very susceptible to phenomena such as mimesis, which really refers to the fact that we want what other people want and in particular, we want what other perceived to be high-status people want.”
Williams said that it was not surprising that young people in South Africa had reacted with excitement, as conspicuous consumption was a global trend.
