Vanguard Luxury Brands is very proud to have won Australia’s top award, the ALIA award for:
2022, 2018, 2015 and 2013.
As well as being Highly Commended for this award in 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2019.
We’re incredibly humbled by the support from the industry and we are so glad to see our favourite venues filling up again.
See you at the bar!
Keep up to date with the latest off-premise news, products, promotions, trends and insights, that are 100% focused on helping you run a better liquor store
Despite easing COVID restrictions, 2022 still came with its own unique set of challenges, largely driven by the impacts of the pandemic environment. What the leaders in this year’s National Liquor News Industry Leaders Forum have demonstrated though, is that this industry is a smart one and no stranger to handling adversity.
As Kylie Lethbridge, CEO of the Independent Brewers Association, said in this year’s issue –2022 brought no “magic wand” to instantly right all our issues. It was up to all of us to stay agile, respond to each pressure as it came, and find the best way through.
It was supposed to be the year in which we all got back to ‘normal’, but looking back on 2022, it’s clear that there is no going back, only moving forward. Trends and circumstances that exploded towards the start of the pandemic still remain important, whether it’s a push towards more online and omnichannel shopping experiences, the movement supporting more local products, or even the growing consumer base generally ‘drinking better’, the best and brightest of Australia’s liquor sector have been taking note and delivering on what consumers and industry partners want.
This year’s Industry Leaders Forum edition is our biggest ever, packed to the seams with the insights of businesses who have restructured, innovated, pivoted and/or held strong in 2022, and will continue to do so in 2023. It features the
thoughts of leaders of all sectors from all corners of the country, sharing how they’ve executed strategies of success and what this means for their future and another big year for the industry ahead. This is complemented by some of the top data, research and analysis organisations our nation has to offer, who give the inside scoop on what this all could mean at the macro level.
This is an essential guide of industry knowledge for 2023, developed to help your business navigate what will be another interesting year.
Thank you to all the incredible thought leaders who were involved with putting together not only the biggest Leaders Forum ever, but the biggest issue of National Liquor News in our 40+ year history.
Thank you also to the amazing team around me that has gone the extra mile to make this issue what it is - Kea Thorburn, Shane T Williams, Seamus May and Deb Jackson, as well as Natasha Jara and Tony Willson.
Final thanks go to you, our readers – you are the beating heart of this industry, and who we do all of this for.
Here’s to 2023!
Cheers, Brydie Brydie Allen, Editor 02 8586 6156 ballen@intermedia.com.au
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Coopers has broken the soil on its brand new $50m home development, with construction expected to be completed around May 2024.
An official sod-turning event marked the start of the construction, which will include a whisky distillery, restaurant and bar, dedicated tasting room and microbrewery.
Coopers Brewery Managing Director, Dr Tim Cooper, said the public response to the development, which was announced in April last year, has been overwhelmingly positive.
“This is an exciting expansion for Coopers, and represents a significant investment for the company, with an emphasis on maximising Australian input throughout the process,” Dr Cooper said.
“As a proud Australian company, we hope to create a welcoming experience for local, national and international visitors, while positioning our brewery for the future.
“Today marks a major milestone and our team is excited to see our vision start to become a reality.”
Following a competitive tender process, Coopers appointed Australian construction company Built to deliver the new development.
Built General Manager, SA, Chris Bate said: “This project will help bolster job creation providing in excess of 500 on-site local South Australian jobs during the construction phase and many more in the manufacturing of material prior to site delivery.
“Our highly experienced local team are looking forward to delivering a high-quality result that both the Coopers team and the people of South Australia can be proud of for many years to come.”
Studio Nine Architects’ unique curved design of the two-storey development has been inspired by the iconic Coopers’ roundel label. The curved structure encompasses a sloping amphitheatre that will showcase the brewery grounds and maltings.
Premium craft beer retailer, Beer Cartel, has closed its bricks and mortar store and moved its business 100 per cent online.
Co-Founder, Richard Kelsey, said the change has been driven by the move to a new warehouse to bring Beer Cartel and its sister business, Brewquets, back into one location. The requirement of the new site and licensing restrictions meant having a bricks and mortar store was not possible.
He added: “We’d like to say a big thanks to all the customers that have come to support the store from when it first opened in 2011 to now. When we first started, online sales of alcohol in Australia were small. It was the support of those that came to the store that helped keep us moving forward during the early years.”
Beer Cartel was based on Sydney’s North Shore, but Kelsey said it was very humbling that the store would get regular visitors from as far away as the Blue Mountains and Central Coast.
“There’s been lots of familiar faces and relationships that we’re definitely going to miss, but we’re not going away, we’ll be look at bringing more of the offline side of the business online,” he said.
While it is the end of Beer Cartel having a store front connected to the warehouse, Kelsey said it isn’t the end of their bricks and mortar aspirations.
“We’ll be looking at options for this going forward and see if there are any opportunities to open a store, including partnering with others in the industry,” he said.
Spirits Platform has launched a new website, which contains a number of features designed to bring the distributor’s premium brands and liqueurs closer to the trade.
The website has been optimised for mobile devices, reflecting the trade’s viewing habits, and has been designed to showcase each premium brand, with stories, events and cocktail recipes available as well. Each brand page provides history, production, and brand information along with detailed tasting notes.
Spirits Platform CEO, Ian Atherton, said: “This redesign is an important part of our vision to create an environment where premium brands are given the focus and brand-building support required to succeed.
“This is about empowering our industry partners to maximise the advantages of the premium brands we offer.”
A prominent feature of the new site is Spirits Academy, a program that supports and educates bartenders and retailers about the history, production and flavours of spirits and liqueurs, with a wide range of courses on offer.
“Our website was built with our customer in mind, providing a hub of resources, a place where they can get information, education and inspiration easily,” said Kathy Bouzios, Spirit Platform’s Digital Marketing Manager.
Visit the new Spirits Platform website at: https://spiritsplatform.com.au/
The Ashmead family has added to its remarkable estate vineyard holdings in Nuriootpa and Greenock, by purchasing the Wilton Hill Vineyard in Eden Valley.
Cameron and Allister Ashmead, the second generation owners of Elderton Wines, seized the “once in a generation opportunity” for the purchase, which they have described as one of Eden Valley’s most extraordinary and unique vineyard sites.
One of the highest altitude vineyards in the Barossa, atop Mengler Hill, Wilton Hill Vineyard has 23.75 ha of vines, some of which were planted over 100 years ago. The Ashmead family will utilise the great opportunity of the vineyard’s old vine Shiraz, Cabernet and Riesling, as well as exceptional younger Grenache vines too.
Allister said: “We are fortunate to bring this amazing vineyard into our treasured estate holdings. Along with the talents of our experienced and passionate vineyard, winemaking and cellar door teams, we believe that this vineyard addition will cement our position as a real contributor to the Barossa’s future success story through growing and making some of Australia’s most delicious and sought-after wines.”
In December, 1800 Tequila held a two day low-waste cocktail and dining experience in Sydney’s Royal Botanical Gardens.
On 28 November, Bombay Sapphire presented its new Citron Pressé Gin to guests from the hospitality, drinks and media industries at Sydney’s Smoke Bar.
The spirit itself is a citrus-led gin infused with 100 per cent natural fruit and no added sugar, and is said to take its inspiration from the classic Tom Collins cocktail.
Corina Retter, Bombay Sapphire Brand Ambassador, introduced the spirit, while guests were treated to five different cocktails and an RTD ‘Citrus Collins’, while enjoying the start of the summer on the rooftop bar overlooking Darling Harbour.
The activation featured ‘The Recycled Bar’, which was constructed entirely from waste destined for landfill, hosted in collaboration with Clean Up Australia. The event aimed to educate drinkers on Australia’s waste problem, with the country producing 78 million tonnes of waste annually.
Low-waste 1800 Tequila cocktails and zero-waste canapés were served, while artwork from 20 sustainable artists was exhibited.
Cognac and the Australian summer are perhaps not immediately associated, but this is an attitude Cognac Monnet looked to change with a recent event held at Sydney’s Nola Smokehouse. Here, guests were introduced to the full Monnet range, including the approachable ‘Sunshine Selection’ expression.
Cognac Monnet is known for its famous art-deco ‘sunshine in a glass’ poster, and online cocktail personality Josh Deane was also on-hand to show how the spirit could be incorporated into warm-weather cocktails.
Calabria Family Wine Group believes in selecting and working with high-quality brands that share their core family values of working hard, being innovative and staying true to your vision. “Our expansion from a single producer-owned and operated wine company to a wine group housing some of Australia’s best-loved wine brands, and a selection of diverse international wine distribution partnerships, is an exicting time in our 75 year history.” Bill Calabria AM. calabriafamilywinegroup.com
More than 500 people came together in late 2022 in the spirit of education and celebration, for the Retail Drinks Industry Summit and Awards.
Late last year, Retail Drinks Australia brought together the retail industry inperson again for a huge day of activity at Sydney’s Sofitel Wentworth. The day kicked off with the organisation’s annual general meeting, followed by the Retail Drinks Industry Summit, and concluding with the 2022 Retail Drinks Industry Awards, with over 500 members and industry stakeholders in attendance across the day.
The Retail Drinks Industry Summit kicked off with an opening by the association’s Chair, John Carmody, who introduced the Hon. Kevin Anderson MP, Minister for Hospitality and Racing in the NSW Government.
“At the end of the day, the hospitality and liquor industry is something so important to our economy, so we should be driving it and we should be making sure that we continue to push forward, to make it easier for you to do business and connect with your customers,” Minister Anderson said.
Michael Waters, CEO of Retail Drinks, also welcomed the crowd, introducing the huge
program for the day that would address the association’s two core areas of work: policy and advocacy. In describing this alongside the accomplishments of Retail Drinks, Waters encouraged members to embrace the opportunity of the day.
“Change is good, and it’s also often hard. But to succeed in business or in life, you must run towards it,” Waters said.
Throughout the course of the day, more than 20 speakers across over 10 presentations and panel discussions explored a range of relevant and current topics, including regulation, responsibility and sustainability; industrial relations reform; workplace wellbeing; talent attraction and retention; market, category, shopper and consumer insights; online alcohol sale and delivery; the evolution of the online shopper; and omnichannel retailing. It was a cracking program, delivering value to independent, chain or online-only liquor retailers, retail banner groups, wholesalers, producers, suppliers, and service providers of the retail liquor sector.
The online world was one of the key themes for multiple keynotes and panels. This was the
case for Rose Yip of Australia Post, who noted that online retail spend overall has increased by 5.2 per cent since 2019, with one in 10 purchase dollars now spent online.
Also reviewing the online opportunity within the omnichannel shopping environment was a panel chaired by Andy Young, Associate Publisher of The Shout and featuring David Gyte of Liquor Marketing Group, Richard Kelsey of Beer Cartel, Kate Bell of Shorty’s Liquor and Bruno De Sousa of DoorDash. This panel discussed how there has been a shift towards creating more options for shoppers, with a huge range of different touchpoints to cater to all types of shopping mission.
A general goal of the Retail Drinks Industry Summit was to help members continue to succeed by making the smartest and most informed business decisions. A key element of this for the liquor industry revolves around responsibility and regulation, covered in differing ways in the Summit.
One highlight in this topic was a panel chaired by Jonathan Russell, Head of Policy & Advocacy for Retail Drinks, featuring The Hon Michael Lavarch, Chief Adjudicator of
the Alcohol Beverages Advertising Code Scheme, Helen Strachan of Pernod Ricard Winemakers, Richard Fifer of Endeavour Group, and Scott Towers of Red Bottle Group. This panel delved into why it is important for the industry to be one step ahead of community expectations, while building and genuinely living up to a reputation of responsible service.
Throughout all sessions, the pulsing heart of the Australian liquor industry was revealed throughout countless data points. As IRI and Growth Scope stated in their joint presentation about market, category, shopper and consumer insights, this is incredibly useful to the industry right now, given a new baseline for retail has been set from the tumultuous environment of the pandemic.
The final part of the day was the Retail Drinks Industry Awards, which recognised excellence across the off-premise industry in both retail and supplier categories.
Carmody introduced the awards, hailing the quality and quantity of the nominees and finalists.
“After a huge 250 per cent uplift in nominations last year, it was incredible to see the nominations grow by a further 20 per cent this year across all categories, to over 400 in total,” Carmody said.
“It’s great to see as it demonstrates that members and the broader industry value and appreciate our annual awards program.”
Waters echoed Carmody’s sentiments, adding: “All member stores that are nominated were independently mystery shopped, assessing the complete customer experience against over 28 criteria. For the average store mystery shopped, this year the score was 79.8 per cent, a four per cent overall improvement on last year.
“The top 50 finalists in Liquor Store of the Year achieved an average mystery shop of 91.2 per cent.”
At the event, National Liquor News caught up with some of the winners to get a sense of their emotions. For Shanais Marcus-Hogue of Dan Murphy’s Tamworth, winner of Liquor Store Manager of the Year, it was a triumphant moment.
“I’m really delighted, I’ve applied for this a couple of times, and to finally get a win… Liquor is my career, it’s not something I’m going to walk away from. Liquor is really special to me,” she said.
Young Liquor Retailer of the Year had a joint winner, with Oliver Francis of Vintage Cellars Brighton and Josh Towers of Red Bottle Group both taking out the win.
Francis said: “In terms of my career, it’s a great next step to go more into buying, and it will give me that really good base to bring all this experience with me to going into a bit more of a store support environment.”
Bottlemart Blackrock’s Matt Surman won Liquor Store Owner of the Year, and said the awards provide a crucial target for the industry.
“They’re very important, they’re definitely encouraging you to get better, so it gives you a bit of recognition that you’re on the right track, doing good stuff,” he said.
Liquor Store of the Year was won by BWS Windradyne, with the award accepted by BWS Relief Area Manager, Leeanne Cunningham. Store Manager, Alissa Humphries, reflected after the win and said: “The entire team is pumped and buzzing after the win. It’s incredible to be recognised on a national level.” ■
Sales Representative of the Year: Alistair
Harris, Pernod Ricard Australia
Beer Supplier of the Year: Lion
Wine Supplier of the Year: Treasury Wine Estates
Spirits Supplier of the Year: Diageo Australia
Services Partner of the Year: Australia Post
Supplier of the Year: Diageo Australia
Liquor Store of the Year: BWS Windradyne
Bathurst, NSW
Large Format Liquor Store of the Year: Dan Murphy’s West End Sunshine, VIC
Online Retailer of the Year: Good Pair Days
Young Liquor Retailer of the Year: Oliver
Francis, Vintage Cellars Brighton, VIC, and Josh Towers, Red Bottle Group, NSW
Liquor Store Manager of the Year: Shanais
Marcus-Hogue, Dan Murphy’s Tamworth, NSW
Liquor Store Owner of the Year: Matt Surman, Bottlemart Blackrock Cellars, VIC
Oliver Francis & Josh Towers Leeanne Cunningham
Piña Colada is a new flavour for the new year from alcoholic seltzer brand, Hard Fizz, after the flavour proved to be a popular choice at the brand’s Gold Coast brewery.
And while the flavour is described as having a distinct creamy flavour, it is actually perfectly clear, like the other SKUs in the Hard Fizz range.
Hard Fizz Head Brewer, Paul Wootton, said: “I’m not joking, this is the most delicious drink I’ve ever tasted. Most of the time, I’m playing around with fruity extracts to come up with our flavours but we thought, let’s take on a cocktail for a challenge, and the result is Piña Colada.”
The flavour was originally a short term collaboration between Hard Fizz and Gold Coast pizza institution Justin Lane, but after proving popular at the restaurant and the brewery, the decision was made to put the flavour into mass production.
Hard Fizz Head of Marketing, Joel Scott, said: “The beauty of FIZZ HQ is we can essentially ‘focus group’ small batches of new, experimental flavours and if people like them, we can retail them properly.
“I can’t tell you how many times people have told me they love Piña Colada Fizz so that’s why we’ve canned it.”
Like the other flavours in the Hard Fizz range, the new Piña Colada is 99 per cent sugar free, and is available now.
One of the leading sparkling wine producers in England, Nyetimber, has entered the Australian market after appointing Déjà Vu Wine Co. as its exclusive importer and distributor.
Eric Heerema, Owner and CEO of Nyetimber, said: “As the sales of sparkling wine continue to increase in Australia, with an obvious focus on quality, we look forward to working with Déjà Vu to introduce our wines to this exciting market and lead the growth in awareness of both Nyetimber and the English sparkling wine category.”
Andrew Cameron, Director at Déjà Vu Wine Co., added: “It is a great honour to be appointed as Nyetimber’s partner in Australia and our team is excited to introduce their finest cuvees to wine lovers across the country. We fully believe that Nyetimber’s firm philosophy in both winemaking and brand building will lead to great success in Australia and we are looking forward to playing a part in contributing to the brand’s international prosperity.”
This is the latest addition announced to Déjà Vu Wine Co’s growing distribution portfolio, which also just took on local wine label, Margan Family Wines.
Doozy is a hard seltzer brand founded by Sydney Swans players Ollie Florent and Will Hayward, along with Harry Hayward and brand agency Richards Rose. Despite launching in early 2022, it has now already expanded its range and its team, bringing on fellow Swans teammate Isaac Heeney as a key investor, while creating new style SKUs and refreshing the brand.
Watermelon flavour has been added to the Doozy seltzer collection, while the core range has also seen the addition of two new vodka soda RTDs: Twisted Lemon and Wild Raspberry. These vodka sodas come in at a higher strength with six per cent ABV, helping take the range into more occasions.
Co-founder, Digby Richards, said: “We’ve put a lot of thought and hard work into this new range, from the recipe to the brand to the new packaging, and hope that people like them as much as we do.
“The best thing about Doozy is that it is deliciously uncomplicated and incredibly agile, and we can align with young Aussies’ tastes and attitudes when they change. Will, Ollie and Harry have tested the tastes and quality with their mates and their networks, and we’ve been humbled by the feedback.”
Doozy’s hard seltzer range has a RRP of $22 per four pack of 330ml cans, while the Doozy vodka soda RTD range has a RRP of $24 per four pack of 330ml cans.
Independent Australian brewer, Moon Dog, has released a re-formulated version of the brand’s ginger beer, designed to be zingier, sweeter and more refreshing than ever.The new Moon Dog Ginger Beer is low in sugar, but with a naturally sweet, juicy and slightly spicy classic ginger taste.
Chris Hysted-Adams, Moon Dog Flavourologist and Product Manager, said: “We know consumers are turning to low sugar alternatives and we wanted to create a product that still gives the full flavour of a ginger beer but still ticks all those boxes of being low sugar, low carb and made with all natural ingredients.
“This really is just the beginning for us. We have plans to refresh the ginger beer shelf and really innovate in a space that has always maintained the traditional flavours and styles.”
House of Fine Wine has announced the addition of two new Australian wine labels to its distribution portfolio of premium brands. Skillogalee Estate, based in the Clare Valley, and Fermoy Estate, based in Margaret River, will be distributed by House of Fine Wine from 1 March.
David Bird, Managing Director of House of Fine Wine, said: “We are proud to welcome Skillogalee and Fermoy into the House of Fine Wine portfolio. Two brands with decades of proud history and experience yet dynamic and future focused, we look forward to working together to bring these exceptional wines to customers and consumers around Australia.”
These latest additions join a growing House of Fine Wine portfolio, which also features Champagne Bollinger, Champagne Ayala, Delamain, Villa Maria, Esk Valley, Leftfield, Vidal Estate, Levantine Hill and Soul Growers.
One of the largest sustainably certified wineries in the Adelaide Hills, Sidewood, has announced the release of a new alcohol free sparkling wine, which it says is the first of its kind to be made with 100 per cent Adelaide Hills fruit.
The new wine was developed in response to the growing demand for premium non-alcoholic wines, according to Sidewood Owner and Vigneron, Owen Inglis.
“We found there was no option for NOLO drinkers, who wanted a premium, quality, zero-alcohol wine. We wanted to make something we’d be happy drinking ourselves,” Inglis said.
Named ‘Nearly Naked’, the new wine uses the same fruit from the Sidewood Estate vineyards, with the alcohol carefully removed using spinning cone technology. This ensures that the fresh aromas, flavours and mouthfeel that Sidewood is known for remains in the final wine.
