This is not a review, but if it were to be one, I would say that Switch SA20 Still Water tastes better than Evian. I’m standing 10toes deep on this one, but let me explain…  Evian, as a brand, positions itself firmly in the high-end category through strategic collaborations and sophisticated marketing. I admire how it situates itself within luxury spaces such as tennis tournaments, high-end restaurants, and celebrity culture. The brand’s heritage, dating back to 1789, further contributes to its perception of elegance and quality.

Because Evian typically retails at a higher price point than more affordable local still-water brands, such as Valpré, THIRSTI, Bonaqua, Cape Aqua, and others, its pricing inevitably reinforces this premium positioning. Granted, Evian carries a strong international identity and perceived value, an association with quality that is at the helm of lifestyle. Perhaps luxury consumers are less concerned with taste in this case?, or perhaps the company’s aggressive marketing and placement strategies successfully cultivate that image of “value” and “quality.”

Evian claims to uphold the highest quality standards, reinforcing this narrative through carefully chosen language around natural purity, health benefits, mineral content, and alkalinity. Yet the idea that standard bottled water merely provides basic hydration, while Evian offers an experience anchored in its source, prestige, and history, this deserves deeper interrogation. It needs more probing. It needs more discussion.

This conversation, however, is about taste.

While many believe that water has no taste, we consume a lot of water from so-called different sources, and I can say with confidence that bottled water brands do differ, even if some share similarities. Switch SA20 Still Water, by Switch Energy Drink, genuinely tastes better when compaired to Evian, I am not going to compair it to the local water brands for now, but it should seriously consider elevating its marketing beyond basic hydration. Integrating the brand into cricket may be only the beginning of a premium, sports-centred lifestyle water positioning, one that could compete in the same landscape as Evian in South Africa.

Switch Still Water is currently positioned through cricket via SA20 and SuperSport SA Schools Cricket: a space saturated with national symbolism, masculinity, development narratives, and mass appeal. While sport is not traditionally coded as “luxury,” in South Africa, it is deeply intertwined with prestige, influence, and aspiration. Perhaps this is where something interesting begins.

If Switch is allowed to evolve beyond utility, beyond sponsorship, and into lifestyle, discretion, and cultural presence, it has the potential to compete not merely on price or patriotism but on experience. The irony is that the taste is already doing the work for Switch Still Water.

Which brings me back to the discomfort at the heart of this reflection.

If Switch tastes better than Evian, why can’t it also dominate the spaces that define affluence? And if Evian is elevated above all the local bottled-water brands mentioned here, what does that say about how we assign value, not just to brands, but to local excellence?

This is definitely not a review. But it is a pause. And, perhaps an invitation to trust our own senses a little more and invest in local not only from buying power but also in product placement, integration into day-to-day life…

Read more about the Switch Schools SA20 collaboration below.

There’s no denying it, South African school cricket is about to get another major boost. Switch Energy Drink (who are currently running a competition) has just been announced as the new title partner of the Schools SA20 tournament, a nationwide platform that showcases the next generation of boys’ and girls’ cricket talent. Beginning this weekend, […]

Switch Is Powering Schools Cricket, and I am both excited and concerned,