Lytham Gin

Lytham Gin By Sarah Ridgway

Sara Dewhurst started Lytham Gin from her tiny utility room three years ago, since then the craft gin brand has grown tremendously.

Today, Lytham Gin is a multiaward-winning craft gin produced in a large industrial unit, with an onsite shop and tasting room. Lancashire is very much at the heart of the brand and whether it is honey, berries, or botanicals it all comes from the region so there is a little bit of Lancashire in every drop. Tell us about the company and what led you to found Lytham Gin?

Originally, I was a chemistry teacher and after a while, I decided I wanted to do something different and bought a deli. I loved teaching but another big interest of mine was food and drink. I did that for about 18 months before starting to miss the science aspect of my life. I had spent 24 years in the science laboratory and before that, I was an industrial chemist, and I missed the hands-on practical side of making. The idea for making gin came from a Christmas shopping weekend in Manchester with my husband. I ordered a gin and tonic at the hotel bar as I have always enjoyed them and there were more than 30 different types of gin behind the bar. They stocked a Manchester Gin, a Liverpool Gin, an Edinburgh Gin and lots of other geographical gins. I chose my gin and I sat back down with my husband and said, “I am sure there would be a market for a Lytham Gin.” We talked about the concept all weekend and then forgot about it over Christmas. January rolled around and I suddenly remembered what we had been talking about and I said I’m going to do this! I applied for my licence and by March I was a qualified distiller and sold my first bottle of gin at the end of April 2018. I sold the delicatessen and now run Lytham Gin full time. I have a team of three employees who are brilliant. I also create gin for other businesses and we have just started exporting to Hong Kong and Singapore.

How integral has your own scientific background been in your journey and has it given you an advantage?

It’s definitely given me an advantage. I have an in depth understanding of distillation and I’m very aware of the risks associated with the process. I’m particularly interested in the chemistry of organic flavour molecules. Understanding how ethanol behaves as a solvent allows me to extract

the botanical oils which give gin its unique taste in the most effective way possible.

I’ve been told by other businesses who want their own gin that they chose me because I am well qualified and know what I am doing!

Is the market over-saturated or is there room for everybody and why do you think Lytham Gin stands out?

I think the market is getting fuller and fuller as the months go by with around 850 distilleries now in the UK making craft gins. Lytham Gin stands out because our philosophy is to use something from the local area in each variety. I forage for botanicals around Lytham and the Fylde throughout the year. I pick samphire from the estuary, gather berries from the lanes, collect petals from gardens and parks and have even helped harvest honey. There really is a little bit of Lancashire in every drop.

People love this personal connection with nature and many of our customers buy from us to give something from their home town to their friends. We have a beautiful range of gifts available online that are regularly sent to addresses right across the UK. Many of them can be personalised too.

Lytham Gin is nearly 4 years old and started in my tiny utility room at home. We quickly outgrew the space and converted our large garage into the distillery, keeping its location a closely guarded secret! By the middle of 2019 we needed a much bigger space and acquired an industrial unit in Lytham. This gave us a large production area as well as plenty of storage, a little shop and a tasting room. We’ve far exceeded anything I imagined back at the start of 2018. I won Best New Business at The EVAs and our gins have won two GIN GUIDE awards, several medals at The London Spirits Competition and multiple multi-star Great Taste Awards meaning we have this year become one of The Guild of Fine Food’s Great Taste Producers. The awards and recognition demonstrate the quality of our products. I’m very proud to be a Lancashire brand and have a bit of Lancashire in every bottle.

How did the pandemic impact the business?

By the start of 2020, we were stocked somewhere in the region of 120 to 130 bars, restaurants, and clubs across Lancashire. Obviously when the pandemic hit that all disappeared overnight. We knew that we had to do something to fill that void of losing those customers, but we were taken back by the sudden increasing traffic to our website which happened almost immediately. By the beginning of April, we knew we had to diversify the business so rather than selling to hospitality the focus shifted to selling directly to consumers. We upgraded everything on our website, the shop, photographs, our gin descriptions were expanded to include their perfect serve and where the botanicals come from etc. It worked really well because our online sales grew and grew. When things started opening up again, some of the hospitality venues restocked, and some didn’t. We are in fewer bars and restaurants now but have a really loyal customer base which is lovely. I feel a personal connection with everyone who stocks us. We were able to re-open the tasting room and are now welcoming lots of those

people who bought online to events here where they can make cocktails, try perfect serves, or just learn about the whole gin-making process.