Sam Evans, Marketing Manager at Sidewood, added: “Brand, packaging and quality of liquid are extremely important factors for NOLO wines. Our team set out to give customers the most premium and quality experience as possible for a zeroalcohol wine, from popping a cork to taking your first mouthful.”
Independent Broome-based Moontide Distillery has released a brand new innovation, bringing its highly popular Pride Tide Gin into RTD format for the first time.
Initially created to commemorate Broome Pride, the Pride Tide Gin captures the essence of a tropical beach party, with flavours of pineapple, coconut and passionfruit combined with juniper, coriander and a rainbow of native Kimberley botanicals. It’s been brought together in a can with a citrusy effervescent tonic, for a convenient and refreshing G&T that can be enjoyed anywhere, any time.
Moontide Distillery worked with drag queen star Kween Kong to be one of the faces of the new RTD, with the launch coming this month in line with Sydney’s hosting of World Pride.
Moontide Distillery’s Trish Davidson said Pride Tide Gin has a special place in the hearts of the distillery’s team.
“We have been proud supporters of Broome Pride Inc. since our first year of operation,” said Davidson.
“Part proceeds of every bottle and can of Pride Tide Gin goes directly to this local Broome not-for-profit that supports LGBTQIA+ individuals in the Kimberley region by facilitating Broome’s Mardi Gras Festival and other community events.”
Australia’s wine industry is known for being an innovation leader, with many local winemakers creating strong potential for alternative varietals, writes Brydie Allen.
We’re pretty lucky in Australia to be surrounded by so many incredible wines in so many corners of the country. Our local winemakers and their regions are known worldwide for exceptional work with key varietals, from Barossa Shiraz to Margaret River Chardonnay and much more.
Aside from the classics though, Australia’s wine industry is also known for its leading innovation, and with the freedom that is not seen within many European regions, the possibilities at our winemakers’ and grapegrowers’ fingertips are almost endless.
One such area of exploration can be found within the ever-expanding range of alternative grape varietals in which many independent Australian wineries play and lead. Some varietals start small, but then are executed so well that they become accepted as mainstream wine options by the domestic consumer market (e.g. Pinot Gris/Grigio). Meanwhile, other varietals inch themselves more shelf space as awareness about them grows, while some stay rare hidden gems.
For the most knowledgeable wine consumers, interesting varietals coming from our local winemakers are embraced as exciting options. But what about the regular punter?
Peter Lloyd, General Manager of Coriole Vineyards in McLaren Vale, says the evolving success of alternative varietals shows a continued thirst for them in Australia. As a longtime local leader in this space, being the first
producer in Australia to plant Fiano and Piquepoul vines, Coriole has seen this develop over time.
“Alternative varietals come and go, some graduate to become mainstream and others may fall by the wayside for viticultural, marketing or winemaking reasons, what is important is to keep experimenting but also do a little homework prior,” Lloyd said.
This is why wine label Alpha Box and Dice prefers a different term when describing these grapes.
“We like to think of our different wine varieties as ‘emerging’ rather than alternative. Many of them are now proven to thrive and produce outstanding wines in the regions that they weren’t traditionally planted, which indicates that their prevalence of production, consumer awareness and demand in the market is sure to continue to grow,” said the winery’s Jared Brown.
There are many reasons for wine producers to add alternative varieties to their lineup.
At Coriole, where alternative varietals like Fiano, Piquepoul, Sangiovese, Montepulciano, Cinsault and more make up more than half of the winery’s volume, the interest came in the 1980s while looking for alternatives for French varietals.
“We were interested in the new possibilities and the unique expressions that could be created from
Peter Lloyd General Manager Coriole Vineyards
“Wine is daunting enough as it is to many consumers so it’s important to find ways to communicate all the great things about these varietals.”
the varietals. This of course has broadened to find varieties that suit our climate and our viticultural future,” said Lloyd.
For Pizzini Wines in King Valley, which has an alternative collection featuring Brachetto, Lambrusco, Verduzzo, Teroldego and many more, it was a decision made in the early 1990s to help put the winery and the region on the map.
“It was a big risk to take back then, but we knew it would be worth it,” said Brand Manager, Natalie Pizzini.
“We knew that for the King Valley to differentiate itself from all of the other Australian wine regions we needed to create a niche market - we couldn’t compete with Chardonnay from the Yarra, Cabernet from Margaret River or Shiraz from the Barossa.”
At Oliver’s Taranga Vineyards, with a portfolio that features the likes of Vermentino, Tempranillo and Mencia alongside more mainstream grapes, having that alternative side provides “light and shade”, according to Winemaker, Corrina Wright.
“It also provides new wines for different occasions. Fiano and Vermentino in particular work really well in this region - they have lovely high natural acidity, lots of texture and some saline qualities that work really well with the food we get from our oceans. Having beautiful wines with vines that are drought, heat and disease tolerant - that’s pretty good all around,” Wright said.
In the Barossa, Lou Miranda Estate and Levrier
Wines by Jo Irvine are two producers that are doing some interesting things with alternative varietals, stemming from the work of previous generations.
Lou Miranda Estate, for example, has heroed Sagrantino in its Fierce III brand, developed as a modern take on the traditions the Miranda family has held in the industry since 1939. Sisters Lisa, Victoria and Angela have been the second generation at the helm since 2019, and while Sagrantino had been experimented with under the winery since their father planted vines in 2009, the sisters released their version of the varietal within the Fierce III collection as a symbol of the fresh take they’ve brought into the business.
Jo Irvine’s alternative hero at Levrier Wines is a Meslier single varietal sparkling wine, of which she says there are only 20 hectares planted worldwide, with two hectares in the Adelaide Hills. Irvine said her father saw the potential of the Meslier grape in the 1980s on a trip to France, and she was able to learn and experiment with him until she launched the wine under her own label.
“Meslier is only used to make sparkling wine, that we know of, but it is usually blended into house styles of Champagne… As far as I know, it has never been
used as a single varietal in sparkling wine, so we make the only one in the world,” Irvine said.
Whether they were previously aware of them or not, consumers are not shying away from trying alternative wine varietals, with this becoming a key drawcard for some cellar doors.
Lloyd says: “Many people visit us to try our alternative varieties - that’s why they know about us. They are then surprised to see we make great Shiraz as well!”
It’s a similar story at Pizzini, where guests to the cellar door are coming specifically to try the wide range of Italian varieties.
Wright, who is also President of the Australian Alternative Varieties Wine Show (AAVWS), said people are always looking for something new, and that will only grow as more alternative varietals are stocked in the retail sector.
“I think a lot of people can get bored by the same wines, even great wines like McLaren Vale Shiraz. They want to have different things to taste and talk about. That is why we’re seeing a massive demand increase through South Australia and the eastern seaboard as well,” Wright said.
Key to the success of any liquor category is education - do consumers know what a product actually is and what it can offer them? There are several strategies that wine brands are using to educate consumers about alternative wines.
The cellar door team at Oliver’s Taranga is renowned for its educational abilities, which saw it become the first cellar door team to ever take out the WCA Wine Communicator of the Year Award in 2022.
“Wine is quite intimidating in the first place, let alone with varietals that you’ve never heard of... I think our staff do a really great job of making everyone feel like they’re on an adventure and there’s no judgment, so why not have a go and try something different? More often than not, people find something that’s pretty good and it goes into their repertoire,” Wright said.
At Coriole, Lloyd said this comfort is created by helping “provide a frame of reference, i.e. make sure those trying Sangiovese for the first time are expecting a dry and tannic style… Once they have something
to latch on to, they are very comfortable to explore.”
Irvine’s approach is to create ‘sensory plates’, which give consumers the chance to taste similar flavours to what they can find in the wine (e.g. green apple slices to match the green apple notes of Meslier). It’s not a food pairing that presents complementary flavours, but rather helps people learn how to identify and understand the flavour notes of different wines.
At Alpha Box & Dice, education comes from many angles. While the cellar door staff tell the story of the brand and each varietal, the winery has also collaborated with artists in the creation of each label to draw attention to the different varietals. The Alpha Box & Dice online store also builds into the educational process, utilising Shopify abilities to add engaging and interactive features.
“Consumers can click on the wine they are interested in to find out more about the backstory of that variety, the winemaking process, and tasting notes with best pairings,” Brown said.
All the winemakers in this story agree that opportunity in retail can come from multiple levels for alternative varietals, from the connoisseur to the average punter. In general, consumers are increasingly enjoying being explorers, seeking out new experiences that surprise and delight them, and that they can show off to their friends.
And as they explore these wines, they become
aware of how well they can fit into the Australian lifestyle. A lot pair incredibly well with food, while others have lighter and refreshing styles perfect for hot weather, and others stack up some serious value at their price points. With more than 100 alternative varietals tasted at the 2022 AAVWS, there are plenty of angles to explore in the sector.
Of course, it’s not as simple as whacking dozens of different and unusual wine varieties on the shelf and hoping they get a fraction of the love shown to our mainstream wines. As Lloyd noted, success all hangs on the ability of the retailer to surface the wines and why consumers would enjoy them.
“Wine is daunting enough as it is to many consumers so it’s important to find ways to communicate all the great things about these varietals,” he said.
“The lifestyle element helps here as it’s easily relatable - Piquepoul with new season’s oysters, Sangiovese with Italian tomato-based dishes, Negroamaro with a charcuterie board, etc.”
Pizzini believes this can all be achieved through close connections between retail and the wineries.
“It requires the makers to spend more time helping to educate those working in retail. Many of the lesserknown varieties are a hand-sell and require staff to be interested in talking about the wines to their customers – what to expect from the wine, what to serve it with, how long to cellar before the wine,” Pizzini said.
“This all helps to build excitement around these wines.” ■
Corinna Wright Winemaker Oliver’s Taranga Vineyards
“Having beautiful wines with vines that are drought, heat and disease tolerantthat’s pretty good all around.”
Some of the key trends to watch for the year ahead have been identified within this year’s National Liquor News Industry Leaders Forum.
“There’s still more work for us in the fortified space, particularly if we take cues from overseas markets where innovations in using fortified as a cocktail ingredient and white tawny take hold.”
– Andrew Calabria, Calabria Family Wine Group
“Alternative packaging formats targeting various drinking occasions and sustainability advantages will continue to be a key driver for innovation, whilst channel specific and exclusive product offers will remain important to the trade.”
– Karl Martin, Hill-Smith Family Estates“A trend for 2023 is the rise in unusual wine varietals and styles. In 2022, we saw changes in the consumption of traditional red and white varietals, whereas the consumption of niche varietals and lighter styles, like Malbec, Sangiovese and spritz, have experienced growth that will likely continue.”
– Bryan Fry, Pernod Ricard Winemakers
“The ginger beer category and ‘better for you trend’ are the ones to watch.”
– Corey Leeson, Independent Liquor Retailers“We can see there’s a consumer need on both sides of the ABV ledger. Some drinkers are searching out higher-ABV products packed with flavour… on the other side, the ‘better for you’ category continues to grow, with a desire for lower-ABV products that don’t compromise on flavour.”
– John Hoedemaker, Good Drinks Australia“Consumer preferences have evolved for younger wine drinkers, with lighter, more refreshing styles becoming increasingly popular.”
– Peter Neilson, Treasury Premium Brands“Affordable indulgence will play a role this year as people look for simple social enjoyment.
Wine categories like Prosecco, Tasmanian sparkling and rosé are well placed to capitalise on these occasions.”
- Dean Carroll, Brown Family Wine Group
“We see lots of growth potential across all the segments in beer. We see opportunity in the no-, low- and midstrength segment as consumers continue to moderate what they drink. We also see opportunity at the premium end where our craft plays.”
– Danny Celoni, Carlton & United Breweries
“Wine diversification is worth noting as consumption of niche varietals grows to reflect a more involved wine drinking population and their desire to try new things.”
– Darren De Bortoli, De Bortoli
“We have already started to see flavour innovation and exploration attract new customers to engage in classic categories - an example of this is Fruity Beer. We expect this macrotrend of flavour exploration to continue well into 2023.”
– Steve Donohue, Endeavour Group“Beer has the major category share and will see continued pressure from other categories, however I believe there is positive opportunity within beer that will see a re-education of this category.”
– John Carmody, Liquor Legends
“Pre-batched cocktail solutions [will be a big trend] and we are well placed to take advantage. TAILS will continue to lead this trend and RTD canned cocktails which will continue to deliver on convenience.”
– Donna Mulholland, Bacardi-Martini“I think the year will be characterised by continued innovation across the Australian distilling industry and locally-owned and produced brands will continue to win share against the establishment.”
– Drew Fairchild, Top Shelf International
“I think there could be a dark horse in the brandy and Cognac categories. We have seen consumer engagement into these growing, albeit from a smaller base, but still one to watch.” –
Drew Doty, Proof Drinks Australia
“Consumers will continue to want to know more about the brands they are purchasing and this will only help agave spirits, with consumers not only drinking better tequila but also understanding the other great agave distillates.”
– Howard Baynie, Agave Lux
“There will be premiumisation across all categories but particularly in bourbon and we are well positioned through our Wild Turkey Master’s Keep releases. In the UK and US, rum is back in growth and is something to watch out for in this market.” – Simon Durrant, Campari Australia
“I think there will be the continued growth of Australian spirits, pre-made/ready to serve cocktails and low/no ABV.” – Blake Vanderfield-Kramer, Feels Botanical
“Low-ABV alcohol and cocktail options will continue to gain traction, both in trade and with consumers.” – Lucille Rose, Regal Rogue
“The RTD category, specifically pre-mixed alcoholic drinks with cocktails or tequila, remains strong and seem to be increasing in shelf space in-store.”
– Maurice Melis, Global Endeavours Australia
“We predict a shift towards higher ABV RTD products. We are seeing rapid growth in our six per cent ABV RTD range already.”
– Alex Bottomley and Marcus Kellett, Ampersand Projects
“Whilst seltzers and light flavoured RTDs will still have their place, we are backing a consumer shift towards more flavour in their RTDs and certainly an increasing focus on value for money.”
– Paul Weaving, Drink Craft
“We will see less disposable income to spend on alcohol purchases. Customers will still want to support ‘local’, but some might not be trading up as often as they have been.” – Josh
Towers, Red Bottle
“Whilst there was a shift toward premiumisation during the pandemic we have definitely started to see a shift over recent months back to some lower price offers and lower spends per shop.”
– Tim Boydell, Vintage House Wine and Spirits
“Consumer demand for less but better is set to continue, which we keeping seeing through the acceleration of the super-premium category.”
– Eveline Albarracin, Brown-Forman“I believe that there will be a greater effort by small to medium size overseas brands, especially from Europe, to seek and develop export markets.”
– Brenton Quirini, Empire Liquor
“We’ll continue to benefit from the broad health and mindfulness trend. That’s the mega trend that’s been sitting there for close to 10 years now.”
– Mark Livings, Lyre’s Spirits Co“I think the notion of the spritz as a style of serve is something that Australians will be loving - long, refreshing, slightly lower alcohol, with bubbles and served in a wineglass.”
– Andy Gaunt, Fever-Tree
“We still see the move to quality over quantity as the key consumer driver. Secondly, we see the focus on sustainability across businesses.”
– Cameron Syme, Great Southern Distilling Co“Cost of living pressures will have an effect on consumption and therefore frequency of shopping behaviour.”
– Adrian Moelands, Thirsty Camel
Victoria“I believe we will see the role of e-commerce and delivery slow in growth… however, I do see click and collect growing.” – Chris
Baddock, Australian Liquor Marketers“Most suppliers in all categories are introducing smaller pack formats, value packs or focusing on four and six pack formats to soften price shock.”
– Paul Esposito, Independent Liquor Group
“The winners [in retail] will be those who maintain connection with and service to their customers across more of their shopping occasions.”
– Gavin Saunders, Liquor Marketing Group
All we know is Riesling.
As we began to emerge from pandemic restrictions, 2022 brought a whole set of new and unique challenges, many of which will continue into 2023. Here, leaders from all over the Australian liquor industry share their thoughts and experiences with this market environment, highlighting key opportunities for success in the year ahead.
The independent Australian producer attributes its competitive edge to a strategy of consumer-focused innovation.
Ampersand Projects continued on its upward trajectory in 2022, recording impressive year on year growth and performance.
Two of the brand’s Co-founders and Directors, Alex Bottomley and Marcus Kellett, said the year’s numbers were incredibly strong, with 265,000 9L cases sold in FY22, at over 2400 stockists nationwide, across a portfolio of 22 SKUs and counting. Those are some huge results for an independent Australian company in its fifth year to continue to grow while competing against huge multinational players.
Bottomley described this competitive edge and said: “We have a track record of delivering unique and innovative products to the market that meet a consumer need or unlock a problem. We have always tried to innovate to deliver against consumer needs, regardless of cost.”
Kellett added: “Brand strength is a competitive edge, as we have created a brand that people want to associate with. The iconic symbol (&) is easily recognised on all our packaging and loyal followers are happy to tag us on their social media accounts sharing their experiences and proudly wearing our merchandise.”
Ampersand Projects has an incredibly engaged consumer following, which it attributes largely to doing things that other companies “cannot or are not willing to do.”
Alongside always free merch, the team manages all social media themselves, which gives the accounts a uniquely personal touch. It all goes back to that ultra consumer-focused nature of Ampersand Projects, boosted by a strong understanding of and connection
to the Australian liquor industry.
“Staying close and in tune to the trade is key to our innovation strategy. There is no doubt that there is also an element of intuition involved. The three founders have all had significant experience in the industry and this helps when it comes to a sense of what will and what won’t work,” said Bottomley.
Ampersand Projects will be maintaining this strength in 2023 by doing what it does best.
“Innovation is and will always be one of our key strategic pillars. We need to innovate to continue to stay relevant and compete in a space that is dominated by global companies,” said Kellett.
The immediate focus in 2023 for this strategy will be focused on a groundbreaking NPD pipeline, as Ampersand Projects continues to work closely with offpremise partners to drive growth in-store. Supporting this will be an upweighted sales force to improve national distribution, with the brand moving from a third party service to its own in-house warehouse and logistics solution to streamline operations.
2023 will also be about maintaining the brand strength that consumers instantly recognise and connect with.
“We are lucky to have established a first mover advantage in a competitive space, having first entered the market in 2018,” Bottomley said.
“As more competitors hit the market it’s survival of the fittest to retain shelf space and presence. We reinvest in innovation and our customers to ensure that when it comes to a purchase decision, we are top of mind.” ■
Throughout last year, Ampersand Projects continued to expand its strengths with NPD innovations in a number of areas:
• High ABV RTD: Vodka Soda & Pine Lime 6% (which became the brand’s fastest growing NPD ever)
• Cocktails in a can: Tequila & Margarita, and Gin Fizz &
• Flavoured full spirits: Vodka & Passionfruit, Vodka & Pine Lime, and Purple Gin &
• Draught: Vodka
Soda & Pine Lime (the brand’s first foray into onpremise keg format)
After a year of increasing the standing of agave spirits in Australia, specialist supplier Agave Lux is looking to expand its portfolio and support the retail sector with further education.
“2022 was a year of building strong foundations for future growth for Agave Lux and importantly, Agave Spirits in Australia,” says Howard Baynie, Managing Director of Agave Lux.
Agave Lux, which focuses on the import and distribution of agave spirits, also widened its own operations over the past 12 months.
“Our people and capability grew in 2022, enabling us to provide greater reach in venue and to consumers. We see education as the key lever to unlock what agave spirits are and that there is more to it, than just tequila,” Baynie said.
Like other suppliers that specialise in an overseas portfolio, freight proved an issue in 2022 for Agave Lux, as did increased supply costs.
“As not only importers but also part owners of some agave brands in Mexico, we saw the cost of doing business impacting both our Australian and Mexican business, shipping delays impacted our ability to bring new news to Australia in a timely fashion,” Baynie said.
Meeting growing demand is identified as one of the paramount objectives for Agave Lux over the new year.
“Continuing to lead category education remains our continued focus, [as does] sourcing new products to meet the growing demand,” Baynie says.
“As consumers continue to ‘peel back the onion layers’ of brands across all categories, this will benefit agave spirits due to the
Baynie suggests that the experiences of the last few years have illustrated the importance of having a wide range of agave spirits in-store.
