LAST ORDERS – MATT WILSON
Looking ahead at DB DB has a new Managing Director with Matt Wilson stepping into the top job in 2022. He talks sustainability, trends and the importance of helping hospo to get back on its feet again… How would you describe your business philosophy?
To create sustainable value. We’re an FMCG business, so of course we need to focus on short-term metrics, but we must always be building for the future. I believe strongly that businesses need to think in generations, and better balance delivery across the short- and long-term, particularly in the context of climate change and the urgency for New Zealand to transition to a low carbon economy. Because of this, I think it’s really important that DB not only succeeds from a financial and market share perspective, but that we also truly lead in sustainability, in line with our ambition to be New Zealand’s leading sustainable business. I want to prove that you can deliver on financial and sustainability ambitions simultaneously. In fact, if you’re not doing both I believe you’ll be caught out sooner or later. What's your view of New Zealand’s drinks industry currently?
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the hospitality industry has been nothing short of horrific. Despite this, I’m optimistic about the year ahead and people coming back to hospitality to reconnect. The question will be though, what is the structural damage that has been done by the impacts of the past two years with many good operators forced to close or leave the industry? Things like borders reopening will help, but the biggest factor will be New Zealanders having the confidence to go out again, and think about life post-pandemic. In terms of products, we’re seeing exciting trends around premiumisation and wellness, and I think there’ll be more to come in this space. With themes like “better for me” holding strong across different categories you see much more blending and blurring with similar tastepropositions and offerings coming from different categories, which I think is super interesting. What are your priorities?
Kiwis have experienced a great deal of separation and uncertainty in 2020 and 82 DRINKSBIZ APRIL / MAY 2022
2021... meaning it’s even more important to help bring people together for social connection in a safe way. Businesses like ours are at the centre of these good times, and hospitalityrelated businesses have a really important role to play this year in bringing people back together. This is true internally as well, where many of our people have been working remotely. The first priority is connecting people again – both externally in the trade, and internally within our business. Secondly, I’m passionate about taking meaningful action in the sustainability space. As a business, we’re committed
“I’m optimistic about the year ahead and people coming back to hospitality to reconnect.” to finding innovative solutions that help reduce our emissions, without simply purchasing offsets as a first option. We’ve made huge progress in this area but need to accelerate now and help shape the wider emission reduction roadmap and lead the way for big business to play its part in New Zealand’s transition to a low carbon economy. What do you see as the main challenges ahead?
COVID-19 remains a significant challenge and businesses around New Zealand are currently facing extraordinary operational challenges with the explosion of Omicron. In terms of business impact, the current cost of living crisis is going to pose a real challenge, including with likely large excise increases to add to an already challenged cost-base. Supply chain disruption and
rising costs are huge challenges at the best of times, let alone while the country navigates a slower local economy. We need to work hard with our suppliers and customers to mitigate these challenges as much as possible and spread the impact, but unavoidably some of this will have to flow through to higher consumer prices. What do you see as the growth areas and opportunities?
Kiwis are increasingly making better decisions about alcohol based on their personal circumstances and lifestyle, and we’ve seen sales of low-alcohol beer increasing 1,116% in the past five years. We’re well placed to further build on this with the market-leading Heineken 0.0 as well as having Export 0.0 offerings. There has also been strong growth in low-carb beers, which make up 8% of the beer market. Sales for these grew 33% in the past year, and again it’s an area we know well with Export 33 being one of the first large scale low-carb beers in New Zealand. We have more innovation coming in this space. RTDs have also changed a lot in the last five years. We’ve seen increasing demand for lower sugar, lower carb, flavoured beverage options, with some really exciting new brands and options available. I see these trends continuing and with brands like Odd Company, want to continue to bring out relevant propositions for New Zealand drinkers. Despite the current challenges, hospitality remains incredibly important and core to how you build brands, so it’s essential to keep a focus on smart investments in that space. Helping hospitality regain its footing during this time will provide longer-term opportunities.
