What is your point of difference?

Julien Delavoie, NO. 8 DISTILLERY

“One big point of difference that will come in our next five-year plan is that we're moving to a new distillery this year to cater to the growing tourist demand. We will host cruise ships in 2024, as Qualmark registered. We are the only distillery in Dunedin that will soon be able to host up to 200 people in the bar, retail, and tasting areas. We have also started offering consultancy services. Our final goal is to become one of the major Rum producers in NZ and turn the distillery 100 percent sustainable. We are currently in the process of finding investors or using the Pledge Me platform to raise capital.”

Luke Jones, HONEST

“We strongly believe that producing high-quality spirits should not harm our precious earth. We are committed to being environmentally responsible by eliminating plastic use and achieving carbon neutrality. Our passion for design is evident in our products, which blend traditional elements with modern aesthetics. In our design process, we prioritise the use of sustainable materials and aim to find innovative solutions that combine form and function to create stunning pieces with minimal environmental impact.”

Justine Schroder, MT. FYFE DISTILLERY

“My point of difference is in the simple purity that my gins represent the region I am from, botanics hand picked with passion derived from the stories that they are inspired around. They are blended together and distilled in a small 40-litre copper alembic Still, using spring water from the farm, the gin is brought down to a palatable 42 percent alcohol by volume representing the latitude line that Kaikōura sits on, bottled and labelled by hand, these gins are made with the care and attention that they deserve.”

Matt Bridge, LUNATIC AND LOVER

“We are one of the few craft distilleries in New Zealand to focus solely on Rum. For us, it's not just another spirit we can make in addition to gin or whisky. It's our passion and our reason for being. We have a clear vision of being a leader in the rum sector and we spend an inordinate amount of time developing and tweaking recipes to make sure that what goes in the bottle is the absolute best spirit we can make. We're also one of the very few rum distilleries in the world that are organically certified which is kind of a big deal.”

Chris Barber, THE BOND STORE

“Our product development is led by what customers want, not what we want to make. So having the right price, the right product, and the right flavours is key.”

Paul Schneider, COROMANDEL DISTILLING CO.

“The point of difference that we offer to the market is an owner-operator distillery that crafts gins at the highest international quality level in very small batches. We proudly represent the Coromandel in the Gin space. Since launching just before Covid we've received World's Best Classic Gin at the World Gin Awards 2022, Gold at the IWSC 2022 and 2023 as well as New Zealand's Best Matured Gin at the World Gin Awards 2022 and 2023 and New Zealand's Best Classic and Best Contemporary Gins 2023.”

Alex Kirkchuk, PUHOI ORGANIC DISTILLERY

“I am proud of the fact that Puhoi Organic Distillery is the first and only Solar Powered Distillery in the world manufacturing with zero emissions. We apply the curative power of Mother Nature to bring happiness and well-being to people and leave only green footprints on the Planet. The latest step we undertook in this direction is purchasing fully electric vehicles for local, Auckland-wide deliveries.”