“As consumers start to become more aware of agave-based cocktails, it will be important for retailers to expand not only their tequila offering but importantly looking into mezcal and other agave distillates,” he says.
“I think this was evident during lockdown, your favourite bar could no longer serve you your favourite cocktail and the explosion of the home bartender came to life with retailers having to grow their range to meet that demand.”
heritage and authentic production methods behind the products.
“We see managing the growing demand of Australian consumers and forecasting as a priority to stay in front of.”
Agave spirits obviously depend heavily on their core ingredient – the agave plant, which can take up to ten years to reach maturity. According to Baynie, this is likely to lead to difficulties for the category and its quality in the future.
“The current demand for tequila and
mezcal is not sustainable, so to meet this skyrocketing demand (it is well known) that the decline in traditional farming and production shortcuts have created a real murkiness that is starting to creep into the category, that, at times, can confuse and even mislead consumers,” he said.
“We encourage all consumers to better understand who are behind the brands you are purchasing from and importantly how the products are truly being made and with what additives.” ■
Positive results in a number of areas has shown a growing consumer love for shopping local, according to Chris Baddock, CEO of Australian Liquor Marketers.
The independent liquor channel was a bright area in 2022 for Metcash, parent company of Australian Liquor Marketers (ALM). In the first half results of the company’s financial year (May to October 2022), ALM showed strength in a number of areas.
In this period, ALM saw continued increased preference for local neighbourhood shopping and at-home consumption, leading to increases in shopper basket sizes. In the numbers, this was reflected by an 11.6 per cent increase in total sales (including charge-through), a 1.3 per cent increase in wholesale sales to ALM’s network of Independent Brands Australia (IBA) bannered retailers, and a 14 per cent increase in sales of Owned and Exclusive brands. Retail growth was complemented by great results in the on-premise segment too, with a 47.8 per cent increase in sales to these customers.
Chris Baddock, CEO of ALM, said such impressive performance has been driven by consumers’ growing love for local independent liquor.
“The attractiveness of local shopping (convenience) with a wide as well as local range and being able to serve the local community through locals who own the store has helped to deliver the results,” Baddock said.
The strength of the independent liquor retail channel has been a key highlight for Baddock in 2022, alongside ALM’s ability to support customers in the on-premise as the sector recovered from pandemic restrictions. Such an environment also created core challenges to navigate in 2022, with staff shortages, supply chain issues and inflation affecting both the ALM business and IBA retailers.
And while unpredictable economic conditions are likely to remain challenging in 2023, Baddock is confident in the entire ALM network’s ability to overcome them.
“As proven during the past three years, both IBA and the independent retailer has shown agility to react and adapt to the ever-changing needs of our customers,” he said.
The mantra for IBA is simple - to champion successful independents. Baddock said there are three main focuses to this mission that the company will develop further this year.
The first is being famous for the right brand and offer, by building brands which appeal to every liquor shopper across supermarket
attached (IGA), convenience retail (Cellarbrations, The Bottle-O and Thirsty Camel), speciality destination (Porters) and Big Box (Cellarbrations and The Bottle-O super stores). IBA has a store and program which appeals to all shoppers’ needs.
The second focus is to be a frictionless order to cash wholesaler, as Baddock explained.
“This year we will launch R.O.S.S (Retailer One Stop Shop) where all ALM customers will be able to access their needs located in one portal. In addition, we will expand ALM Connect and continue to build the extended aisle so retailers can access product from across the industry which may not always be in our warehouses,” he said.
Finally, IBA will be creating “sticky shoppers and customers”, by continuing to enhance the group’s e-commerce offer, and taking its loyalty program from trial to a full launch.
Baddock added: “We will continue to ensure our retailers have the right range at a competitive price - a focus that will never end!”
As the liquor retail industry evolves into 2023, Baddock said the partnership between retailers and suppliers will be incredibly important, especially with NPD and innovation. Owned and exclusive brands, particularly in the value sector, will be big players to create category growth in this space.
“I would like to thank all retailers and suppliers for their partnership – we truly believe that working together and understanding our role in the eco-systems builds a sustainable independent liquor trade,” Baddock concluded. ■
Marketing Director, Donna Mulholland, has hailed the success of Grey Goose and Patrón in 2022, while tipping the brands for further growth in the new year.
It was an excellent year for BacardiMartini Australia’s stable of exceptional spirits brands in 2022, as described by Marketing Director, Donna Mulholland.
“Grey Goose and Patrón have both enjoyed a stellar year and have continued to gain share as the number one super premium vodka and tequila respectively,” Mulholland said.
“We will continue to put a strong focus on growing the presence of the four, fabulous premium brands which are at the heart of our portfolio: Grey Goose vodka, Patrón tequila, Bombay Sapphire gin and of course Bacardí rum.”
Bacardi-Martini Australia has expanded this offering into new, different categories across the last year too.
“We’ve also launched new RTDs and Tails Cocktails, our premium prebatched cocktail solution, which is now delivering hassle-free, quality cocktails quickly and consistently across the country,” said Mulholland.
“RTDs are a star performer and they continue to grow as we continue to drive the premiumisation trend and deliver on the convenience which is so important to today’s consumers. And we will continue to extend the presence of our RTD and Tails portfolios [in 2023].”
Bacardi-Martini Australia is not immune to the wider economic headwinds that
businesses of all kinds are having to contend with at the moment.
“Like every other FMCG company, inflationary pressures and supply chain challenges will be ongoing challenges in the year ahead,” Mulholland says. However, Bacardi-Martini Australia is predicting new launches and innovations will provide a strong opportunity to weather such challenges for a successful 2023.
“Innovations are key to our growth strategy and with new launches like Bombay Citron Pressé, Bombay Sapphire Premier Cru, Grey Goose Essences and new Bacardí RTDs, we are on track for another strong year,” Mulholland said.
Another key component of the strategy for 2023 will be meeting several key sustainability targets on a global scale, as part of a wider movement towards carbon neutrality.
“By the end of 2023, we will have cut all single-use plastic from our POS materials and our secondary gift packs. This marks a major milestone in our mission to make Bacardi a plastic-free company by 2030,” Mulholland said.
“Next year, we will also be introducing technology at our Bacardí rum distillery in Puerto Rico, the largest premium rum distillery in the world, which will cut our greenhouse gas emissions in half and help us take another major step in our journey to net zero.” ■
Another 2022 triumph for Bacardi-Martini Australia came in the form of company culture recognition. Mulholland said culture means a lot to the company, and helped it be named as a Great Place To Work for the second consecutive year.
“What differentiates Bacardi from any other company is the strength of our culture. We empower our teams to act with a freedom and an entrepreneurial spirit that sets them apart from others and allows them to establish, long-term, unbeatable partnerships with our customers,” Mulholland explained.
“As a family-owned company for the last 160 years, it’s in our DNA and it’s why we are constantly innovating to ensure we deliver what our consumers want when they want it.”
LAUNCHED BY A SPONTANEOUS BUNCH OF PUBLICANS NEARLY 15 YEARS AGO, THIRSTY CAMEL HAS BECOME ONE OF AUSTRALIA’S MOST RECOGNISED INDEPENDENT RETAIL BRANDS; WE’RE THE LOVABLE MAVERICK OF THE LIQUOR WORLD, AND PROUD OF IT.
350 Thirsty Camel stores dotted across the country.
The best in drive through convenience.
State specific loyalty programs to drive retention and repeat purchase.
Insight driven marketing campaigns all year round.
A succinct core range of products allows venues to work with supply partners to accommodate their local needs and customer base, utilising data driven insights and trends our core range covers all categories delivering strong margins and profitability.
State based opt in programs including a Craft Beer and Premium Spirits program allow flexibility to work with global leading brands and up and coming local products to reflect current trends.
BrightSide will be expanding its team again this year to continue supporting and connecting with the drinks industry in what is expected to be a dynamic 2023.
Being long time specialist recruiters for the drinks industry, Sue Lauritz and Amber King, Directors at BrightSide Executive Search, know a thing or two about how to find the right candidate for their clients.
And even with a candidate tight market providing its challenges, the BrightSide team sees this challenge as an opportunity.
“In this market our clients need our help more than ever,” say King and Lauritz. “We just need to be well positioned to support them to find the right hire as efficiently as possible. With our talent team in place, our extensive database, and strong networks, we are well placed to do this.”
King and Lauritz have grown their talent team over the past 12 months, with three new staff members, servicing the entire country. And this team will continue to grow into 2023.
“Our team bring skills in recruitment, talent mapping and headhunting, however we all have a huge passion for the industry overall, which makes it easier, even in a tough market. We love what we do and are continually making connections with candidates with a range of experience across sales and marketing, category, trade, digital, online, innovation and insights and at all levels,” they say.
“We’ve found that more businesses are outsourcing their recruitment to someone they trust and who knows the market. And after 15 years of being specialists and dedicated to the drinks industry, we can safely say we do.”
Looking to the year ahead, BrightSide is preparing to relaunch its website with a brand new look and feel in the first quarter. And aside from this, the immediate focus will be fulfilling current job briefs and tapping into the active candidate market.
While there is more movement in the market, candidates are very particular with their job wish list, with things like a hybrid home/office work model a must, along with a genuine passion for the brands they represent.
As King and Lauritz said: “Candidates are very definite with what they’re looking for in their careers and their expectations of employers. We often hear that if there is no work from home flexibility, then it’s not the company for them. People want to be trusted and feel they have proven they can do their jobs remotely some of the time.
“The right culture continues to be a key factor in someone
Amber King and Sue Lauritz Directors BrightSideAs the only dedicated drinks specialist in the country, BrightSide has a key message to the industry when it comes to 2023 recruitment.
“We are here to support the industry and after 15 years we know what we are doing, what our clients need and what candidates are looking for to make their next career move,” King and Lauritz said.
“Lean on us for your recruitment needs so your team can stay focused on their own roles within the business.”
considering a role or not. Also, longer term career progression and if the business is a good ‘corporate citizen’ are also key factors, especially around sustainability.”
With more certainty and confidence in the jobs market, BrightSide expects to see an increase in people making career changes. So how can businesses put their best foot forward in their recruitment searches in 2023?
“By being on the front foot,” say King and Lauritz. “Failing to plan is planning to fail. Sit down with your key leaders to determine your recruitment needs; where are potential gaps, know what your internal moves / promotions and new head counts are going to be and plan with BrightSide accordingly.” ■
2022 saw Brown Family Wine Group re-introduce a historic Australian grape strain, and the brand is looking to develop this success in the new year.
For Dean Carroll, CEO of Brown Family Wine Group (BFWG), NPD has given the company tremendous stimulus in 2022, and will continue to do so over the next 12 months.
One example of this from 2022 was with the launch of a Tarrango wine under the Brown Brothers label. Tarrango is an Australian grape strain first developed by CSIRO in the 1960s, but a new wine expression of this varietal had not been introduced to the Australian market since the 1980s. As part of the promotion for this new product, BFWG worked with Foxtel on documentary, Next in Wine: Survival & Succession, to tell this story.
“Tarrango has been relaunched very successfully this year and the opportunity will continue to grow as consumers look for softer reds often chilled to better meet the environment in which we live,” Carroll said.
“We created and released a Foxtel documentary on the development of Tarrango, a unique refreshing red varietal, and the Brown Brothers generational family story which has so far been viewed by over 160k people, with sales of Tarrango exceeding expectations.”
This new product will continue to be a focus for BFWG in the year ahead, alongside many other NPD initiatives.
“We are very excited about our NPD pipeline and some of the potential we see for our recently released NPD. In 2022 we released our Brown Brothers Zero range with Moscato, Prosecco and Prosecco Rosé and we see huge potential in both the Low and Zero space over the upcoming year,” Carroll explained.
“These products have opened up new routes to market for our brands and ultimately access to a new consumer base which is very exciting.
“We are particularly excited about the opportunity we see for Fiano with its easy drinking flavoursome style and will be investing in building its awareness and adding more to our portfolio in the year ahead to complement our current Brown Brothers offerings.
“Our goal with much of our NPD this year will focus on recruitment into wine and rejuvenating wine as an option for younger consumers. In recent years those consumers have clearly been reluctant to enter the category which is a concern and an opportunity for the wine industry.”
Carroll identified that 2023 is likely to bring some difficult economic times, but he nevertheless sees a chance to increase awareness for BFWG.
“We see a great opportunity to build our brands for future prosperity and double down on our focus on customer, shopper and consumer,” Carroll said.
“Early in the year we are upweighting our platforms in the e-commerce space to enable greater connection and agility with our direct customers particularly those who visit or have visited our cellar doors.”
BFWG’s ongoing and deepening connection with Tasmanian wine will also be an opportunity for 2023.
“When we purchased our Tasmanian vineyards in 2010 it was always with the long term in mind,” said Carroll.
“Our goal is to make the best possible wine from the beautiful region of Tasmania with particular focus on premium Pinot Noir and sparkling. Ultimately once our production grows, we would love to take these wines to the world and show how magnificent Tasmanian wine can be.” ■
Eveline Albarracin, Vice President and Managing Director for Brown-Forman ANZPI, discusses what has continued to be responsible for the company’s strategy of success.
For Brown-Forman, 2022 was a unique year of opportunities alongside challenges. Overall, Managing Director, Eveline Albarracin, says that “it was a strong year for our business on a number of fronts.”
“When I reflect on the past year, there is so much to be proud of across our brands, our partnerships, and of course our brilliant people – the bedrock to our success,” she says.
One highlight for Brown-Forman was receiving Great Place To Work certification in October 2022.
“This independent authority on workplace culture recognised our team for operating with clear purpose, for putting people first and for truly championing diversity and inclusion – qualities I am inspired by every day,” said Albarracin.
When it came to the Brown-Forman portfolio of brands, Jack Daniel’s was one high performer across 2022, with Albarracin noting how it maintained its position as “number one spirits trademark in the Australian market”.
Some great examples of NPD could be responsible for this, with Brown-Forman launching Jack Daniel’s Bonded, a super-premium 50 per cent ABV offering from one single distilling season and a first for the brand in 25 years; and Jack Daniel’s Apple and Soda, a lighter profile RTD using the Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Apple Whiskey Liqueur.
Jack Daniel’s is predicted to continue on a journey of success into 2023, as part of a number of new brand initiatives for BrownForman. This includes Jack Daniel’s partnership with the McLaren Formula One team, to expand the brand to a new set of consumers while focusing on responsible drinking.
Albarracin continued: “Our recent acquisition of the ultra-premium Gin Mare brand will help accelerate growth of our light spirits portfolio alongside Fords Gin, tapping into those consumer occasions that call for lighter and more accessible offers. And our acquisition of Diplomatico Rum further boosts our presence in super premium - we look forward to continuing to build this brand across our key channels.”
Albarracin sees Australia’s thirst for spirits deepening in support of such initiatives throughout the next 12 months.
“With the rise of cocktail experimentation, we expect to see continued excitement and trial of spirits from existing consumers, as well as broadening appeal off the back of these new occasions,” she said.
Eveline Albarracin Vice President and Managing Director Brown-Forman ANZPI“Tequila is a real standout, now the fastest growing spirits category in Australia, and riding this wave of discovery are our premium brands El Jimador and Herradura, the perfect and vital component for the popular Margarita cocktail trend.”
In 2022, as we moved further away from the pandemic, BrownForman saw strong demand for locally produced RTD products. With continued economic uncertainty on the cards, Albarracin does believe performance of ultra-booming categories like this will normalise, but Brown-Forman will be ready.
She said: “As we enter a ‘post-pandemic’ era, we remain committed to leading with innovative and creative thinking, ensuring we continue to build relevance with evolving consumer cohorts, and working closely with our suppliers and partners to deliver sustainable growth.” ■
The group has celebrated a number of strategic achievements in 2022 that are set to be built upon in 2023.
Looking back on the last 12 months, Andrew Calabria, third-generation Sales & Marketing Manager, says: “2022 has been a whirlwind of a year, but the Calabria Family Wine Group continues to grow and succeed in achieving the strategic goals we have set out to achieve.”
A key strategic point of the Calabria Family Wine Group (CFWG) portfolio in 2022 was the McWilliam’s brand. Further integrating this into CFWG has been an important task since the brand was acquired in 2021.
“This included a portfolio review across Calabria’s and McWilliam’s wines, ensuring the McWilliam’s master brand logo is prominent across the collection and setting the foundations for further NPD and innovations that speak to the heritage of the McWilliam’s brand,” said Calabria.
This heritage was heroed in 2022 already with a major launch of the McWilliam’s portfolio - the redevelopment and relaunch of McWilliam’s Hanwood Estate and the Aged Tawny collection.
“The McWilliam name has always been at the forefront of the fortified category, and this range of age-statement releases is an exciting step towards showcasing the diversity of Tawny across multiple lengths of barrel ageing in a premium way,” said Calabria.
2022 was also a busy year for other arms of the CFWG business. On the international front, the company saw exciting growth in imported wines with the launch of Champagne Deutz and Fontanafredda, which extended CFWG’s potential reach in independent retail channels. Then on the Calabria front, the group saw some great success.
“Two of our packaging-lead releases remain top performers in their price and varietal brackets. The beautiful Bélena range, which celebrates the true partnership of my Dad and Mum - the second generation of the Calabria Family Wine Group - marked its official launch in the market with an event in Sydney and a national personalisation campaign in-store,” Calabria said.
“Additionally, our Kings of Prohibition range continues to see strong growth and industry recognition, with the range receiving the Best Package Series Design at the PACKWINE Awards and the brand celebrating the inaugural ‘Kings of Prohibition Day’ - an official wine holiday we created on the same day as Repeal Day (the end of prohibition).”
These brands, alongside the reinvigorated McWilliam’s fortified range, have seen
some key success in the retail sector in 2022, particularly with bespoke trade campaigns like the Kings of Prohibition BBQ competition and the custom label promotion for the Bélena range, which Calabria said: “has seen great uptake by consumers looking to create a custom label for this beautiful range of wines.”
Looking ahead to 2023, core high performing brands, such as Kings of Prohibition, will be an important component of the CFWG objectives. Bélena, for example, will see a major consumer and national media promotion, with the grand prize giveaway for a diamond.
“The statement bottle has been a hit with retailers, which has seen this range double in size in just one short year, and we look forward to growing awareness for the collection with this campaign in 2023,” said Calabria.
It will be an exciting year for the McWilliam’s brand too, with the reopening of the Hanwood Estate Cellar Door after its redevelopment.
“The site is an important part of Australia’s wine history, and we look forward to celebrating this with the newly developed cellar door sometime next year,” said Calabria.
Finally, 2023 will see CFWG continue to overcome a “perfect storm” of supply chain challenges brought on by the shortage of labour, container delays, and limited access to dry goods. Calabria predicts this “is going to prove a challenge through the new year, but one we’re well equipped to tackle.” ■
Having the agility to respond to consumer and customer needs will continue to serve Campari Australia well in 2023, according to Managing Director, Simon Durrant.
In today’s fast moving Australian liquor market, it’s important for suppliers to have their finger on the pulse. For Campari Australia, this was a core goal in 2022 that delivered multiple highlights for the company, and will continue to be integral to its strategies in the year ahead.
“You have to understand your consumers and customers to know where to innovate – and renovate! We know quality never goes out of fashion and we’ll continue to build our brands to suit the Australian drinking culture,” said Simon Durrant, Managing Director for Campari Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Islands.
“Our marketing programs are based on the latest consumer insights, directing our support to deliver the most impact for our brands.”
Some of the positive impacts Campari Australia saw in its portfolio in 2022 came from aligning with the latest consumer tastes and preferences. One example Durrant noted was a shift in drinking behaviour, with people seeking out better experiences and higher quality ingredients while exploring cocktail culture and experimenting with different spirit serves.
Wild Turkey was a brand that certainly delivered on these trends last year, with the launch of the Wild Turkey Discovery Series offering a fresh take on bourbon RTDs for drinkers seeking lighter flavour profiles. Then there was also the super-premium Wild Turkey 12 Year Old Bourbon and Master’s Keep One meeting the needs of drinkers trading up into exceptional experiences.
Durrant described the impacts of other trends of the
Despite Durrant noting “enormous positives” of 2022, Campari Australia was not immune to the challenges most of the industry has been facing, with global supply chain issues impacting several products.
