It used to be an easy choice: orange or apple--perhaps crangrape for variety.

But over the past few years, explosive growth in the upscale juice market has brought a proliferation of options to consumers. These health-conscious consumers--including many Harvard students--are willing to spend the money to buy beverages beyond the standard Coke and Pepsi.

In particular, two major juice companies--Maine-based Fresh Samantha and Cambridge-based Nantucket Nectars--have attracted an enormous following both on campus and beyond, giving a huge boost to their annual sales figures.

Fresh Samantha and Nantucket Nectars outsell every beverage product except coffee at Bruegger's Bagels, according to the company's Chief Operating Officer Chuck Chapman.

But industry executives agree that what seems like an anomaly--the sudden popularity of these upscale juices, many of which combine exotic fruits or add herbal and vitamin supplements--is actually the result of a long trend towards healthier, faster, cuisine.

"I think people are just looking for a healthy alternative to the beverages that are out there," says Betta Stothart, director of communications for Fresh Samantha.

Sweet Irony

Among companies that have capitalized on this trend, Fresh Samantha stands out as one of the early winners, particularly in its top market, Boston.

The company began by selling homegrown sprouts to a local food co-op and has grown faster than a jumping bean. The family-owned company has already logged sales this year of about $40 million--up from $15 million for all of 1998. And from the time when it offered only carrot juice, the company has expanded its line of often eccentric blends of juices to a total of 19.

But far from carrot juice, that line-up has grown to include old favorites like orange juice and lemonade, in addition to more exotic choices like "Mango Mama" and "Oh Happy Day" --which blends ingredients like apple juice, bananas, blackberries and lime juice with St. John's Wort, an herbal extract thought to alleviate depression.

Although Stothart admits that the company's success was definitely "improbable," she shies away from referring to its popularity as a Cinderella story--simply because of the tremendous amount of work she says goes into the product.

"We're a juice company in Maine--there's nothing more ironic than that," she jokes.

One secret to the company's success, she says, is a "totally uncorporate" corporate philosophy, that has spawned employee-driven initiatives like a Fresh Samantha look-alike contest in addition to a program that allows college students to trade in job rejection letters for free bottles of juice.

The company's homemade philosophy has been especially successful in the college market. Stothart says markets like Harvard, have been key to the company's growth development.

Student Strategy

Because the company relies on customer word-of-mouth and does not conduct formal advertising, college campuses provide an especially welcoming environment for products like Fresh Samantha.

Stothart admits that "we would never have made it where we are today without colleges."

The company's first college contract, she says, was with Tufts University in 1992, in which the company provided Tufts with two flavors of drinks.

According to Tufts Director of Dining and Business Services Patricia J. Lee, the decision to carry Fresh Samantha corresponded with a strategic plan that emphasized entrepreneurship. She says Tufts was interested in supporting local and regional enterprises "to whatever extent possible."

But in addition, Lee says Fresh Samantha just seemed like it would take off.

"When you look at the trends, juice just seemed to be the way to go," Lee says. "It fit into the way we were looking at our operation."

And take off it did. Lee says that since then, Tufts has dramatically expanded the number of Fresh Samantha options it offers across the campus. She says it has become a "staple" in the campus's a la carte cafeteria, in addition to selling strongly--indeed "flying off the shelves"--at the campus convenience store.

According to Director of Harvard Dining Services Ted A. Mayer, the growing demand for Fresh Samantha and other similar drinks at Harvard reflects an increasing health consciousness among students.

In a phone call he made from in front of the Fresh Samantha booth at the National Restaurant Association's annual conference in Chicago, Mayer acknowledges a "definite trend" toward more nutritional foods and more nutritional information at Harvard.

A Pricey Punch

Still, with an average price that hovers around $2.75, most say students are unlikely candidates for purchasing the pricey juice drinks.

Stothart from Fresh Samantha acknowledges that the company's goods are costly compared to other juice products. But she likens the interest in the product to the recent trend that has made coffee chains like Starbucks so popular.

"Is it worth spending the couple of extra dollars for the experience of enjoying something that's really delicious?" she asks.

Though she says people probably see the drinks as a "treat," she says there are worse things for one to become than addicted to juice.

"If you're going to [have] a fix like that, it's good that it's healthy," she jokes.

Mayer acknowledges the slightly higher price of drinks like Fresh Samantha, or the fresh-squeezed jucies sold at HDS's Cafe Gaia in Loker Commons, but he says students seem willing to accept the trade-off.

"People are willing to pay more because they're concerned about what they're ingesting," Mayer says.

For Lee at Tufts, the ability to offer a wider range of goods based on prices has benefited the college's bottom line. But as an occasional Fresh Samantha consumer herself, she says consumers are willing to pay for a product that she describes as "great."

"I think students recognize quality," she says. "You can charge $3 for something and if it is not quality, people won't buy it. It's kind of fun to see a student sitting at a table, drinking a Fresh Samantha and eating sushi--maybe a kiwi fruit--and having a good day."

At Their Heels

Although Fresh Samantha of late has had particular success in developing its market share on the East Coast, it nevertheless faces a challenge from Cambridge-based Nantucket Nectars.

Founded by two Brown University graduates in 1985, the company enjoys a funky public persona similar to Fresh Samantha's. And with $50 million in sales for 1998, it has a significant leg up on the juice market.

Still, in an effort to bolster its share of the market for premium juices that includes the juice blends, vitamin additions or smoothies, Nantucket Nectars recently re-launched its line of Super Nectars.

According to Eric A. Schaecher, director of public relations for Nantucket Nectars, the line seeks to capture what he says is a still-developing market.

"I don't think a lot of territory has been claimed yet," Schaecher says.

He says Nantucket Nectars benefits from a developed infrastructure that is national in scope--the juices have a wider distribution than Fresh Samantha and has an advertising campaign that emphasizes the company's local origins.

One result, Schaecher says, is that Nantucket Nectars can offer its products at a lower average cost--about $1.49 for its Super Nectars line--than some of its competitors.

Although Stothart says she generally does not like to compare Fresh Samantha with other brands, she says the company is aware of the competition. But the super juices and smoothies--with their bright colors and creative packaging--can hold their own, she says.

"You wouldn't want to go back to Tropicana [after Fresh Samantha]," she says. "It doesn't compare."