By Chioma Obinna
As competition in Nigeria’s non-alcoholic beverage market continues to evolve, Maltina, one of the country’s longstanding malt drink brands, has unveiled a refreshed visual identity to mark its 50th anniversary, retaining its familiar taste while introducing redesigned packaging across its product range.
The new identity, unveiled by Nigerian Breweries Plc last week, features updated designs across glass bottles, cans and PET bottles, with enhanced gold elements and a stronger orange colour scheme aimed at giving the brand a more contemporary appearance.
The redesign highlights a broader challenge facing established consumer brands: how to modernise their appearance to appeal to changing consumer preferences without losing the familiarity and trust built over decades.
For Maltina, which has been part of Nigeria’s beverage market since 1976, the anniversary presents an opportunity to reinforce its heritage while repositioning the brand for a new generation of consumers.
However, beyond the visual changes, the success of the refresh will depend on how consumers respond to the new packaging and whether the brand can sustain its relevance in an increasingly competitive market.
Other features of the refreshed identity include a gold crown cork, brighter sunrays, a more prominent golden barley icon, a bolder calcium coin and a “Since 1976” heritage mark, underscoring the brand’s five-decade history in Nigeria.
Despite the packaging changes, Nigerian Breweries said Maltina’s familiar taste and nutritional composition remain unchanged.
The company said the drink is fortified with calcium, with one 33cl bottle providing the equivalent of half a glass of milk. The brand is also endorsed by the Nutrition Society of Nigeria as a non-alcoholic drink rich in Vitamin A.
Speaking on the refreshed identity, the Marketing Director of Nigerian Breweries Plc, Sarah Agha, said the redesign was intended to keep the brand relevant to contemporary consumers while preserving its heritage.
“For 50 years, Maltina has grown alongside generations of Nigerians. This refreshed identity is an evolution of a much-loved brand, designed to keep Maltina fresh, relevant and connected to today’s consumers while preserving the nourishing taste they know and trust,” Agha said.
Her remarks reflect the company’s effort to balance continuity with change, maintaining the product attributes familiar to existing consumers while introducing a new visual experience that could attract younger buyers.
For established brands, packaging plays an important role in consumer recognition, influencing how products stand out on retail shelves and how customers relate to them. A redesign, therefore, must do more than create a different appearance; it must preserve the identity that consumers associate with the product.
Maltina’s decision to retain its taste and nutritional composition while updating its packaging suggests that the company is seeking to refresh its market appeal without altering the product experience on which its reputation has been built.
As part of the relaunch, Nigerian Breweries is introducing a consumer engagement campaign tagged “What’s Your Word?”, inviting Nigerians to describe their first impressions of the new packaging in one word.
According to Agha, the campaign is intended to involve consumers in shaping the brand’s next chapter by encouraging them to share their reactions to the refreshed identity.
“This relaunch is about more than a new pack. It is an invitation for Nigerians to help shape the next chapter of a brand that has been part of their lives for five decades. We look forward to hearing the words the new Maltina inspires,” she added.
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