Durrant thanked customers for their patience as Campari Australia successfully overcame these challenges, looking ahead to an opportune year for further collaboration.
He said: “We can’t wait to embrace the New Year and we look forward to working closely with our customers and the many consumers who love our brands to deliver some great drinking experiences.”
Simon Durrant Managing Director Campari Australia,year too, noting: “Younger consumers continued to seek out ‘better for you’ options. This included seltzers such as our Truly Lemonade, with lower calories, alcohol, and sugar, and no/low alcoholic drinks such as Crodino, providing consumers looking to moderate their drinking with a complex, non-alcoholic aperitif with real flavour.”
It’s through these trends that Campari Australia is setting the innovation stage for the year to come, especially as it reflects on how hard seltzer continues to find ways to “intrigue and inspire drinkers”.
“There will be an opportunity to innovate in the white RTD space, building on the substantial growth of the seltzer category to date and we’ll look to fuel the growth of tequila as a premium spirit through new offerings,” Durrant continued.
But it’s not just the products themselves that will benefit from Campari Australia’s agility. Another key focus will be partnerships, such as the Aperol Music Platform in conjunction with Live Nation that creates immersive experiences in the on-premise, and the SKYY Vodka partnership with the Australia Sail GP team.
There’s also a desire to improve not just what Campari Australia offers to the industry, but to improve the industry itself through Campari Academy, which ramped up its efforts in 2022 and has events scheduled all throughout 2023 too.
“We’ll have a continued focus on education led by our Campari Academy, driving deeper cocktail knowledge to deliver better drinking experiences,” said Durrant. ■
After stepping into the top role of CEO at Carlton & United Breweries (CUB) at the start of 2022, Danny Celoni saw a lot during the year that impressed him.
“I’ve really enjoyed coming back into this fantastic industry. What has impressed me the most was the absolutely brilliant people across the entire industry. The passion, dedication and genuine underlying commitment to make our industry great is second to none in my personal view,” he said.
Although Celoni describes 2022 as “a year that certainly threw everything at our industry and CUB”, he counts himself as incredibly lucky to be part of the fantastic team at CUB and its parent company, Asahi Beverages.
“From the ongoing impact of the pandemic to supply chain and logistic challenges, raw material challenges, hospitality staff shortages, inflation, interest rate rises and floods, there was no shortage of headwinds,” Celoni said.
“Our people took all these challenges in their stride and together we reinvented ourselves where we needed to, to ensure that we continue to show up for our customers and our consumers in the way that they need us to.”
A key highlight of Celoni’s first year was getting out into the trade to meet as many of these customers as possible, to help ensure CUB could listen and understand their perspectives and therefore improve the way it operates as an organisation and an industry partner.
“We have a hunger for growth, we have a hunger for collaboration and we have a hunger to ensure we play a leading role in expanding the categories we operate in. We are absolutely committed to continuing to
show up in a way that drives incremental value to our customers on a day-to-day basis,” Celoni noted.
Since the merger of CUB and Asahi Beverages, two distinct entities operate, to house each side of the business. The beer side is known as CUB, while the non-beer side of operations is CUB Premium Beverages.
Viewing results at the top of both sides of the business, Celoni said he is “very proud of what the team delivered in 2022” for all types of beverages.
“We were able to continue our momentum across the portfolios with really strong performances. Our core brands Great Northern, VB, Carlton Draught, Asahi Super Dry and Peroni continued to perform above category averages. Our craft portfolio including Balter, Pirate Life and 4 Pines had a very strong year of double digit growth. Our broader RTD portfolio,
including Vodka Cruiser, Brookvale Union, Good Tides Seltzer and Woodstock, also continued their momentum and growth,” Celoni said.
A focus on continuing these great results across all sectors of the wider CUB portfolio will be seen in 2023 as well, as the team seeks to drive growth both for the business and its customers.
“Our focus in 2023 will be to further strengthen our portfolio across the whole multi-beverage spectrum. Our team, in partnership with our customers, has built great momentum across the whole portfolio and we’re committed to continuing this into 2023 and beyond,” said Celoni
“The team is passionate about driving category growth across the industry and we will scale up our focus on customers to ensure our collaboration agendas take us to the next level together.”
Being proudly part of Asahi Beverages,
CUB is involved with some of the company’s clear and ambitious sustainability goals. In 2022, this saw CUB make several sustainable moves across the country.
One example Celoni noted was from the Abbotsford Brewery, which: “brewed its 50 millionth beer using the power of the sun in 2022.
“The sustainability milestone was achieved after the 118-year-old brewery – Melbourne’s oldest and most well-known - installed more than 4000 solar panels.”
Solar power was meanwhile continued at CUB’s Yatala brewery on the Gold Coast, which is the biggest brewery in the country.
“This is helping us achieve our goal of sourcing 100 per cent of our purchased electricity from renewable sources by 2025,” Celoni said.
Solar was also the theme for a partnership with CUB’s Victoria Bitter VB brand and Dan Murphy’s, which created a first-of-its-kind Solar Exchange program. The program allows beer lovers to exchange the credit on their power bills from generating excess solar for VB in participating stores, via Diamond Energy.
Sustainability was also a focus in the agricultural supply chain, where CUB supported Australian farmers by stopping imports of raspberries from Poland in favour of Tasmanian producers. These raspberries are pressed and processed locally at Cascade Brewery in Hobart, before being used in Mercury Cider, and also
some of Asahi’s non-alcoholic beverage brands like Spring Valley fruit juice, Cottee’s cordial and Pop Tops.
Of all these developments, Celoni said: “We’re incredibly excited about building on this momentum in 2023 - creating a more sustainable business and offering our customers and consumers more sustainable beverages.”
Of course, the current climate being experienced across the industry will likely lead to 2023 being another year with its own unique set of challenges, some of which persist from 2022. However, as Celoni noted: “We are already thinking through how we can thrive through these challenges across our portfolio via our innovation agenda and the initiatives we intend to drive in the industry to ensure that collectively we play a role in helping navigate these challenges.”
While it may be easy to knuckle down and stay in one place in difficult times, Celoni said CUB will be using any challenges of the year ahead in a positive way.
“There are opportunities in these challenges to rethink the way we work, to rethink our portfolio and how it supports our customers, and to rethink the way we need to work as an organisation to ensure what we do has a positive impact,” Celoni concluded. ■
Within the great success of the wider CUB and CUB Premium Beverages portfolio in 2022, Celoni said there are some extra bright spots. Reflecting on onpremise performance shows the overall industry strength of key brands including:
• “Balter continues to be a shining star – it’s now the number one craft masterbrand on tap while Balter XPA is the number one individual craft tap brand by tap count nationally.
• “Great Northern keeps impressing us by continuing to resonate for consumers very well across the country. Nationally on tap it has had another year of strong growth in 2022.
• “In RTD, Brookvale Union is doing extremely well. It continues to challenge in the RTD space by offering patrons a refreshing point of difference from regular beer. Brookvale Union Ginger Beer’s growth has not slowed down and it looks to continue into 2023.”
For Coopers Brewery, Australia’s largest independent brewer, 2022 was a year of navigating challenges, while moving to shore up the company’s future.
Coopers Brewery celebrated 160 years of brewing in 2022, marking the occasion with a limited edition Red Ale and a celebration in its home state of South Australia.
At the event, Coopers Managing Director, Dr Tim Cooper, hailed the organisation’s ability to survive ‘near death experiences’ – such as war, recession and takeover bids.
“This was a fitting reflection as the past has shaped the company and is reflected in our mission and vision statements, as well as our guiding principles which provide direction on the way forward,” says Michael Shearer, General Manager at Coopers.
Yet, it was not a time solely for introspection at the brewery, which took significant steps to shape the next 160 years of the business.
“The celebration also coincided with our exciting new brand refresh and advertising campaign focused on the tag line ‘Forever Original’ and emphasis on ‘Roll The Beer. Unlock The Flavour’,” said Shearer.
Commercially, 2022 saw the brewery also ink significant deals with overseas beer giants.
“During the year, we renewed our manufacturing and distribution agreements with Sapporo and Carlsberg and commenced a contract manufacturing arrangement with Molson Coors International for the Miller Genuine Draft, Miller Chill and Coors brands,” Shearer adds.
Most importantly, the company has invested heavily in its production capacity – which will allow Coopers to enter new categories.
“We ended the year having broken ground on a $50 million brand home development which will start to take shape
over the coming months,” Shearer says.
“The development incorporates a worldclass visitor centre, microbrewery, whisky distillery and underground cellar. This investment will position us well for the future, with visitors able to enjoy an authentic and immersive cellar door experience.”
As Shearer explains: “We recorded total beer sales, excluding non-alcoholic, of 79.4 million litres for the 2022 financial year, a decline of 3.5 per cent from the previous year’s volume of 82.3 million litres.”
Nevertheless, Shearer says that Coopers remained assured with this performance, believing it to be aligned with wider
Michael Shearer General Manager Coopers
experiences of the beer industry and still satisfying, given supply and demand pressures at large.
“Beer sales have been impacted by the weather being colder and wetter, while freight and logistics disruptions hampered export trade,” he said.
And there is tangible proof of this strong showing across the last 12 months.
“Having Coopers Pale Ale recognised in the number four top selling brands in Australia, and the only beer in the top 10 owned by an Australian company, is also a reflection of our diverse consumer base, as well as the hard work of our sales, marketing and production teams,” Shearer suggests.
2022 saw Coopers introduce a couple of exciting new products – notably, the brewery’s first ever mid-strength lager, and larger 440ml cans of the popular Coopers Sparkling Ale. Shearer tells National Liquor News that there’s more to come for the year ahead.
“We continue to listen to our consumers and provide the products and pack formats they are looking for, whilst maintaining a focus on delivering the quality and consistency they have come to expect,” he said.
“We always have NPD on the go, so you should expect to see a couple of exciting new offerings this year.”
This said, Shearer is not expecting the new year to be one of significant quantity growth for the category.
“With considerable inflationary pressures on the inputs to production, combined with the bi-annual CPI linked excise increases… It is difficult to see any real volume growth.” ■
Darren De Bortoli describes the great achievements of the De Bortoli wine business in 2022, and plans for the year ahead.
Despite some of the lingering challenges of the pandemic in 2022, iconic Australian wine brand De Bortoli managed to mark several highlights over the year.
Managing Director, Darren De Bortoli, listed his standout moments, showing positives from various corners of the business.
“Our highlights were being recognised as the first Platinum Partner of Sustainability Advantage, a program of the NSW Government’s Office of Energy and Climate Change, receiving the Sustainable Winegrowing Australia certification for the winery and vineyard in Bilbul, celebrating Noble One’s 40th anniversary and the release of the Re-write The Rules range which breaks free from wine stereotypes for consumers to empower their wine discovery,” De Bortoli said.
“Overall sales for 2022 is fair given the challenges and we will continue to take pride in making great wine and for sustainability to be at the core of everything that we do.”
Sustainability continues to be a core motivator for the wine company, with 2022’s achievements noted by De Bortoli as “a testament to the family’s desire to leave a positive legacy for future generations.”
“With a vision for a future where great wine and a healthy environment can be enjoyed by everyone, the De Bortoli range of wines now include an Organic range which has met the Australian Certified Organic standards, packaged in lightweight recycled bottles and is vegan friendly,” De Bortoli continued.
“In addition, the CSR initiative for the 17 TREES range has planted in excess of 67,000 trees globally. De Bortoli’s journey
in sustainability continues to evolve with the Wine By The Glass System which is a new convenient, compact and portable way to serve wines on tap that saves time, energy and resources.
“Our commitment to sustainability and making sustainable wine will continue and our emphasis in 2023 will be in the areas of scaling up our sustainability impact.”
The immediate focus for De Bortoli in 2023 will be to improve internal processes, drive operational efficiency, and continue the company’s innovation journey to surprise and delight consumers. This innovation journey will extend from De Bortoli’s great moves in the space in 2022, releasing several wines in line with the latest consumer trends.
“NPDs and innovation are a key focus for the company which runs through every part of our business from marketing to winemaking, production, sales and operations,” said De Bortoli.
“Here at De Bortoli, we strive for ‘fully integrated innovation’ to ensure that we look at everything through an innovative lens and this is what drives us to continue to develop new and exciting wine styles that inspire our consumers.”
As for what De Bortoli believes will be the top trends that will capture the tastes of consumers in the year ahead, it will be all about interesting varietals but also value buys, particularly with the current economic challenges which are part of the post-pandemic environment we have transitioned into.
De Bortoli notes how this will be a key issue the industry will need to overcome in the year ahead, and said: “Even though the worst days of the pandemic are behind us, we are still impacted by supply chain issues. In addition, a key challenge would be recruiting and retaining talent, especially in the hospitality areas for our local area sites.” ■
It was all systems go in 2022 for Australian producer Drink Craft, alongside its contract manufacturing business ABC Filling. Business Development Director, Paul Weaving said it was a landmark year of achievements, which saw the completion of a two year project to build a new 11,000 square metre manufacturing site and major regional hospitality venue on the NSW Central Coast from scratch.
“We are now an award-winning brewery and liqueur producer, a regional distillery and a mainstream RTD producer, with a full service operation including beverage and packaging design all under one roof,” says Weaving.
“And work has continued above the roof too, with 300kw of solar installed last year - the largest independent brewery installation, incorporating a world first cryptocurrency produced beer, but more on that soon. Sustainability is an integral part of how this business will run and is a consideration in everything we do.”
On a product front, 2022 was also a strong success for Drink Craft’s stable of world class brands, with an NPD pipeline that gathered momentum as the construction project neared completion.
One example of this success can be found in the first launch of a new partnership with RTD brand, Hard Rock.
Weaving said: “Hard Fruit Punch launched in December 2022 and virtually sold out on pre-sell before launch.”
Sales have surged for other brands in the portfolio too, including Wild Boar, particularly with its new format higher ABV
bourbon and rum RTDs. Meanwhile, the craft beer share of the business has grown significantly, driven by the success of Botany Brew fruit-flavoured beers, new Hawkesbury Hazy Pale Ale, and award-winning nonalcoholic Prohibition beer range.
“Non-alcoholic beer has been very busy, with new Prohibition Lager and Stout launching, and packaging switching to a new four-pack cube which looks just fantastic on the shelf. More importantly, I love seeing the number of five star consumer reviews for Prohibition, as it really is an excellent beer,” Weaving said.
After seeing such solid achievements in the past year, Drink Craft won’t be slowing down in 2023, with Weaving noting: “This year is all about growth.”
That will mean growth in existing brands and NPD, growth in the hospitality venue, and the scaling of the broad and ultra-
flexible contract manufacturing capability of ABC Filling.
“We have done a lot of the hard operational graft. This year will focus on brands and product development,” Weaving said.
“You will see the first regional spirits released from the Hawkesbury Distilling Co, more launches from our new longterm partnership with Hard Rock and more innovation in RTD, particularly targeting drinks which deliver great consumer value.”
This value element is where Drink Craft sees considerable opportunity in 2023, as inflationary pressures mount in the market.
Weaving said: “Pressure on consumerspending has definitely been a concern, but we have focussed hard on keeping a strong value proposition with our products. It’s tough for everyone, but we feel confident that we have built a business and brands which will thrive in this market.” ■
After a testing 2022, Empire Liquor will celebrate 30 years of operation in 2023 and will look to cement its position as a one-stop-shop for British beer.
There can be no sugar-coating that 2022 brought a raft of challenges for Empire Liquor to navigate, as Owner and Managing Director, Brenton Quirini, explains.
“After a nine-year partnership, the unexpected decision by Asahi to cease exports of beer from the Fullers Brewery was our most significant disappointment for 2022,” Quirini says.
Empire Liquor, which has made its name as a specialist supplier of imported, particularly British, beers, has also faced challenges stemming from working with overseas producers.
“The biggest issue during 2022 have been the challenges relating to container logistics and localised strike action in the UK,” Quirini says.
“These delays have impacted regularity of departures and containers not being collected on the appointed date, resulting in some out of stocks. We hope that this will improve during CY23 and more in CY24.”
These issues have been compounded by high international freight costs – which Quirini does not expect to reduce until 2024. The company also had to adapt to domestic difficulties too, with Quirini citing significant cost increases of in-land transportation, alongside mandatory updates to Australian labelling.
Nevertheless, there were also some key wins for Empire Liquor in 2022, with Quirini highlighting the increased diversification of the company’s portfolio – adding the Artwine, Pindarie, Vintage Longbottom
and Break Free brands to its SA and NT wine offering.
On the domestic beer front, Quirini said he was also pleased by the “successful brand relaunch in South Australia for the Walkerville Brewing Co.”
Moreover, Empire Liquor has further expanded its import and distribution agreements in the beer side of its business too. 2022 saw new deals reached for England’s Wychwood Hobgoblin, Greene King and Old Speckled Hen beer brands, and for Scotland’s Innis & Gunn and Belhaven Brewery.
“The British beer range has seen strong ‘steady’ growth, driven and supported by on-premise and off-premise who see and appreciate our ‘100% Authentic’ policy as a key ingredient offering a real point of difference for their business,” Quirini explains.
And other imported beer categories have seen great success for the company too.
“Sales growth of our German brand Hofbrau in our new sales territories of Victoria and ACT has been very pleasing,” Quirini says.
Unsurprisingly, it is Empire Liquor’s British
Brenton Quirini Managing Director Empirebeer offering that will take primacy over the next 12 months.
“Our key objective is to grow our portfolio and reputation to be the ‘one-stop’ supplier of ‘Iconic British’ beer brands to the liquor trade,” Quirini says.
To support this ambition, the company will add new field sales reps, and implement a new B2B sales and ordering portal, with the addition of new sales channel opportunities.
As with 2022, Empire Liquor is anticipating the continuation of certain issues – particularly freight and supply cost pressures.
But after 30 years in business, the supplier has weathered challenges before, and Quirini is confident in its ability to do so again – through building and maintaining connections in the industry.
“I’m always a brand custodian with longterm partnerships a key. Priorities are lasting relationships with our customers, always seeking to engage new customers and new brands, delivering added value and sales growth,” Quirini says.
“Brand stewardship is a core value and outcome that I strive for. We have enjoyed many wonderful relationships with our supplier partners dating back to our establishment year of 1993.” ■
Despite another challenging year, Endeavour Group delivered a strong financial outcome in 2022, while also growing its customer connections, expanding and renewing its network of hotels and retail stores, and investing in its digital capabilities and platforms.
Endeavour Group has only been a standalone business since June 2021, and CEO and Managing Director, Steve Donohue, says that the business has and will continue to focus on its thriving culture and a team that lives and breathes its purpose of “creating a more sociable future together”.
In terms of challenges, like many businesses, Endeavour Group faced team shortages over the past 12 months, and will strive to attract, retain, train, and develop talented people in the year ahead.
Donohue says: “I’m incredibly proud of and grateful for everything our team has achieved during what has been another challenging year. From team shortages to natural disasters and unpredictable market conditions, everyone has again shown resilience and demonstrated our ability as a business to navigate challenging times.
“We view our culture and team experience as one of our strongest assets, and we will continue to invest in the development of our existing team members and look at ways to cross-skill them so they can have multiple careers with us.”
A commitment to innovation is of the utmost importance to Endeavour Group, with Donohue noting: “Customers are increasingly looking for new drinks, with 40 per cent of our retail sales coming from categories that did not exist eight years ago. For example, seltzers now make up 10 per cent of premix sales for us and they weren’t on our shelves three years ago.
“We have also increased our digital investment to improve and expand our online and omnichannel customer offering. More than half of customers start their journey with us digitally, whether that’s online delivery, researching a drink before going into a BWS or Dan Murphy’s store, or perusing a pub menu online and booking a table before heading into one of our hotels.”
There is a lot of speculation about what 2023 will bring for the Australian economy, but if the last couple of years have taught us anything, it is that we need to be prepared for everything.
Steve Donohue CEO & Managing Director Endeavour GroupDonohue is confident that Endeavour Group’s diversified portfolio of trusted brands, extensive network of stores and digital capabilities, together with its focused strategy and exceptional team, ensures that it is well positioned to respond to changing conditions in the year ahead.
