Fillico Jewelry Water is a Japanese company known for selling one of the most expensive bottled waters in the world, with exclusive limited editions selling for up to $10,000 per bottle.

Water is one of the most basic human needs, so marketing and selling it as an ultra-luxury product is a pretty big challenge, even among the snobbiest of snobs, but a Japanese company proved it can be done successfully.

Launched in 2005, Fillico Water set out to create a complete luxury experience that would make people reach for their wallets and pay obscene amounts of money to have it. Using some of the purest mineral water in Japan wasn’t nearly enough, so they put a lot of work into the design of the packaging, which was marketed as a work of art in itself. Somehow, they made it work, and today Fillico Jewelry Water is one of the most sought-after ultra-luxury bottled water brands in the world, with prices surpassing $1,000 per litre and even several thousand for limited edition offerings.

Fillico water comes from the Nunobiki Spring nestled deep in Kobe’s Rokkou National Park, far away from any industrial or agricultural development. Known for its purity and high mineral content, this spring water is naturally filtered through volcanic rock, which allegedly gives it a very fresh taste. Fillico claims to bottle the water using minimal processing techniques in order to preserve its natural character.

But the purity of Fillico Jewelry Water isn’t enough to justify its ridiculously high price. And that’s where the packaging comes into play. Each Fillico water bottle is a handcrafted work of art adorned with Swarovski crystals, embellished with gold, and decorated with royal symbols to truly communicate to the world that it is far from your regular bottled water. A Fillico Jewelry Water bottle isn’t just a container, it’s a status symbol.

Because of how difficult water is to market as a luxury product, Fillico faced a lot of skepticism in the beginning, but its founders were convinced that there was a place in the market for ultra-luxury water, and they had a strategy to make their vision a reality. A year after the company was founded, Christian Dior introduced Fillico Luxury Water to its VIP clients, and in 2008, the company was an official sponsor of the Cannes Film Festival. Soon, the brand became a favorite of royal houses all over the world, and its popularity continued to grow among the rich and powerful.

Because every Fillico water bottle is crafted by hand – and to maintain the illusion of exclusivity – production is limited to only 5,000 bottles per month, which helps keep prices up. Today, a 2nd generation bottle of Fillico Jewelry Water sells for 999 euros (over $1,000), but limited edition bottles can sell for much more.

Fillico Jewelry Water doesn’t technically sell the most expensive water bottles in the world, as companies have created considerably more expensive one-off containers, like a $100,000 water bottle, but as far as a brand that specializes in selling luxury water, you’ll have a hard time finding more expensive alternatives.

Oddity Central