Craft Spirits
Voice of the brands on the craft opportunity
In this section, we ask a selection of brand owners and representatives about the role of craft spirits in travel retail today.
How can travel retail become a home and testing ground for newness, innovation and a showcase for craft products?
Strange Nature Distilling General Manager Rhys Julian: To date travel retailers here in New Zealand have been very accommodating in ranging new and upcoming local brands. At the same time they are rolling out promotional activities that are exclusive to New Zealand products and providing key space for NZ spirits brands to tell their story on the retail floor.
From a global standpoint this is the true challenge for new and upcoming brands, when pushing for ranging outside of their local markets. Offshore global retailers need many reasons for wanting to range new and innovative brands; they want more from a brand beyond just turning up with great liquid, packaging and story.
The global retailers that Strange Nature are in discussion with are all open minded about trying our new and innovative offering. What they do expect however is to prove a satisfactory run rate of sales in your own local market first, both within duty paid and duty free markets. To generate such a run rate a record of investing in retailer led promotional activities is important as well as brand-led marketing over and above this.
'Vodka from a village' – Anora makes an impression onboard Tallink MyStar
Pernod Ricard Global Travel Retail Group Brand Director Lisa McCann: The channel offers prime conditions to raise awareness and drive exposure for new and innovative products and experiences. Through collaboration with our retail partners and airports, we can drive visibility amongst a range of consumers across numerous nationalities.
Brand visibility can be supported by sampling opportunities – made possible by higher-than-average customer dwell times – creating potential for strong consumer engagement. We can also harness the potential to target specific nationalities, or ‘test and learn’ from launching new products or initiatives.
We do however recognise that the relative cost of in-airport activation will be a barrier for many new and innovative products. Costs to activate in an airport are significantly higher than in domestic markets, so often its cost prohibitive for brands to deliver a positive ROI in the airport environment. However, when budget allows there is no better venue to showcase and bring attention to a new and innovative product range.
Blending art and whisky at Singapore Changi Airport
Sipwell's Fable brand on show at Glasgow Airport
SipWell Brands Managing Director Andrew Torrance: From my experience of domestic and global travel retail markets the duty free sector has always been a positive and interesting market for innovation, driven by the Commercial and Buying teams.
Duty free commercial teams are some of the most passionate and educated I know in global liquor. I give you two examples: Ruediger Stelkens of Gebr. Heinemann and Paul Hunnisett at ARI. These gentlemen are two of the most passionate and educated about new and quality liquor products.
We must remember that buying teams are consumers themselves. They embrace quality new products, innovation and showcase it. The Gebr. Heinemann global launch of Gin Sul is an example and Paul’s constant championing of new and interesting Irish whiskies is another. They are always willing to give chances to new small businesses.
Now the brand owner challenge is to meet the commercial reality of working in duty free. But that is life. I always ask new brands why they want to be in the channel. My advice is: if you don’t have a clear objective and strategy to go into the sector, don’t enter.
I really believe across the world that duty free embraces newness and innovation. To some extend it is, and can be, the on-trade version of major retail.
González Byass Global Marketing Director Eugeni Brotons: Travelling consumers want to experience a new adventure, a discovery. Due to globalisation, most of the brands can be found everywhere on the planet. This gives people confidence but, at the same time, they want to take back a souvenir, a unique product from the place they have been visited and this is where craft products and local items have their place.
Travel retail is a good window to show novelties to passengers. They are not expecting to find the same line of products year after year and can ‘experience’ novelties (continued on next page).
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The Moodie Davitt eZine
Issue 322 | 14 April 2023
The Moodie Davitt eZine is published 14 times per year by The Moodie Davitt Report (Moodie International Ltd). © All material is copyright and cannot be reproduced without the permission of the Publisher. To find out more visit www.moodiedavittreport.com and to subscribe, please e-mail kristyn@moodiedavittreport.com