He says: “We’ll continue to enhance our digital customer engagement platforms and use technology and innovation to enable convenience, and we’re seeing untapped potential in terms of growth through better integrated experiences. We will also unlock value via renewals and redevelopments as we create the stores and hotels of the future.” ■
Donohue listed his top trends to watch in the year ahead: Non-alcoholic drinks: This was one of Endeavour Group’s fastest growing categories of 2022, with more growth predicted in 2023.
Interesting premium products: There has been more demand than ever for local boutique wines, lower intervention products, cocktails and artisanal craft spirits.
Flavour innovations: New customers are being attracted to classic categories to explore such innovation, for example, with Fruity Beer.
Blurred category lines: This will continue in 2023, and has already begun to transform the wine category, for example, with the launch of wine-based seltzers and piquette (a seltzer-style product made with the leftover grape skins of winemaking).
Packaging innovation: After last year saw a lot of customer interest in ‘bagnums’ (a new wine format that keeps fresh for 30 days), packaging innovation is predicted to grow further this year.
‘Creating a more sociable future together’ is the ethos that is helping Endeavour Group achieve strong business outcomes.
Feels Botanical Co-founder, Blake Vanderfield-Kramer, discusses how the biggest opportunity of the brand is also its biggest challenge.
There was a lot of positivity in 2022 for Australian eau de vie label Feels Botanical, in just the second year of the brand’s operation. Cofounder, Blake Vanderfield-Kramer, said despite having launched during the uncertainty of the pandemic, the brand has been able to create a solid foundation.
“In 2022, while the COVID-19 impacts were not gone, we were able to build on our small but consistent and loyal customer base, we partnered with the Swift and Moore Beverage Company in August as our Australian sales and distribution partner, we won numerous awards both domestic and internationally, and we announced Dan Churchill’s role within the business as our Culinary Creative & Ambassador,” Vanderfield-Kramer said.
For 2023, Feels will be focused on further growing both the brand and its category as well. Feels Botanical’s range of eau de vie shows the potential of the category, through products such as Bask (with hemp, quandong and Kakadu plum), Vivify (with turmeric, coconut and ginger), Rouse (with rose, horny goat weed and Davidson plum) and Revel (with Ginseng, coffee and Illawarra plum).
“Fundamentally, the focus for this year is awareness and trial – finding ways to bring consumers (and trade) into the eau de vie category and Feels brand, while supporting the continual changing hospitality landscape,” said Vanderfield-Kramer.
“We have had a great response to the brand, but even more impressive has been the response to the liquid’s versatility and balance, with a great point of difference to anything else on the market.”
Over the next 12 months, Vanderfield-Kramer believes the biggest opportunity for Feels Botanical will also be its biggest challenge –building a leading brand in a relatively undeveloped category.
“The eau de vie category still has a long way to go, but there are a lot of positive signs,” he said.
“The product delivers against consumer trends and desires for versatility, sustainability, provenance, and quality. There are also several other business and brands starting to playing in the space, which is a positive for both trade and consumer awareness.”
While awareness is on the rise, there are still some areas of the category that would benefit from education.
As Vanderfield-Kramer explained: “Australian eau de vie grape
spirit (un-aged brandy) is Australian grapes fermented and turned into table wine, which is then distilled into a spirit. Don’t be confused with grappa, which is distilled from the pomace from winemaking.
“There is also confusion around the difference between neutral grape spirits and eau de vie grape spirit, how they are produced and the difference in flavour and mouthfeel. Again, the difference is the base product and process to create each style - just think, Australian eau de vie grape spirit is unaged brandy, or think Feels Botanical.”
The final educational element that Vanderfield-Kramer is keen to showcase is the versatility of eau de vie, particularly with the Feels range.
“Our liquid can be enjoyed straight, over ice, with a mixer or in a cocktail. This is from the velvety, creamy mouthfeel the eau de vie delivers but also our process of maceration and distillation of our unique botanicals into the spirits,” said Vanderfield-Kramer.
“These botanicals add beautiful aromas and flavour characteristics that work in harmony with the eau de vie profile and helps deliver versatility of drink consumption and drink styles.” ■
A key liquor retail opportunity for 2023 will be to collaborate with brands like Fever-Tree to focus on selling everything a consumer needs for a finished and elevated mixed serve.
Despite lapping some interesting previous years, 2022 was another really strong year for Fever-Tree, according to the brand’s Managing Director ANZ, Andy Gaunt.
“We grew by around 30 per cent in 2022... If you look in grocery retail (where we see the best data for total mixers in Australia), the total mixer category was slightly flat or declined. Our growth shows there is a continued story of Australians, when they’re given the choice, looking to access more premium options,” Gaunt said.
In December 2022, Gaunt said FeverTree even became the number one tonic by value in the retail channel. But it’s not just the impressive range of tonics that are driving success - continued growing sales are coming from soda water (both flavoured and regular) and ginger ales, as well as different formats, from cans to larger bottles and also multipacks. In fact, it’s the success of different formats and flavours that have been a highlight for Gaunt over the last year, especially with the eight pack of 150ml cans.
“What’s been really pleasing to see there, is when a retailer does introduce that canned format, it’s predominantly an incremental sale rather than the cannibalisation. It’s coming from a different shopper that buys into cans within mixers,” Gaunt said.
As it stands, this format is predominantly in supermarket and big box liquor retail, meaning there is great opportunity for the rest of the market to get on board.
Other bright spots from 2022 for Gaunt included the continued momentum of the ‘better for you’ category, which helped drive success for lower calorie Fever-Tree SKUs with limited impact to the original versions;
and also the expansion of the portfolio with Fever-Tree Distillers Cola.
This latest new product, which has been received exceptionally well already, emphasises the effectiveness of Fever-Tree’s NPD strategy, which is solely focused on the mixing occasion. Every beverage creation is seen as an ingredient for a mixed drink.
“When it comes to innovation, that allows us to make sure that any new product we create is truly adding value,” Gaunt explained. That value comes from creating flavour profiles that pair with the characters of different spirits, while being flavours that are recognisable by consumers. It’s also important for new products to be anchored to styles of drinks consumers are actively seeking out, and to take into consideration different formats to allow for enjoyment on a wide variety of occasions.
Gaunt recognised that the off-premise liquor industry saw the opportunity of premium mixers early, however, the grocery retail space is now catching up. In 2023, there is a real opportunity for liquor stores to step things back up.
“Grocery stores cannot sell the full ingredients for mixed alcoholic drinks like bottle shops can. While grocery retailers have done a great job of raising the profile of premium mixers, I think the opportunity coming into 2023 is for liquor retailers to focus on selling serves,” Gaunt said.
This means selling customers not just their favourite spirit, but a premium Fever-Tree mixer to match. Gaunt said this creates ease of shopping, and an overall better experience, leading to customers being more likely to come back to repeat the process. With inflationary pressures predicted to cause consumers to use mixers to premiumise their drinks (as opposed to a previous trend of premiumising with the spirit), getting behind the resilience and versatility of premium mixers is key.
“As we come into a year that is on one hand more stable, but on the other hand, slightly more daunting, there is even more reason to showcase great value, great offers, and sell serves through easy shopping experiences,” Gaunt said.
“I think there’s going to be a really important partnership and collaboration opportunity for this with Fever-Tree in 2023.” ■
Global Endeavours Australia is planning a number of new product launches over the coming 12 months, including New Zealand wines, RTDs, and some non-alcoholic products.
Global Endeavours Australia (GEA) is a New Zealand based manufacturer of food and beverages that entered the Australian market in early 2021 and has found particular success with its Batched Premium Cocktails.
Originally launching with a hero range of Batched Premium Cocktails, together with a unique range of NZ gin and vodka, the brands have been received extremely well across the market in the past year.
Maurice Melis, CEO of GEA, has told National Liquor News that we can expect to see a variety of new product releases in Australia in 2023, including wine, RTDs, and functional beverages.
“We have just acquired a winery and several vineyards in Hawkes Bay, New Zealand and are about to launch an exciting new range of NZ wines,” says Melis.
“We are actively exploring new RTD ideas to launch in 2023, and our new ‘Hard’ Iced Tea, Loony’s, is looking to be our next big launch into Australia. Our beverages business is also growing rapidly, and we have just launched our first functional beverage, No Ordinary Ice Tea, which is a low sugar tea containing antioxidants and Vitamin C.
“GEA’s focus into 2023 will be to continue to build on the fantastic foundations the team have established across our liquor portfolio and to bring some exciting new product development (NPD) to market. We’re very excited about what can be achieved over the next year.
“As a small to medium business, we’re conscious of not spreading ourselves too broadly. Our focus will be directed to where
Reflecting on his observations of the Australian liquor consumer, Melis said: “We have noted the low or no alcoholic segment continues to gain traction as more Australians refrain from or reduce alcohol consumption. This is driven primarily by health and wellbeing concerns but also likely cost of living pressures over the next year too.
“Beer seems to be in decline while segments like RTDs seem to be gaining in popularity, especially with premixed products like canned cocktails or tequila.”
we can offer greatest value to consumers and customers.”
Entering the Australian market during the pandemic came with a set of challenges, including changes in consumer behaviour and the rising cost of living.
Maurice Melis CEO Global“The bottled cocktail segment proved somewhat more challenging than the RTD segment with several headwinds impacting sales, including slowdown of home cocktail consumption versus strong demand in prior years (COVID lockdowns), increased levels of competition in market and concerns about cost of living pressures,” says Melis.
“The rising cost of living and how that impacts the economy, and subsequently demand, will be a key challenge for us in 2023. Our biggest opportunity is how we best respond to that changing consumer behaviour to maintain momentum in our business. We feel offering forms of value, together with an emotional attachment to brands, will become increasingly important.
“The RTD category, specifically premixed alcoholic drinks, such as cocktails or tequila, remains strong and seem to be increasing in shelf space in-store. This is an area that we see remaining at forefront of new trends into 2023.” ■
John Hoedemaker, Managing Director of Good Drinks, has tipped multi-state expansion and NPD to be defining features of the new year.
“It’s been an extremely positive year for Good Drinks, and we’re looking forward to building on our strong momentum,” says Managing Director, John Hoedemaker, when reflecting on the last year.
“Across 2022, we launched some amazing new products that complement our range and provide more variety for our customers.”
Hoedemaker gives two examples in particular that have delivered great results in key categories of growth.
“The Matso’s Nightlife range is a gamechanger. The ginger beer market is growing, and we know consumers are looking for drinks packed with flavour, that sit at a higher ABV,” he said.
“Matso’s is already the leading independent craft ginger beer in the country, and a strong brand in that space. Growing that with Matso’s Nightlife, which sits at six per cent ABV and comes in three flavours, will be a winner across the board.
“In 2022, we also launched Gage Roads Brew Co’s Hazy As Hazy Pale Ale. Again, this is a category that’s growing, and after launching in WA, SA and Queensland, it’s taking off and delivering fantastic results for our customers.”
This kind of NPD strategy is part of a wider ‘multi-state’ approach, which is seeing the company open venues around Australia to help convert drinkers to its products in the retail sector, as Hoedemaker outlines.
“Good Drinks is focussed on continuing the momentum we have in WA, while ramping up our growth on the east coast,” he said.
“We’re building a new Matso’s venue on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, which gives the Matso’s brand more presence in that state.
John Hoedemaker Managing Director Good DrinksOur Atomic venue in Sydney is really hitting its straps, which is leading to more Atomic drinkers in NSW.”
Good Drinks signed a significant deal with Molson Coors and Magners in the past year, which saw Good Drinks take on the Australian distribution of brands such as Miller Chill, Miller Genuine Draft, Coors, Molson Canadian and Magners Irish Cider.
“These deals have been beneficial for not only Good Drinks, but our customers too. The Molson Coors and Magners partnerships have allowed us to broaden our portfolio into new segments,” the Managing Director explained.
“Good Drinks now offers its customers amazing brands across every category in beer, and other alcohol drink segments too. It’s great to be a one-stop-shop for our customers, and to service their needs better than ever before.”
Of course, the company has also faced challenges in the past year – the same challenges that many firms in all sectors (and indeed, most consumers) have had to tackle: increased costs and inflation.
“One of the main challenges that everyone is facing is trying to keep costs down, while inflation and COGS are rising,” Hoedemaker commented.
Nevertheless, Hoedemaker felt that Good Drinks was well placed to take these head-on as the year unfolded, and can do the same this year.
“One advantage we have at Good Drinks is our production scale and volume. Our brewery produces more than 20 million litres per annum, and the scale of that production means we can keep our costs low, and margins high for our customers,” Hoedemaker concluded. ■
The Western Australian distiller will be looking at growth in a number of ways in 2023, coming off the back of a wonderful 2022.
With a stable of incredible brands, Great Southern Distilling Co is a highly awarded treasure trove of Western Australian spirits. Within the portfolio you’ll find the core brands of Giniversity Gin, based in Margaret River; Limeburners Single Malt Whisky, based in Albany; and Tiger Snake Whiskey and Dugite Whiskey, both based in Porongurup. Together, these showcase the breadth of high quality spirit options that the state has to offer.
Great Southern Distilling was founded by Master Distiller, Cameron Syme, in 2004, with a commitment to sustainability and provenance, and an ethos of continuous improvement in the pursuit of excellence. In 2022, this ethos continued in all areas of the company’s operation, laying the groundwork for another productive year in 2023.
“2022 was a wonderful year. The major highlight was the opening of our new Swan Valley Cellar Door. Bringing Limeburners and Giniversity to the city was a key step in building further consumer engagement with our brands,” said Syme.
For the year ahead, the immediate focus for Great Southern Distilling Co is continuing to grow in export markets, and preparing to increase production to meet growing demand.
“Our focus for 2023 is increasing weekly production in Albany. We are laying down more whisky in barrels each month,” Syme said.
With such increased product, Great Southern Distilling Co will be able to pursue a key opportunity for its brands.
As Syme noted: “The biggest opportunity for us is to focus on penetration and growth on the east coast. Our customers and consumers in Melbourne and Sydney have always been great supporters so we need to give some love back to those markets by having more of an in-market presence.”
Great Southern Distilling Co is one of many amazing local producers that showcase the excellent abilities of Australia’s distilling industry. According to Syme, this reputation is continuing to gather strength, as the industry comes together to boost this, not just locally, but on the world stage.
“International recognition of the quality of Australian spirits is slowly growing. It is key that we work together to grow our category
Great Southern Distilling Co added to its collection of local and international accolades last year, including:
• Australia’s Best Navy Strength Gin for the new Southern Ocean Gin at the Australian Distilled Spirit Awards
• Best International Aged Gin for Giniversity x Limeburners Whisky Cask Aged Gin at the American Distilling Institute (ADI) Awards
• Best International Rye Whiskey in the World for Tiger Snake Rye of the Tiger Whiskey at the ADI Awards
• Best International Corn Whiskey in the World for Tiger Snake 43% Whiskey at the ADI Awards.
in targeted markets. The potential for our industry to crack $1 billion of export sales has to be close,” Syme said.
With such great spirits options in our own backyard, Syme said there is no better time for Australian retailers to be looking locally for their spirits selection.
“There are great people and incredible talent in the Australian spirits industry. Recognising and championing these people, as well as their fantastic world class product, is key in my opinion,” Syme said.
“Australian spirits are equal to or better than the best in the world. Support for our industry is important to help us compete against the global major brands.” ■
Wade Tiller, Hard Fizz CEO, says the booming seltzer brand will continue to drive growth through innovation and collaboration in 2023.
Hard Fizz has enjoyed a huge amount of success in its first full year of trade, including increasing its distribution in retail, and expanding its presence on-premise.
According to CEO, Wade Tiller, 2022 was a massive year where Hard Fizz was able to cement itself as a “genuine player” in the booming hard seltzer category, while developing great relationships with major retail partners.
2022 was also great because the world could once again operate unabated onpremise and at festivals.
Tiller says: “That allowed our co-founder DJ Fisher to go on a four stop national tour where we sold 100,000 cans – and that was our original idea to showcase the brand at launch (until COVID kicked in).
“The flip side of that coin is when you grow so rapidly, it’s important to add the right pieces from a resource perspective; and having not existed before COVID and perhaps not fully understanding how big retail can be, that was a steep learning curve for us.”
One of the key growth drivers for Hard Fizz in 2022 was broadening availability through retail and adding more people on the ground to achieve increased distribution.
The brand also added some exciting new flavours, headlined by its exclusive flavour for IBA retailers, Blueberry Lemonade. More recently, it has added a Piña Colada variety, after the flavour proved to be a popular choice at the Hard Fizz brewery.
The immediate focus for Hard Fizz in 2023 is around the rollout of NPD and tapping into the clear trends associated with
Tiller said: “Hard Fizz is extremely proud of the diversity in our team. We built it from scratch so it’s a well-founded, diverse workforce in terms of gender, age, and background (and that’s working for us). So, I think the industry needs to keep discussing that as an issue.
“Supply chain and inflationary pressures are also real, and as an industry, we need to band together to tackle that.
“Sustainability is always a big one – we have an amazing skill set in Australia, so the question is: how do we cooperate as a sector to maintain that strength?”
hard seltzer that Hard Fizz isn’t playing in yet.
Tiller continues: “We also have some exciting plans to innovate this year – some of them are out of the box and not exactly easy to deliver but we’re excited to give them go.
“Without giving too much away, we have a few new products in the works so expect to see some functional ingredients as we tackle fuller flavours while maintaining zero sugar. We’re also looking to play around with some higher ABV drinks.”
In 2022, Hard Fizz also thought outside the box, and collaborated with Salty Pirate Crew to hook into the NFT craze. Tiller
has hinted that more quirky collaborations lie ahead.
“The Salty Pirate Crew collab was an exciting project and one we’ve had some great feedback on. We also collaborated with Alfred’s Apartment, a local Gold Coast clothing, label as well as SDS (Surf, Dive ‘n Ski) and FAE swimwear; and now we’re fielding enquiries from some really big, globalised Australian brands wanting to work with us,” he says.
“We’ve got the ability to do these collabs; we’ve got the plant here (FIZZ HQ) so we can do a quick turn and zig where they zag.” ■
After a rename and restructure in 2022, Hill-Smith Family Estates has shown that even after 173 years of history, innovation is still possible.
For Hill-Smith Family Estates (HSFE), producer of iconic wine labels including Yalumba, Jansz Tasmania, Oxford Landing and more, 2022 was a year of significant change.
The biggest change was the introduction of a new brand identity for its umbrella business, which has definitely been a positive for the company, as CEO, Karl Martin, explained.
“In September we launched our new group identity, Hill-Smith Family Estates. This is our new inclusive company name incorporating all our iconic wine brands and vineyard estates, our fine wine distribution businesses, and our Yalumba Nursery,” Martin says.
“HSFE has enabled our wine brands and distribution businesses to retain their individual identities and at the same time provide us with a group identity to show how they are all connected.”
Prior to introducing this new name, HSFE undertook a restructuring of its business in late 2020, with the positive impacts beginning to be felt across the company.
“We are realising the opportunities
this investment provides, with our people having greater capacity and capability servicing our customers across all channels,” Martin said.
“It was most pleasing to see this validated by our trade customers as evidenced in the 2022 Advantage survey where we improved our ranking from 13 to six across all liquor suppliers.”
Another key step the company has taken over the past year is to produce its first Annual Sustainability Report, released in September of 2022.
The report talks to HSFE’s “philosophy, values, and the specific goals and actions that are keeping us busy and focused,” according to Martin.
“We are committed to generational sustainability, and it is not just a story we tell, it’s inherent to who we are and what we do. We know that sustainability is a long journey and is a key consideration for every part of our business as we look forward to the next 173 years,” Martin continues.
“Our partnership with Sustainable Winegrowing Australia (SWA) continues
and we have invested significant resources to support our growers to become SWA certified. From the 2023 vintage onwards all our equity brand wines will have the Trustmark on the label.”
And responding to environmental impact was highlighted by Martin as a key focus for HSFE in 2023.
“Given the well-documented industry supply position, and an extremely wet spring experienced by most wine growing regions, seeing through vintage 2023 will be an immediate focus for our viticulture and winemaking teams to ensure we align our wine make to future sales aspirations,” he said.
Finally, this will be landmark year for the company’s Samuel Smith & Son distribution wing, which will celebrate 100 years as a fine wine distributor in Australia.
