2012 | Booze Business: A Blog Dedicated to the Business of Spirits and Wine

Jack From Brooklyn: The Saga Continues

June 5, 2012 No Comments

Readers of Booze Business may recall that I began following this startup company a month ago (see April 27 posting) with the promise that I would periodically update their journey to brand development. (Their website is here.)

Their first product is Sorel (pronounced sore-el). It’s a drink that those from the Caribbean islands have been making for centuries and serve on festive occasions. Each island, and even families, has their own concoctions. Made from a variety of spices, herbs, horticulture and neutral grain spirit (NGS), JFB has overcome barriers and produced a market-ready product with a shelf price of $26.99. (Wait until you hear what retailers are saying.)

Since I first met the owners (Jack Summers, Tim Kealey and Alan Camlet) they’ve moved from planning and laying the ground work to implementation. Not, as it turns out, without some hiccups.

After months of work on perfecting the recipe to their satisfaction, the day arrives when 330 gallons of NGS appears at their facility. The “factory” is the former site of Red Hook Winery; the blending and bottling equipment is set and ready to go. Figuring out how to unload the alcohol is only part of the problem. The alcohol itself is the real concern.

Banned Booze

May 30, 2012 No Comments

Five Wives Vodka, from Ogden’s Own Distillery in Utah, can be sold in that state but not in nearby Idaho. The label has an image of five women, an apparent reference to polygamy.

The Idaho State Liquor Division administrator, Jeff Anderson, said the brand is “offensive to a prominent segment of our population and will not be carried.” According to Ad Age, 25% of the Idaho population is Mormon compared with 62% in Utah. Leaving that aside, Mormons don’t drink so presumably they won’t be exposed to the product in stores.

Anderson claims that the brand is not being “banned” but was not being listed for marketing reasons. He said the Idaho liquor list has 106 different brands of vodka and Five Wives “doesn’t differentiate itself in any significant way…”

Really? He just described 80% of the vodkas out there. I think it’s a clever brand name for a regional product, with lots of marketing opportunities.

Diageo Innovations

May 24, 2012 No Comments

Why do large companies suck at new products?

I get this question all the time and the answers are really quite simple. At the top of the list, it’s easier to buy than build. Why invest the time and effort and divert attention from the existing portfolio just to dig a dry hole?

More important is the simple arithmetic throughout the food chain. “How am I going to make my bonus/meet management’s expectations/reach my sales quota – you fill in the rest – if I divert my attention to a start up brand?”

So, if you’re a major player, you have a number of options when it comes to new products and brands.

First, you can bite the bullet and say, as I did at the outset of this posting, why bother? Let someone else build it, I’ll make an offer they can’t refuse. Mainly Diageo, but also others, fit this mode.

If you’re aggressive and smart, chances are, you’re also attuned to the marketplace (consumers and trade) and know how to create demand or capitalize on an opportunity. Just look at White Rock, Proximo, Beam, Campari and others.