The tasting sessions run during the week and the weekends, and you get a 30-40 minutes tour downstairs. I take you through the whole of the gin-making process, talk through the botanicals and how the gin is made and how we bottle it. We finish upstairs in the tasting room for up to two hours where we get to taste all six gins as perfect serves with recommended tonics and garnishes.

Lytham Gins: • Original Dry • Bee’s Knees • Navigator • Blooming Gorgeous • Positively Purple • Zesty Orange

Our best-selling product remains the full-size bottles of the Original Dry Gin without a shadow of a doubt. Included in the cost of the tasting experience is a £10 voucher to spend in the shop. Our most popular gin has always been the Original, closely

followed by Zesty Orange and Positively Purple. The gift sets are very popular too.

How have you built longlasting relationships in the local community?

I’m very proud to come from Lancashire and I love Lytham and its surroundings. I’m very keen to celebrate the local area and this isn’t limited to using local ingredients. Where I can, I will use local businesses for my supplies. My labels and packaging are produced in Lancashire. I was able to use a local timber merchant and flooring specialist to fit out the distillery bar and I always try to source any equipment from Northwest companies before looking anywhere else.

I also like to give back to my community. A percentage of the sale of every bottle of Blooming Gorgeous goes to the Lytham in Bloom charity. I have a strong link with Rotary and make three gins for their End Polio campaign. This started with a chance meeting back in 2018 where a local Rotarian asked if I could make a purple gin. Purple is the colour of the campaign as it represents the dye used to identify children in Africa and India who have recently been vaccinated. Their little fingers are dipped in a dye so medics can easily tell if they have received a dose. Passionately Purple Gin was created to raise funds for the charity and has so far raised over

£50,000, improving and saving the lives of countless children.

As well as charity connections, I have particularly strong links with Stringers department store, who stock my entire range, and with Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club, for whom I make their Royal Lytham Gin. Our local park, Lowther Gardens, chose is to make their centenary gin last year and we were very proud to have been chosen by Northcote to make their Obsession Gin in January. How important is being a Lancashire brand and is there much competition in the area?

Lancashire is gaining a reputation for high quality craft gins. There are now at least 8 distilleries in the region, all producing highly acclaimed gins and it is a pleasure to be part of this community. Many of us know each other and although we are technically in competition, I think we recognise that by producing great gin, we can attract customers from all parts of the country and all benefit as a result. Craft gin drinkers tend to be collectors, they rarely buy just one gin, they like to try as many as possible. Finding new gins is fun as each is different and has their own story. How has the team grown?

When I started in 2018 it was essentially just me. My husband, Paul, designed the distillery and put systems in place to allow me to keep accurate records but he has a full time job of his own. He helps at events and festivals and really enjoys being a part of the business. My Mum and Dad help out with deliveries and at busy times in the distillery but when online sales took off in early 2020, I needed to take on staff. I now have two members of staff who help me in the distillery and another member of staff who helps with paperwork. I am pleased to have created employment opportunities in the local area. How do you incorporate sustainability into the business?

I was able to offer an internship to a student at Lancaster University who worked on a project to conserve water. This is going to be beneficial to the company and to the environment once it is complete. When I consider packaging I make sure I avoid plastic where possible and always try to select biodegradable materials. I use sustainably sourced botanicals and choose organic products if they are available. For example, the honey in my Bee’s Knees Gin comes from a small bee keeper who is based on the Fylde Coast. I wouldn’t dream of using mass-produced honey that has been shipped half way around the world in Lytham Gin.

I like everything I use to be as local as possible, reducing the carbon footprint of my products. I am mindful of the responsibility businesses have to the health of our planet. When I was distilling in my garage, the stills were powered by solar panels on the roof. Unfortunately I haven’t got that option here so instead I chose an electricity supplier who provides 100% green energy. What’s new for 2022?

The most exciting thing planned for this year is a celebration of the Lytham St Annes Centenary. It’s 100 years since Lytham and St Annes-on-theSea became joined together under a royal charter and in honour of that milestone, we are creating a new gin. The recipe is a closely guarded secret but it will be a traditional London Dry Gin containing coastal botanicals from the town. We are planning on just one run of 300 bottles of this very special gin.

We are also keeping our fingers crossed that Lytham Gin will be available in Australia by the end of the year... 2022 looks set to be an amazing year for us. Sandgrown Spirits, Unit 3 The Old Mill, Boundary Road, Lytham St Annes, FY8 5LT. www.sandgrownspirits.co.uk