“The business has received incredible support from our trade customers and local and international agency brand partners since being established in 1923, and we will look to acknowledge these long-standing partnerships appropriately next year,” Martin concludes. ■
Karl Martin CEO Hill-Smith Family Estates
After floodwaters ravaged Husk Farm Distillery in 2022, the company is looking to add to its facilities and enter new markets in 2023.
Husk Farm Distillery, located in the Tweed village of Tumbulgum, NSW, experienced something of a rollercoaster year in 2022, as Founder and CEO, Paul Messenger, explains.
“The low point [of 2022] was undoubtedly the February flood which peaked a full metre above the great deluge of 2017, engulfing our distillery and causing hundreds of thousands of dollars damage,” Messenger said.
Nevertheless, it proved that the darkness was deepest just before the dawn, as the distillery’s team was able to reopen to the public rapidly, and host an important event.
“The biggest highlight was reopening to the public and celebrating our daughter Harriet’s wedding here just two and a half weeks after thanks to the amazing work of our staff, family, friends and our wonderful community,” Messenger adds.
Since then, the distillery has roared back to life, releasing its first premix Ink Gin & Tonic just before Christmas, after 18 months in development.
With travel now fully accessible, Husk has set its sights on entering overseas markets, with Messenger looking to make connections at major trade events such as Paris Rhum Fest and Whiskey Live.
Alongside this opportunity, Messenger is also readying Husk to weather some difficulties in the year ahead.
“On the challenge side of the ledger I see inflation and its multiplier effect on excise as our biggest challenge in the foreseeable future,” Messenger said.
“All businesses are subject to cost pressures during times of high inflation, but craft distillers have the added pressure of inflation on excise.”
Messenger tips the combination of inflation and excise to add an additional cost of $30 in excise for each bottle of the distillery’s Ink Gin sold.
In 2022, Husk unveiled a major upgrade to its sugar mill, designed specifically to crush freshly cut sugar cane for the distillery’s unique rum style, made with fermented sugar cane juice.
“We’ve spent the last 11 years developing a whole new style of
rum –
Cultivated Rum (ACR),” Messenger said.
“In its purest form, ACR is strictly ‘farm to bottle’ where cane varieties are grown, harvested, milled, fermented, distilled, matured and bottled on the one farm. This is the essence of single estate.
“ACR is a registered mark, the purpose of which is to define, protect and promote this style through a set of rules that govern where and how it can be made, in a manner similar to the Geographic Indicators that control Champagne, Cognac, Burgundy and AOC Martinique.”
To support the development of both its brand and ACR, Husk is looking to further add to its equipment in the new year.
“Our immediate focus will be commissioning a liquid storage and handling system with new bottling line,” Messenger said.
“This state of the art facility has taken three years to complete and will manage all liquid transfers between the still house, barrel house, tank house and bottling hall. Apart from improving safety and productivity, the new bottling line will allow us to expand production and introduce our new proprietary rum bottle with a total brand refresh.”
As part of the refresh, the distillery will introduce its first core ACR bottling, Husk Signature ACR, made from 100 per cent fresh, cold pressed juice of select cane varieties grown and milled on the Husk farm. The rum is then sub-tropically aged for a minimum of three years in ex-Australian wine barrels on-site.
“You’re going to hear a lot about this in the years ahead,” Messenger concludes. ■
The co-operative continues to see growth in all areas, which CEO Paul Esposito is optimistic will continue in 2023.
When reflecting on how Independent Liquor Group (ILG) fared in 2022, CEO Paul Esposito said it was another great year from all angles.
“The past 12 months have been rewarding for everyone associated with ILG. We delivered a strong financial outcome for all members, record sales in value and volume, and continued to grow our membership in all states, welcoming over 510 new members to ILG,” he said.
Some of the major successes of 2022 include the learnings that the co-operative has made throughout the year as it sought to navigate the unique post-pandemic environment. This progress helped contribute to a number of key wins for the business and its members.
“Looking back on 2022, it was a challenging year for the industry as a whole with plenty of learning and growth. I am proud of everything we have achieved as a co-operative, led by my team at ILG,” Esposito said.
“We managed to keep members’ delivery service levels above 97 per cent in all statesthis was and still is a huge accomplishment.
“We now have a total of 25 active Fleet Street stores with more to come. Sales revenue for our retail banners YTD November are up 29 per cent and we are welcoming more Victorian members to our family.
“The biggest reward is the recognition we continually receive from our members and believe they have a voice.”
Esposito said the immediate focuses for ILG in 2023 will be growth oriented, aiming to
deliver the best for the co-operative.
“The main priorities for ILG are growth in sales, member growth and retention and member benefits,” he told National Liquor News.
“We are also in the early stages of finalising a warehouse acquisition for our Queensland members and the ERP implementation. Another area we will continue to focus on is our culture and our people internally and externally to continue to inspire loyalty and success.”
Of course, ILG has predicted there will be challenges along the way, driven by increasing cost of living pressures, rising interest rates, supply issues, freight and fuel levies, and general price increases across the board. Despite this, Esposito believes ILG members will persevere with the support of the business behind them.
“I don’t have a crystal ball, but I am optimistic we will perform just as well as last year... I expect everyone will take a cautious approach in early 2023 with a
more relaxed approach in the back half of the year,” he said.
“Our purpose as a co-operative is different than an investor-owned model and to date we have resisted passing on the [rising charges] to our members. We need to maintain our service level and ensure that our members get stock they order in a timely manner.”
This is also described as one of the key advantages of being part of a co-operative like ILG, with the main purpose of the business being to provide goods and services on an equitable basis.
“ILG is Australia’s largest memberowned liquor cooperative, and it gives independent retailers the ability to compete effectively through better buying power. We can achieve better buying power with membership growth and scale and in return our profits are returned to our members not shareholders,” Esposito said.
“Our purpose is to safeguard independent retailing and give them the ability to operate autonomously to ensure longevity.” ■
General Manager of Independent Liquor Retailers (ILR), Corey Leeson, discusses how the business has developed itself into a strong competitor in the Australian liquor market.
2022 was a milestone year for Independent Liquor Retailers (ILR), marking 20 years of operation for the group. General Manager, Corey Leeson, said it was a positive year for many reasons.
“Overall ILR performed very well due to a combination of new members coming on board and continued growth in all categories except cider. Our new marketing campaign of ‘cheers to 20 years’, supporting local communities, is starting to resonate and selling the message of buying and shopping local,” he said.
“The big highlight was the milestone of 2022 being our 20th birthday. We marked this with many occasions, from celebrating at a race day with some founders of the group, running a special 20 year birthday promotion using original artwork designs, and having a conference on Hamilton Island with over 140 delegates. This milestone is testament to the strong business model and support of our members and suppliers.”
The strength of the business will be as important as ever in 2023, as ILR supports its members to overcome challenges of the current trading environment. To do this, Leeson said ILR’s focus will be to mitigate the impacts of inflation and work with its wholesaler on improving the supply chain.
“We need to ensure we prioritise our member’s profits by striking the right balance of minimising supplier cost increases and factoring in venues’ increased costs of doing business, all while trying to remain competitive,” he said.
The other focus for ILR in 2023 to support members will be to further improve
The Local Liquor retail brand is an integral part of the appeal behind ILR outlets, as consumers are assured they are supporting local businesses, and getting the best benefits out of doing so. Leeson identified this local message as one of the biggest opportunities for ILR and its members in 2023.
“Having the brand Local Liquor affords us greater opportunity to capitalise on the trend of shopping and supporting local. We need to own this space and deliver the message to our customers to change their shopping habits of using the big chains,” Leeson said.
“We can help make shoppers understand the benefits of shopping with an independent liquor retailer over a chain by being more about convenience, value, range and service, than just price.”
Leeson encouraged any venue looking for a positive local-inspired change to contact ILR to discuss the advantages that come with being part of a members driven group that distributes all profits back to its retailers.
marketing strategies to communicate its key local message.
“We will build on our message of supporting local through collaborating with local producers and tailoring our marketing
to local regions. We’ll also refine our digital marketing strategy to cater for our local marketing campaigns, and use the strategy to build our membership base.” Leeson concluded. ■
Lion is continuing to invest in its enviable portfolio of iconic beer and craft spirit brands, to drive the best outcomes for customers and their consumers.
After stepping into the Managing Director role at Lion at the start of 2022, David Smith has enjoyed seeing how the industry has navigated adversity to achieve some great outcomes.
“It was a privilege to join Lion in 2022 – a business with an incredibly proud history, filled with great people and wonderful brands,” Smith said.
“Once again, I have been reminded of the unique role our industry plays in bringing people together – whether it be over a beer at their local or celebrations at home with family and friends, something we certainly do not take for granted after the last few years.”
Smith describes the past couple of years of the pandemic as bringing “an unprecedented change in consumer behaviour”, with 2022 specifically giving Lion the opportunity to carefully think about its portfolio of iconic brands.
“We continued to invest behind our major trademarks with new marketing campaigns for XXXX, James Squire, Hahn and Furphy launching last year, and grown our leading craft beer business, now with Byron Bay-based Stone & Wood in the fold,” he said.
“Our customers are telling us that our portfolio is exactly what they’re looking for in a market of consumers increasingly looking for more premium options. With a focus on fantastic marketing and investment behind our core trademarks, we are confident we will continue to see that momentum build in the year ahead.”
When thinking about the focus for the year ahead, Smith said: “Across all parts of Lion, we are tapping into consumer tastes and trends to deliver a truly fantastic portfolio for our customers that meets the changing needs of consumers.”
To build its brands, increase the attractiveness of the beer category and help its customers’ businesses grow, Lion will be working closely with partners across the industry and investing significantly into media and shopper programs. This will apply to both existing brands and new products, with Smith hinting at some exciting innovations in the pipeline.
He said: “These new products are squarely focused on growing the beer category and feedback from our customers so far has been excellent so watch this space!”
Importantly, Lion’s activity will continue to be in line with the top consumer trends in 2023. One key trend that Smith identified was the consumer movement to make more mindful choices, whether that’s drinking less but drinking higher quality products, or opting for no and low alcohol and lower carb products. Hahn will be tapping into this trend after its relaunch and pack refresh in late 2022, with new advertising campaign – Hahn: How Good.
Meanwhile the non-alcoholic beer side of the portfolio, which includes XXXX Zero, James Squire Zero and Heineken Zero, will also see strong support from Lion, with the company making significant capital investment in its production capability at the Tooheys brewery. ■
David Smith Managing Director Lion
Sustainability is incredibly important to Lion, being the country’s first large-scale carbon neutral brewer. This value stems across all parts of the business, but also outside of it, with Lion working with its supply chain and customers to minimise the overall footprint of its products (Scope 3 emissions).
“One of the initiatives I’m most proud of is the work we did with the Australian Climate Leaders Coalition (CLC), which saw Lion map the full carbon footprint of an FMCG product (bottled XXXX Gold) based on actual and accurate data direct from our value chain. We then worked with our value chain partners to identify decarbonisation initiatives to reduce this footprint – a positive and important step towards achieving our goal of a net zero value chain by 2050,” Smith said.
The WA retail co-operative has restructured its head office team to respond to the changing needs of its membership.
2022 saw incredible positives for Western Australian co-operative, Liquor Barons, from a business performance point of view, according to General Manager Chris O’Brien.
“For top line sales numbers on a like for like basis, Liquor Barons has matched 2021. Given the post-COVID environment and booming nature of the year, I consider matching these results in 2022 to be an outstanding result,” O’Brien said.
Top line sales were one of three key indicators of success for Liquor Barons in 2022. Other indicators were positive performance achievements such as small incremental growth in the gross profits of members and rising foot traffic, seen in the increase of transactions across the group.
“On a like for like basis, the number of transactions in our stores has increased by approximately 2.5 per cent in 2022, versus 2021. This shows our marketing efforts are attracting more customers today than 12 months ago,” O’Brien said.
In 2022, Liquor Barons was also able to grow the number of stores in the co-operative, which has pushed absolute growth rates even higher than this solid collection of like for like performance metrics.
Throughout this co-operative of members, O’Brien has seen some new trends emerge in 2022.
“We’re seeing a once in a 25 year event - a really large number of existing independent liquor store owners are retiring or exiting the business. Consequently, we’re seeing a lot of new ownership en-masse,” O’Brien said.
“Predominantly these new owners are no longer middle aged men, they are young couples or families putting everything on the line to purchase a business. This new generation of independent liquor store owners has a different set of needs and requirements to the people they bought their stores from.”
Recognising this shift as a new generation emerged, Liquor Barons underwent a head office restructure in 2022 to make sure it was equipped to meet such changing needs of the co-operative.
“Some really hard decisions have been taken, but we find ourselves at the end of 2022 with a relatively new, entrepreneurial, energetic and youthful head office team. We’ve made significant changes to achieve that,” O’Brien said.
A number of challenges faced by most of the liquor industry in 2022 were tipped by O’Brien to continue into 2023, and will be a focus for the group this year accordingly. This includes the ability to attract and retain staff, which is particularly hard when competing with WA’s booming mining industry, and managing the logistics of a strained supply chain, not just with globally sourced stock, but the more than 80 per cent of stock which comes to WA from the east coast.
One focus for Liquor Barons when it comes to ensuring consistent supply for members is to opt for producers with manufacturing capabilities in WA.
“For a group like us that’s been so focused on local for so long, that’s actually a really positive thing because we have strong relationships with most local manufacturers and producers and therefore, we tend to get looked after by them when times are tight,” O’Brien said.
Another predicted disruption Liquor Barons will be focused on addressing in 2023 is what O’Brien described as “the largest range of price rises in the liquor industry probably since the 1990s,” in February.
“Our immediate focus is to ensure relativity and to ensure margin maintenance in this high inflationary period,” he continued.
“We will also be continuing to drive an ever-increasing number of customers into member stores. We’ve over invested in both our digital marketing and traditional marketing capability and our focus will be to continue to use those channels with our refreshed team to drive customers into store.” ■
After a 2022 marked by stellar growth figures, Liquor Legends has in-store and online expansion firmly in its sights.
2022 was a landmark year for Liquor Legends, in which it celebrated 30 years of operation. Managing Director, John Carmody, noted the significance of this milestone, and explained why he thought the business had enjoyed such prolonged success.
“It was a massive milestone celebrating 30 years of Liquor Legends. It has been incredibly rewarding creating a business which has a legendary team who deliver extraordinary service and support to our members and suppliers,” he said.
“From the very start we have focused on delivering corporate services (point of sale systems, payroll and bookkeeping) more efficiently and marketing to drive sales in-store, online and onpremise (first party data, loyalty program, digital and online).
“We look at what’s needed and listen to the needs of our members and suppliers to strive to be the best imaginable partner.”
And for Carmody, the best way to mark this achievement was by reconnecting with the Liquor Legends community at its annual conference.
“An absolute highlight [of 2022] was bringing over 400 members, supply partners and team together for the first time in three years at our national conference. It was a great reunion to share past performance and future vision and a fitting way to celebrate the 30th birthday of Liquor Legends,” he said.
“My passion has never been stronger to grow our business to better support our members and suppliers.”
Liquor Legends enjoyed double digit growth in important metrics across the board, with Carmody noting: “Group sales are up by 15 per cent versus last year, and group gross profits further up by +19 per cent.
“We have more shoppers, as evident by our transactions growth by +10 per cent; they are spending more as well, as average transaction size is up by +5.0 per cent. Our sales are supported by our strong rewards membership numbers, which have exceeded 710k in the past year.”
A crucial area of development over the course of the year was online shopping, which saw significant progress.
“An important source of growth is from our e-commerce sales, which have increased exponentially by 72 per cent versus last year. Shoppers are trading to higher priced categories, which has
Carmody said the main ambition for 2023 is somewhat simple: continuing to maintain current performance.
“Growing our members’ gross profits will remain number one,” Carmody says.
“Coming off a strong 2022, I am confident we have the plans and strategies in place to replicate and add to the performance we’ve seen.”
diversified our sales portfolio and boosted our gross profit in the online space,” Carmody said.
“[This year], we’re focussing our efforts on enhancing the user experience on our website, following collaborative advice direct from members to remain leaders in this space. Liquor Legends has come a long way from our website’s first launch, however 2023 will see a complete overhaul of how we utilise this space visually and technically.
“This space is still relatively new to us, but what we’ve achieved this past year is extremely powerful in the independent league. Having an e-commerce presence is essential - if you don’t show up, someone else will.”
Expansion is definitely a key theme for Liquor Legends in 2023, after adding more than 50 new members in 2022. The loyalty program is also set for milestone growth, as Liquor Legends utilises and leverages first party data positively to drive the program’s expansion towards one million rewards members. ■
Liquor Marketing Group’s focus on loyalty, brand marketing and social/digital, has ensured another year of market sales growth and the expansion of its network.
Winning new customers was the key to Liquor Marketing Group’s (LMG) success in 2022, and this was achieved through store enhancements, and a strong focus on e-commerce and digital marketing campaigns.
LMG’s CY2022 growth of +8.1 per cent took its three-year rolling growth to more than 40 per cent, an outstanding result for its independent retailers. This performance allowed LMG to enhance 125 venues with a retail refresh as well as welcome 81 new member venues.
Gavin Saunders, CEO of LMG, said while 2022 was “extremely positive” for the group, it’s even more impressive considering it is the third consecutive year of growth. And there are no signs of that momentum slowing in 2023.
“Our focus for 2022 was to keep harnessing and building on the momentum we’ve created over the past three years. It’s fantastic to see this realised with continued sales growth ahead of market and the expansion of our network and services to LMG members,” Saunders says.
In 2022, LMG extended its digital platforms and data with an enhanced online presence and e-commerce apps to continue to drive online sales to its stores. LMG’s acquisition of established data and loyalty company, Zen Global, will allow for further enhancement of its data insights and targeted marketing into the future.
New Bottlemart and SipnSave apps were launched in November, with a new rollout of Harry Brown and Thirsty Camel WA platforms to follow in 2023.
The new apps and online store provide much more engaging content and the ability to be more dynamic with the online stores in tailoring the experience to the season, event, promotion and individual.
As Saunders explains: “We were able to leverage our leading social and digital platforms to market the growing ready to drink (RTD) category to younger consumers and promote new products in more engaging ways.
“New product development remains critical to driving RTD and meeting the demands of our younger consumer base. And indeed, RTD significantly outperformed all other categories again in 2022.”
LMG’s focus for 2023 will remain the same: continuing to support its members to enhance their operations in-store, online and through marketing and promotion, and to retain and win more customers to grow sales and profitability.
LMG’s Harry Brown banner has enjoyed a year of strong expansion, almost doubling in volume in the past year. Harry Brown offers independent members a dedicated big box option, which has its own promotional program and go to market plans.
Saunders said the impact on new venues who have joined the Harry Brown banner in the past year is a testament to this model and its dedicated marketing program.
LMG’s ability to deliver this in 2023 is enhanced by an extended team as well as investments made and platforms developed over the past few years, including in-store fit outs, e-commerce, social and digital marketing, and loyalty and insights.
Saunders concludes: “LMG has enjoyed the opportunity to expand our team as our services to members and market reach has expanded. Recruiting strong expertise in the areas of Category Management, with the appointment of Jeremy Turnham (Head of Category), and Marketing, through the appointment of Ben Slocombe (Head of Marketing), has enhanced the resource and focus in these areas which allows us to move faster.
“Key areas of focus and growth in the coming year will be loyalty, brand marketing and social/digital. The expanded team will greatly assist with the delivery of these key initiatives.” ■
Since its launch in 2019, Lyre’s Spirit Co has enjoyed almost irrepressible growth, with CEO and Co-founder Mark Livings suggesting the business is entering a new phase.
Mark Livings, CEO and Co-founder of Lyre’s Spirit Co is in a rare position for any business leader: having met his original ambitions when establishing the company.
“I think we’ve achieved ubiquity,” Livings says.
“We’ve achieved the objective [we had] when we started three and half years ago. You can walk into any retailer and find, not only a Lyre’s Spirit Co product, but a great amount of support for the category.”
Livings is clear that the support of the liquor retail industry has been integral to this success.
“Retailers have embraced the category and are doing so with increased speed. They understand that it represents a very significant incremental revenue opportunity to them, and an incremental profit opportunity - people can come in and purchase something for everyone, regardless of their choices around alcohol consumption,” he said.
From the point of view of a market leader like Lyre’s, 2022 saw an evolution in how the retail industry is engaging with nonalcoholic products.
“The off-trade is all about category maturity… I think 2022 has been about putting the best products on shelf that truly do move, and designing an optimal assortment of products across the scope of flavours,” Livings says.
“The off-trade has now started to realise the importance of rounding out the palate preferences of the populations that they’re servicing.”
Due to the global reach of Lyre’s, the
company can trace, and relay, what is working for the non-alcoholic category in the retail sector.
“Having that pretty incredible major retail footprint is something very, very important. Where we see initiatives that are undertaken by one retailer, and the category performs exceptionally well, we’ll be sure to share those,” Livings explained.
“That’s something unique for Lyre’s - I don’t think any other alcohol free spirit brand has the optics that we do on exactly what’s working in all of the different parts of the world in the off-trade. Rapidly building the canon of best practice is something that I think we will work on.”
Livings gave an example of how this process is already informing the methods of retailers and said: “The off-trade has experimented with how to merchandise the category, and I think we’ve certainly landed on what is best practice - having a dedicated non-alcoholic area rather than variants being alongside their alcoholic equivalents.”
The ultimate aim of Lyre’s in 2023 is to increase the prominence, not only of its own products, but of the category as a whole.
“One of the biggest challenges the category still needs to face, non-alcoholic spirits in particular, is saliency,” Livings said.
“Solving the saliency problem is something that we’re absolutely focused on.
“Around 20 to 30 per cent of people know that non-alcoholic spirits exist, so there’s an incredible upside through helping people understand optionality is out there.”
By this Livings means, ensuring that customers realise that there is a nonalcoholic equivalent for their cocktail preferences and celebration occasions.
“They can stay in the Espresso Martini serve, they can stay in the Spritz serve, they can stay in the G&T serve, and opt out of alcohol,” Livings adds.
“That’s a story that we need to continue to tell and then we’ll need our partners in order to tell that.” ■
After the awards continued to pile up for Never Never Distilling Co last year, the company is launching a major new campaign this year.
Since its foundation in 2017, Never Never Distilling Co has rapidly established itself as one of Australia’s best performing distilleries in industry competitions and awards shows, as Managing Director George Georgiadis explains.
“Our awards and recognition remain top of industry,” he said.
“We won World’s Best London Dry at the World Gin Awards in London at the beginning of the year. This built on our World’s Best Classic Gin back in 2019 and helps us maintain our position as Australia’s most highly awarded gin brand.”
Critical success was supported by commercial expansion, with the distillery launching its brand into France, Italy, Denmark, Switzerland, Hungary and Taiwan. Production capability was also improved over the last year, with Georgiadis saying the challenges of a postCOVID environment “really set the scene for a year of building.”
“We really added to our capabilities in 2022, making big improvements to our quality control, consistency, and NPD processes,” he continued.
This is demonstrated by Never Never’s Dark Series, a project that sees the distillery collaborate with iconic venues to release unique spirit creations. One example of the past year was a partnership between Never Never and Maybe Sammy in Sydney, out of which came the Beeswax and Olive Gin, while another example can be found in the collaboration between Never Never and Society restaurant in Melbourne, out of which came the Oyster Shell Gin.
The main objective for Never Never this year is straightforward – it’s all about the new ‘Cause a Stir’ campaign.
“We’ve never taken ourselves too seriously, so this will give us the opportunity to be even more cheeky,” Georgiadis said.
“It’ll be lots of fun – it’s about reminding people that drinking the best gin is about having a great time not just being absolutely delicious.”
One thing that could fuel the success of this campaign is the premiumisation trend, which Georgiadis anticipates will continue in 2023.
“People are keen to get back into the swing of things and the premium end of the market will continue to grow, which is where Aussie spirits tend to play,” he said.
The RTD space is another area that Georgiadis sees potential in for the year ahead. But as Never Never explores entering this burgeoning category, the
team is conscious of the potential hurdles to navigate.
“RTD is both an opportunity and a challenge,” Georgiadis comments.
“We’ve formulated a product and are currently trialing it at Fassina Liquor stores in SA and at our venue and local markets. It’s so tasty. It’s a competitive space though so we’ll need to get some retail commitments to scale it up and make it available more broadly.”
Overall, Never Never recognises the great support of the off-premise industry, with Georgiadis giving special thanks to retailers.
“Retailers have been great in giving us an opportunity to educate and represent the brand. We’re here to help, so the more we are given the ability to get involved, the more we will,” he said.
“It’s been a tricky time for everyone and we’re so happy to see everyone again and be able to get back to what we all love doing and do best – creating sensational drinks and experiences.” ■
The sky is the limit for Nip Of Courage, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary as the largest one-stop-shop for Australian craft spirits.
In 2023, Nip Of Courage will celebrate its 10th anniversary in exceptional style, with an upgraded warehouse facility, a significantly expanded portfolio of Australian craft spirits, and a rapidly increasing customer base.
Despite the challenges that all small businesses faced in 2022, through sheer perseverance and a lot of blood, sweat and tears, the past 12 months have been hugely positive for Nip Of Courage, particularly with how well received its new wholesaler service, NOC Wholesale, has been.
Through NOC Wholesale, the business has attracted an influx of new customers, and exceeded all initial sales projections. This unexpected growth has forced Nip Of Courage out of its existing Sydney warehouse and into a much larger premises to accommodate growth into 2023 and beyond.
A key highlight for Nip Of Courage in 2022 was increasing its portfolio from 40 SKUs to almost 800, and according to Founder, Kathleen Davies, the sky is the limit for the business in 2023.
“We are not your average wholesaler; we see ourselves as advocates who genuinely care about helping to develop the local craft spirits industry,” she said.
“The new wholesaler model (NOC Wholesale) has allowed us to help a lot of smaller start-up producers who weren’t able to get listed with larger wholesalers during the global pandemic. We work in partnership with Australia’s leading distributors and the most exciting emerging spirit brands from all corners of the country. We are now the largest one-stop-shop for Australian craft spirits.”
Davies has identified an opportunity for Nip Of Courage to develop closer partnerships with the independent retail channel, and so this will be a key focus in 2023.
“In the past, this channel has been a challenge for Aussie craft spirits because there has traditionally been a heavy emphasis on global spirit brands, especially with independent retailer banner groups. Larger Aussie spirit brands like Ink Gin, Four Pillars, Archie Rose and Starward have paved the way for emerging craft spirits to be considered for ranging with independent retailers,” Davies noted.
Nip Of Courage has observed there is a great need to help educate the industry about the importance of having a distribution plan, which is often overlooked by startup distilleries.
Over the past 12 months there has been a steady stream of new local distilleries entering the Australian marketplace, and without an appropriate retail execution strategy, Davies fears these start-ups will struggle to gain traction.
“Many of these start-ups have very little industry knowledge and experience, with unrealistic expectations related to distribution strategies and wholesaler partnerships. A lot of new producers believe that gaining distribution in national retailers straight off the bat is the answer to their prayers, but without promotional support and significant investment to maintain these placements, a lot of inexperienced start-up brands will most certainly end up in the bargain bins and delisted,” she says.
“Building brand equity is extremely important for start-up distilleries before being ranged in national retailers.”
To maintain support for the emerging craft spirit industry, in 2023 Nip Of Courage is launching a new scorecard system to help start up distilleries reach certain milestones and gauge their position and perception in the marketplace with constructive feedback and sound advice to help their businesses grow. It’s all about supporting the potential of the Australian craft spirits industry, helping create sustainable growth for the sector as a whole. ■
The family business in Perth reflects on its award-winning retail philosophy.
“Do you want to do something crazy - do you want to buy a liquor store?”
That was what Jay Beeson’s dad asked him before the family purchased their local liquor store, which would become the first of two incredible Old Bridge Cellars stores in Perth.
The wider family had always been in retail, with Beeson himself managing pharmacies at the time. His dad was a pharmacist, but had also ventured into primary production, making a Chardonnay with his friend from a small local vineyard since about 2006.
When the family bought Old Bridge Cellars, Beeson didn’t know much about the liquor industry, but went on to immerse himself in it to the fullest extent. Such a strategy has certainly paid off, with Old Bridge Cellars North Fremantle being named as Liquor Store of the Year at the 2022 Liquor Stores Association of WA Awards, and also Business of the Year at the 2022 Fremantle Chamber of Commerce Business Awards.
Beeson reflected on how Old Bridge Cellars has worked to create a point of difference throughout its history.
“When we bought the store 10 years ago, the chains (and especially Dan Murphy’s) were just coming to WA, so people said it was a crazy time to be buying an independent liquor store. But we knew we were setting out to do something different,” Beeson said.
“Our mission statement for the business is that it’s not alcohol in a bottle, it’s art in a glass.”
The retail philosophy behind this mission was to champion artists of the industry,
stocking small and interesting producers and telling the story behind the brands. This was then combined with what Beeson and his family had learned from their time in pharmacy, being a highly regulated industry that required high levels of trust between retailer and customer.
“We pride ourselves on engaging with local producers and artisan producers, and we always want to have the best possible customer service that creates long term relationships with our customers,” Beeson explained.
Another core component of the Old Bridge Cellars strategy is to think outside the box with a one-stop-shop mentality. Not only can customers get their drinks recommendations from the store, they can also pick up cheese and charcuterie, gifts, ice cream, flowers and even something from pop-up bakeries.
All of this has created an environment that encourages repeat customers, with
Jay Beeson Proprietor Old Bridge Cellarssome sticking with Old Bridge Cellars since its inception a decade ago as they connect with the family business - Beeson, his parents and his brother are all equal business partners.
“We create friendships and relationships with our customers, not just financial transactions,” Beeson said.
To be recognised for such engaging success in 2022 is a significant achievement after the COVID-19 pandemic sent this in-store ability through the floor. Being a licensed wine education site and a store known for its tastings, Old Bridge Cellars had to innovate an alternate method of keeping its engagement high. Their solution was to create ‘Blind Wine Time’, where customers all over the country could order sets of three wines which were delivered wrapped in paper. Customers could then join live blind tastings via Instagram, with presentations by the winemakers themselves, tuning in from their wineries all over the world.
In 2023, Old Bridge Cellars will be focused on further innovating to bring the best experiences to its customers. Some great activation experiences it will be building on include oyster shucking masterclasses and junk food fine wine pairing classes, which are a bit of fun for consumers who love to explore.
“The consumer in WA is becoming much more informed… we’ve found people are more engaged in what they’re drinking - it’s not just a dry white or a sweet wine anymore, they know what varieties and regions they prefer. I’d like to think this more informed consumer will continue in 2023,” said Beeson. ■
A significant domestic launch made 2022 a successful year for Pernod Ricard Winemakers, with the business looking to maintain momentum into the new year.
Bryan Fry CEO Pernod Ricard Winemakers
Looking back on the tumultuous past year, there was one obvious standout moment for Pernod Ricard Winemakers in 2022, according to the company’s CEO Bryan Fry.
“A highlight for many of the team, and a personal favourite of mine, was the launch of our first sparkling Tasmanian wine, Mumm Tasmania Brut Prestige,” he said.
This release responded to ongoing trends in the Australian wine market, with Fry noting: “As one of the best regions in the world outside Champagne to produce sparkling wine, and with recent data from Wine Australia showing a 47 per cent uplift in domestic off-trade sales between 2020 and 2022, Mumm Tasmania offers something unique in the Australian sparkling market at an affordable price point.”
Headline Acts was another recent product line that serves to demonstrate one of Pernod Ricard Winemakers’ key 2023 ambitions: to reach and cultivate a new market of younger wine drinkers.
“For the wine category to recruit and remain relevant with these consumers, we need to drive excitement and a deeper engagement with the category,” Fry said.
“New products are an important way to ensure that we evolve with the trends and continue to attract new consumers into the wine category.
“Headline Acts has been created to recruit younger consumers into the wine category by combining music and wine. It’s a purpose-driven brand that champions and supports local Australian live music.”
In addition to connecting with a younger culture, Fry has highlighted alternative varietals as a means of reaching a different market.
“In 2022, we saw changes in the consumption of traditional red and white varietals, whereas the consumption of niche varietals and lighter styles, like Malbec, Sangiovese and spritz [style drinks], have experienced growth that will likely continue into 2023.”
In 2019, Pernod Ricard Winemakers launched its Good Times from a Good Place Sustainability and Responsibility Roadmap. Fry updated National Liquor News on the company’s progress, recent highlights and immediate sustainability objectives.
“In the past year, we have expanded our regenerative agriculture trials four-fold. Our teams stepped out into nature in June, planting
over 20,000 seedlings, shrubs and trees on our vineyards and in our local communities, learning about biodiversity along the way,” he said.
Packaging and transportation are widely known to be some of the wine industry’s biggest ‘climate hotspots’, and Fry illustrated how Pernod Ricard Winemakers is taking steps to reduce its footprint here.
“A key way to reduce our impact is by reducing the weight of our glass bottles, and in FY22 we successfully used 88 per cent lightweight glass bottles across our 750ml still wine ranges globally,” he said.
“We are constantly looking for ways to reduce our footprint as we advance our target of 100 per cent reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging by 2025.”
Close alignment with viticulturalists will be crucial to the company achieving its sustainable agricultural aims.
“We will continue to work with growers towards our target of 100 per cent grapes sourced certified to local sustainable production standards by 2030,” Fry said.
And ultimately, the CEO noted that agility and cooperation will continue to lead Pernod Ricard Winemakers’ approach.
“As we look to 2023, we recognise the sustainability space will constantly evolve, and we are ready to move with it as more guidance, technology and innovation is developed,” Fry said.
“We also know we cannot achieve our targets alone. Collaboration with our partners and industry will be key to overcoming challenges and creating and scaling sustainable solutions.” ■
The young distributor is on a strong growth trajectory, introducing new brands and doubling its team, while keeping sustainability at its core.
It might still be a relatively new distributor, but Proof Drinks Australia had anything but a slow year in 2022.
Managing Director, Drew Doty, said the 2022 calendar year showed great results overall as the business focused on supporting a portfolio of brands for long term strategic growth.
Reflecting on the successes of the last 12 months, Doty said: “Key highlights included launching at least six new brands into the market and introducing consumers to an extended range of amazing flavours from around the world.
“We grew our team over the year as well, which has allowed us to target four key regions, being NSW, QLD, VIC, and WA.”
Within the portfolio, the star performer has been the agave segment, which includes award-winning brands such as Cazcabel Tequila, Lunazul Tequila, Storywood Tequila and The Lost Explorer Mezcal.
“This performance has been driven by significantly increasing consumer engagement in the agave sector. Although the knowledge base is still in its infancy, we expect this to continue to grow well into the next few years. We also have put significant time into selecting unique, non-competing, award winning brands to ensure we offer a selection of opportunities for consumers to be taken on a journey,” Doty explained.
This strategy is visible across all of Proof Drinks Australia’s portfolio, from vodka to gin to whiskey and more, which are resonating well already with the Australian market.
“Almost all our brands are launching from zero which is both exciting and challenging however, the opportunity to supply amazing quality and a unique balanced portfolio is very exciting,” Doty said.
From the start of Proof Drinks Australia, Doty said: “Sustainability is a key focus and as part of our portfolio
building, we put it as a key pillar to both the brands we represent and how we operate as a business.”
This sustainability focus is shown in a number of ways, depending on the brands. Doty described some key areas of focus, including giving back to the community, ensuring sustainable ingredients are used in production, and utilising all components of each resource to reduce waste. Most brands also support sustainable organisations – The Lost Explorer, for example, partners with the Voice of Nature Foundation to support local communities in the brand’s home of Oaxaca.
Then from the Proof Drinks Australia side of the business, Doty described key sustainability initiatives as including those that reduce waste via recycling and limiting printed materials, and also supporting sustainable opportunities with customers alongside flexible working environments to save energy and materials.
As a whole, this sustainable core to Proof Drinks Australia will continue in earnest in 2023.
“In the year ahead we will continue to spread the message about how our brands are sustainable and the reason for supporting these brands. Not only are they award winning excellent flavours but also sourced ethically. Our business will also continue to work hard to decrease our need on materials and energy consumption and increase our support for our customers’ best practices,” Doty said. ■
Doty said that the Proof Drinks Australia team has really appreciated the support of the local industry so far, as the distributor has grown and launched new opportunities in Australia since it entered the country in 2021.
“We are looking forward to another exciting year working with our brands and customers and appreciate everything the industry has done,” Doty said.
After another successful year, revenue management services and consultancy firm, Real World Analytics is looking to “make the complex simple” and step change its software and consulting capabilities to support the alcohol industry, as Commercial Director Simon Elsby explains.
“2022 has been a really strong year for our business,” Real World Analytics Commercial Director, Simon Elsby, told National Liquor News
With well-documented economic headwinds taking hold in the past 12 months, Elsby believes that Real World Analytics, which offers revenue management tools and services including pricing strategy optimisation, data ‘harmonisation’ and sophisticated financial modelling and projections, has provided clients with a cutting edge.
“Our clients are continuing to look to our team to help manage difficult decisions around ranging, pricing, promotional optimisation and retailer engagement as inflationary pressures bite into industry margins and in many cases volume declines,” Elsby explains.
“This year, we have moved our business more towards tools and services which provide the ongoing data and insight to support growing the industry moreso than project based consulting projects which have been the cornerstone of our business.”
It is these software tools that will be especially important to Real World Analytics’ clients, both manufacturers and retailers, over the next 12 months.
“We will be continuing to focus on expanding our set of offthe-shelf software tools and bespoke consulting services in 2023,” Elsby said.
The updated and expanded software offering will address “the need for fast and efficient price and promotional insight, linked to shopper demand, and the retail execution services which support them.”
“So basically, understanding which shoppers will trade up and down within category and across categories and where that volume will flow to,” Elsby said.
A growing part of what the organisation offers are AI service offerings, which work seamlessly in tandem with the advanced analytics delivered through the company’s highly skilled data science team.
“We make the complex simple, by helping the industry unlock future volume, revenue and profit pools in trade spend, promotional planning, COGS management and identify major portfolio innovation opportunities. Importantly, we take a total
As an expert in the data management space, Real World Analytics has a useful perspective to offer retailers. Elsby explained the number one key dataset that the liquor retail industry should keep front of mind.
“Being able to identify truly what a brand or product would sell with all factors such pricing, promotion, seasonality, supply chain out of stock impacts, competitor cannibalisation removed, we believe is the fundamental metric that liquor retailers and manufacturers need to isolate in order to understand true financial performance,” he said.
“We are very proud of the work we have done to help our clients unlock this true baseline number.”
industry view, and provide recommendations for manufacturers and retailers to partner better,” Elsby said.
Elsby believes negative trends to volume growth will be the major challenge facing Real World Analytics over the next year, and that increasingly companies will be looking more for tools that will provide the right level of insight.
He said: “A recent survey from BCG indicated that over 70 per cent of companies in our survey believe that they need to find additional levers to balance growth and profits, and that companies that typically invest in these tools produce shareholder returns at least three times more than companies that do not. We know that our clients will typically deliver five to 10 times the return on investment in their bottom line margin in the projects we have delivered in the industry over the past 10 years.” ■
The Sydney CBD specialist retailer suffered as the pandemic emptied Australia’s city centres, but 2022 saw a recovery, with expansion slated for 2023.
Josh Towers, General Manager of Red Bottle Group, has high ambitions for the next 12 months.
“I hope to see 2023 as the greatest year that Red Bottle has seen yet,” Towers says.
“After two difficult years of lockdowns and the Sydney CBD being essentially closed for business, we were very delighted to have 2022 as a step back in the right direction.”
Key to this future success will be a strong team and culture, and Red Bottle has invested in building this in recent years.
“The current team that we have is the strongest and most experienced we have ever seen, and as long as we continue to pair that with a bit of passion for retailing, we will further cement ourselves as the independent retail group that genuinely cares about the shopping experience,” said Towers.
“I am comforted and very proud that we have such a strong management group, who will ensure they are keeping up and have their finger on the pulse by building business plans and trials to test their customer market in a measured environment.”
In fact, one of the major successes that Towers has heralded from the past year is in relation to the development of a highly skilled team. With the help of a major supplier partner, Red Bottle successfully put six management staff through WSET 2 training, meaning all outlets are now managed by a WSET 2 qualified team member. Towers himself was meanwhile also recently recognised for his skills, named as co-Young Liquor Retailer of the Year at the 2022 Retail Drinks Industry Awards.
Despite concerns that “questionable” licensing applications are being made, and that changes to acceptance criteria could “become a diabolical can of worms”, Towers sees a more community-based model of liquor retail becoming the norm.
“The landscape appears to be evolving to see our stores become speciality retail liquor stores that are at the heart of the local ‘villages’ that they reside in,” he said.
“Understanding the local needs and wants of the local consumer base will see our stores evolve further to cater for the local demographics and cultural make up. Our stores will become trusted advisors to their local communities.”
Another significant achievement of the past year came from Red Bottle’s physical assets.
“We successfully opened our new distribution centre, a few minutes out of the CBD, that allows us to quickly replenish our stores with the higher volume faster moving lines and to improve our buying power with our key suppliers,” Towers says.
“This new site also presented an opportunity to restructure our corporate business, allowing us to meet the new landscape.”
This centre also better equipped Red Bottle to navigate the challenges of 2022,
allowing the group to buy better and manage through stock shortages while a lot of the retailer’s ‘corporate’ business remains on a work from home basis.
Further physical expansion is a main objective of Red Bottle over the new year.
“One of our first priorities for 2023 will be a successful opening of our 12th store – another conveniently located, premium wine and spirit outlet on Hunter Street in the CBD,” Towers says.
“While work is currently underway, we hope to be open in mid-February, just in time for what we expect will be a large influx of tourists with World Pride 2023.” ■
RETAIL Josh Towers General Manager Red Bottle GroupWith low ABV alcohol and cocktail options continuing to gain traction both in trade and with consumers, Regal Rogue has significantly increased its brand awareness in Australia.
Regal Rogue, the vermouth brand made using native Australian botanicals and organic wine from Orange, NSW, has been gaining significant traction as it seeks to raise the profile of the vermouth category.
The past 12 months have been a great success for Regal Rogue, which is being poured in more bars than ever before while also increasing its presence in the off-premise.
A highlight for the brand has been the success of its Lively White vermouth on the awards circuit, having placed first at the Australian Distilled Spirits awards two years running.
Regal Rogue also launched a limited edition amaro in collaboration with Starward in 2022, and Brand Development Manager, Lucille Rose, said it’s been exciting to release a new product to market.
Looking to the year ahead, Regal Rogue will continue to build awareness for both the brand, and the overall vermouth category, both in hospitality and retail.
“Finding new ways to support the ever-changing hospitality industry is definitely a big focus for us, as well as finding new ways to introduce the average consumer in retail to the category and versatility of vermouth, or as we refer to Regal Rogue, Australian wine aperitif,” says Rose.
“I think a challenge we’ll be faced with is competing against new Australian vermouth brands that have recently hit the market. However, in saying that, the more Australian-made vermouths out there, the more awareness of the category builds, which is ultimately a good thing.”
In 2023, Regal Rogue has a lot of consumer engagement platforms to look forward to, including ramping up its participation in festivals and consumer tastings, and collaborating with other amazing Australian liquor brands, to name a couple.
Vermouth has become an increasingly popular category in the last 12 months in Australia, and its popularity will continue to grow on the back of consumers chasing ‘better for you’ and lower ABV alternatives, both in bars and at home.
As Rose concluded: “I think all the time spent at home over the last couple of years has shown the average consumer how easy it is to make and experiment with cocktails at home, and so more people are looking to buy products that are versatile in cocktails. Vermouth really plays to these sentiments.” ■
Regal Rogue has seen a growing amount of Australians supporting local producers in the drinks space as of late.
“As an Australian brand, using Australian native botanicals, organic wine grown and produced in Orange, NSW, we’ve found that a lot of people have naturally gravitated towards our product in the last 12 months. I think a positive to come out of the pandemic has been everyone’s collective desire to support and hero Australian products and businesses,” Rose said.
“People are also more willing to experiment and buy new products, which has also helped. To be honest, I can’t see this changing anytime soon. I think we’ll continue to see a lot more Australian brands make waves in the market in the year ahead.”
Now with 20 stores across VIC and NSW, the banner from Paramount Liquor’s retail arm is planning for more growth in 2023.
After launching independent banner Sessions Liquor Group during the pandemic in 2020, the retail arm of the Paramount Liquor business has seen momentum start to build in earnest in the unique environment of 2022.
Looking back on the past year and the wider journey for Sessions so far, General Manager of Paramount Retail, Jon Fernandes, said it’s been an interesting ride.
“At Paramount, the retail team had our first full year of clear air to be able to mobilise the team, the Sessions brand and focus on store growth. The team worked extremely hard throughout the year connecting with many retailers in both VIC and NSW, identifying opportunities for owners to review their store and offer and potentially consider joining a marketing group that is more aligned to their store aspirations,” Fernandes said.
“At the end of 2022, the Sessions Liquor Group has proudly grown to 20 outlets across VIC and NSW with momentum growing. An expectation of continued growth and success in 2023 is high.”
As an emerging banner, the focus for Sessions in 2023 will naturally revolve around growing the membership base. In this goal, Fernandes explained that it was critically important for expansion to target like-minded retailers that are aligned to the philosophy of Sessions.
This philosophy is one that heroes a modern liquor retail environment, with a focus on meeting the latest and most important consumer trends and championing digital solutions, to maximise
Fernandes gave a personal thanks to the foundation retailers of Sessions and the suppliers that have partnered with Paramount Retail so far. Through these examples, the value of Sessions can be seen.
“At the precipice of all our focus points, we are driving sales and footfall to stores through products that excite our shoppers and ensure we maximise margins for our retailers,” Fernandes said.
“2023 is a very important year for Paramount Retail. We look forward to continuing the growth of Sessions and being a genuine option for retailers looking for something new in a marketing group.”
Jon Fernandes General Manager Paramount Retailthe margins of independent retailers.
Sessions is all about delivering excellent omnichannel experiences to customers, and so has gathered a dynamic and experienced digital marketing team to significantly increase brand awareness and drive consumers in-store. This will be amplified in 2023 by what Fernandes described as a bestin-class e-commerce system, particularly with the soon to be launched Sessions app.
“The emerging, and probably now established, trend in retail is connectivity. Being able to shop in-store and online is no longer the emerging trend but our shoppers’ expectation,” said Fernandes.
“We want to be able to offer more product knowledge and information, to be able to tell more of the stories around the products we sell. Being able to connect through loyalty, bespoke promotions and offers with a more one-on-one experience is important. The Sessions app is being designed to offer this and more.”
For the year ahead, the biggest trend that Fernandes has predicted is that of value - in uncertain economic times, consumers will be looking to not just spend less, but get more for their money. Sessions is well prepared to deliver on these customer desires.
“Shoppers are still looking more for products across all categories that excite and tell a story, but no doubt will be more aware of their spend and value perception in every basket,” Fernandes said.
“Sessions will continue to invest in strong programs and marketing around these trends as well as work with our supplier partners in delivering value.” ■
RETAILThirsty Camel VIC has been able to cycle a record year thanks to a number of enhancements to its operating model.
In 2021, Thirsty Camel Victoria outperformed expectations and experienced a record year. Last year was also excellent, with the independent Victorian banner maintaining that strong performance to repeat its record year. It builds a strong foundation for what may be a challenging retail landscape in 2023.
Adrian Moelands, General Manager of Thirsty Camel Victoria, said: “There have been several key growth drivers for Thirsty Camel Victoria across the past 12 months. Consumers have continued to support independent traders, and because our member stores give back to their local communities, a strong connection has been built.
“We’ve seen this connection lead to great results in one category in particular – there has been continued growth in the contemporary beer space, while classic and mainstream volumes have maintained their popularity.”
But it’s a tailored approach in Thirsty Camel Victoria’s operations that has seen the greatest success across the board. One such example is the continued enhancements to the group’s loyalty program, Hump Club.
“It’s had several upgrades over the past 12 months. First, we introduced in-store signup capability, so new customers can register and start earning rewards on the spot. For the network, this has seen our unique customer count and value increase three-fold,” Moelands said.
“The next improvement was the ability to add your Hump Club card to your digital wallet, which gives customers access to full transaction data at all times. Our
final development was a new app. All these enhancements allow for us to introduce more sophisticated campaigns that reward both our loyal customers and our member network.”
Another positive change has been the evolution of the Thirsty Camel Victoria model itself. It was once a ‘one size fits all’ approach, but now it can be tailored to include specific programs. This includes the launch of the REX program, which allows a tiered approach to range and execution, allowing all members to create excellence based on store capacity.
Thirsty Camel Victoria’s successes during 2022 were rounded out by strong interest in member engagement initiatives. They formed some of the group’s key highlights of the year, with the Port Douglas forum bringing together 243 members and suppliers, and the Vietnam conference and study tour boasting a delegation of 85 members and suppliers.
Over the next 12 months, one of the immediate goals of Thirsty Camel Victoria will be to continue to deliver the best for members as they prepare to navigate what could be some potentially difficult economic headwinds.
“Our core focus is to ensure we continue to provide our membership with the best marketing and promotional tools to ensure their success. Negotiating rising costs, not just in our industry, is extremely important and we have a program that allows all consumers to shop in our stores,” said Moelands.
“Of course, we’ll continue to monitor the elements of the economic climate, and keep a close eye on cost of living pressures and CPI and price rises. If these should lead to changes in consumer patterns and buying behaviour, Thirsty Camel Victoria has plans in place to help our members manage any uncertainty.
“All in all, we believe we’ve future proofed the business to play any hand 2023 can deal.” ■
For Top Shelf International, key Australian premium spirit brands are paying dividends, while a major new category provides momentum into 2023.
For Co-founder and Managing Director of Top Shelf International (TSI), Drew Fairchild, the new year is going to be an exciting one, especially in one particular category.
“As well as continuing to win new distribution and build our existing in-market brands, 2023 will be the year of Australian agave!” Fairchild said.
“By every measure, the agave spirit category is exploding and shows no sign of slowing over the next decade. Australia is already the third highest consumer of agave spirits in the world per capita, so I think there will be a real curiosity and appetite from the local market at launch and we can’t wait to share our story with them.”
This story is the one behind the Act of Treason brand, the highly anticipated result of TSI’s Australian agave project, which is primed to take advantage of the unique opportunity behind the emerging segment.
“We’d like to think that by the end of 2023, Act of Treason is starting to lead the way in educating local consumers on the possibilities of Australian agave,” Fairchild said.
“We are by no means claiming to be the only Australian agave distillers in the country, but the investment we have made at our farm on the Whitsundays Coast gives TSI the chance to lead the creation of a new category of spirits.”
While the early signs for Act of Treason have been positive, Fairchild says TSI is also extremely delighted by the performance of its established brands over the past year.
“We could not be more pleased with the progress of our Australian premium spirits portfolio. Both NED Whisky and Grainshaker Vodka are now being scaled nationally via Coles, in the independent network through Australian Liquor Marketers, and across an increasingly broad footprint of festivals, events and on-premise accounts,” Fairchild explained.
“They are taking share in highly competitive categories and earning recognition for their product quality, being named the Australian whisky and vodka brands of the year at the 2022 Melbourne International Spirits Competition.”
For Fairchild, this success is partly due to the growing taste
among Aussies for homegrown spirits, and will form a strong basis for international expansion in 2023.
“Now more than ever, consumers are choosing to drink locallyowned and produced spirits. Australian spirits brands are renowned around the world for their quality and the time is right to establish locally crafted spirits as a highly valuable contributor to our agricultural, tourism and exports industries,” he said.
“With Australian spirits also enjoying success in new and emerging markets thanks to an appetite for challenger spirits in key categories, we look forward to scaling our brands internationally over the coming 12 months as well as bringing Act of Treason to market.”
This is essentially the core mission of TSI, which Fairchild describes as a having a goal to “deliver a world-class premium spirits portfolio that has the ability to be scaled domestically and internationally in order to compete with the very best in the world.”
“We’re setting out to create a modern Australian spirits company with a portfolio of premium spirit brands that bottle up the best of the Aussie spirit. All of our brands are positioned in high growth spirits categories and celebrate Aussie ingenuity and character.
“Without getting ahead of ourselves, we believe our Australian spirits platform has the potential and credentials to be global success.” ■
Sustainability, quality, diversity, and innovation are at the forefront of priorities for Treasury Premium Brands into 2023 and beyond.
Since Treasury Premium Brands (TPB) became a standalone division of Treasury Wine Estates (TWE) in 2021, the business has focused on growing its innovationled premium and luxury portfolio in key markets, particularly Asia and EMEA, across a number of channels.
Peter Neilson, Managing Director of TPB, said a highlight over the past 12 months has been seeing the consumer appetite for more premium products and experiences continue to grow.
With consumer behaviour and consumption habits evolving, TPB will continue to focus on innovation and development in areas that reflect consumer demand for premiumisation and conscious consumption in the year ahead.
“Our diverse portfolio and winemaking heritage gives us a natural advantage to deliver great tasting premium wine in growing categories such as no alcohol and mid-strength offerings,” Neilson said.
One of the biggest global trends we’re seeing play out in Australia is moderation. The Wolf Blass Zero range, comprising a Brut Cuveé, Sauvignon Blanc, Shiraz and Rosé, has grown distribution rapidly since its October 2021 launch. Further to this, consumers who still want to enjoy a drink with less alcohol have been well catered for with last year’s launch of Squealing Pig midstrength Brut Cuveé, Pinot Grigio and Rosé.
TPB will continue to leverage its trusted brands to build credibility in this growing category segment with more launches to come.
“We had an incredibly successful year of launches in 2022, especially for Wolf Blass. Our award-winning Wolf Blass Zero range
TPB had a very successful year at the Australian Liquor Industry Awards (ALIA) in 2022, specifically in the off-premise, with a flurry of award wins and highly commended places for their brands across the wine categories.
“We’re honoured to be recognised for our efforts in off-premise sales this year,” said Neilson.
“There’s so much innovation in the industry, and it was humbling to take home wins and commendations for 19 Crimes, Squealing Pig, Pepperjack, and Penfolds in a high-calibre field of nominees and finalists –congratulations to everyone involved.”
has raised the bar in the no alcohol category, and we’re investing in R&D, new technology and capability to extend our offering in this emerging area,” said Neilson.
“My personal favourite has been the Pride labels we developed for Squealing Pig in collaboration with our TWE Pride employee resource group, which honour nine LGBTQIA+ community groups. They were created for a handful of venues during
Peter Neilson Managing Director Treasury Premium Brands ANZlast year’s Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, and this year they’re replacing all 750ml Squealing Pig Rosé labels nationally from mid-January to mid-March.”
One of the most important topics that Neilson believes the wine industry should continue to prioritise both in Australia and globally is sustainability.
“We’re serious about playing our part in a sustainable and low carbon future with a commitment to net zero emissions (scope one and two) by 2030. We’re already making progress towards a range of sustainable packaging and circular economy targets, such as increasing the recycled content of key pack components including cartons, labels, bottle sleeves and glass,” he said.
“But climate change and sustainability are complex areas, and to make a positive change we need more collaboration between the public and private sectors, within and between industries, and across regions.”
Neilson would also like to see the industry continuing to collaborate to shift the dial on inclusion, equity and diversity.
“While many organisations across a range of industries have targets in gender diversity for example, there’s more work to be done in areas of cultural diversity and LGBTQIA+ inclusion,” he continued.
“We know that it makes good business sense for the teams in our organisations to reflect the communities they’re part of, so I’d like to see more effort invested in attracting and celebrating diversity of all kinds – in our corporate office locations as well as in our production teams and regional areas.” ■
We can expect to see plenty of innovation and new product launches from Vanguard Luxury Brands in 2023.
Vanguard Luxury Brands is heading into 2023 on a high, following a stellar year with significant growth, new talent joining the team, and the title of On-Premise Supplier of the Year at the Australian Liquor Industry Awards 2022.
General Manager, Danny Connolly, says that this year will be no different, with some exciting new product launches on the horizon, and big plans to keep this momentum going.
He said: “2023 is a big year for us again in terms of innovation and new brands, and we need to take the learnings from last year to ensure we launch in the most disciplined ways.
“We have a few big product launches this year, so expect to see a lot around Fuji Japanese Whisky. We will be launching multiple expressions over 2023, and pleasingly, we have access to plenty of Japanese whisky.
“Later in the year we have a big product launch that we are extremely confident will be a huge success and disrupt a category, but I’ll keep my lips sealed on that one for now.”
In 2022, the launch of Four Pillars’ RTDs was the most successful innovation for Vanguard Luxury Brands, with Connolly crediting the team at Four Pillars for always taking “the art of craft to the next level”.
“We love when our teams come together on innovation - we’re confident Cameron Mackenzie at the distillery has put his heart and soul into making the best tasting liquid, coupled with a world class brand experience. NPD out of Healesville will continue to shine in 2023,” he says.
While Four Pillars was a huge growth driver for Vanguard Luxury Brands over the
Connolly said Vanguard Luxury Brands has seen consumer trends remain fairly consistent recently, with people still choosing to drink less but drink better. Convenience is a big factor for consumers, which is why RTDs are continuing to grow at double digit growth rates.
“People are genuinely more curious about spirits; premium and crafted spirits can be daunting for consumers, and this is why the on-premise channel is so critically important. Our hospitality friends, they are educators of consumers, they are the leaders of cocktail culture, and they continue to be the shining light in a great new drinks culture,” says Connolly.
past 12 months, the agave category has also continued to go from strength to strength with continual growth across the portfolio, lead by Batanga and Fortaleza. The group has also seen some amazing growth from its Australian craft portfolio, with standouts being The Gospel and Morris whiskies.
When it comes to opportunities for the year ahead, Connolly says the spirits industry has the means to be a shining light in terms of leading in sustainability, inclusion, and diversity.
“We have such a great platform to lead the way in this space. Four Pillars becoming the first fully carbon neutral distillery in Australia and then being recognised globally by the IWSC for the very first Green Spirits
Initiative was a huge accolade. We have many brands really focusing on this area, from Flor de Caña and the sustainable cocktail challenge, and Ilegal Mezcal with fully recycled glass,” Connolly said.
“We also need to recognise the importance of maintaining focus on inclusion and diversity, the spirits industry can really be the shining light in this space. We take pride in having a gender balanced team at Vanguard, with team members with wide and varying experiences.
“Then there is the Australian distilling industry - how do we all come together to put Australian spirits on the world map?
“We all need to be fiercely passionate about advocating for our industry.” ■
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An expansive product range and growing portfolio has seen Vintage House Wine & Spirits continue to thrive in an uneasy market.
Vintage House Wine & Spirits, the distribution business of the Angove family, has gone from strength to strength over the past 12 months, emerging from the pandemic in a stronger position than ever before.
Managing Director, Tim Boydell, says that while there was a shift towards premiumisation during the pandemic, a new shift back to some lower price offers and lower spends per shop has been observed over the past few months.
“Cost of living pressures are real and will continue to impact on consumers’ discretionary spending. Thankfully, our portfolio is spread across a vast price range from excellent quality entry level wines right the way through to super premium offerings in both wine and spirits,” he says.
According to Boydell, an opportunity exists to continue to grow the portfolio with regional specialties from both Australia and overseas. He highlights the success of reestablishing Champagne Duval Leroy in the Australian market and adding in several new offerings from Argentina, Finland, France, and Italy, with more internationals arriving in the coming months to offer ever-increasing choice and quality within the portfolio.
Over the past year, the company’s portfolio has seen significant growth in both domestic and imported brands, with a range spanning from affordable to premium. It has also seen some exciting product revamps and line extensions that have been exceptionally well received.
The team at the St Agnes Distillery
Boydell highlighted Stone’s and Blind Tiger as two priority brands for the company this year.
“The relaunching of Stone’s Ginger Beer and the launching of Blind Tiger Organic Gin and Premium Tonic were both successful in 2022 and will be focus areas for 2023 to continue to build sales and points of distribution,” he says.
has been busy with new product releases including the first ever Blind Tiger Organic Shiraz Gin and Blind Tiger Organic Gin and Premium Tonic premix cans, both of which have been a hit with customers and consumers.
Meanwhile, the St Agnes range of brandies continues to win award upon award, and Boydell says it is truly an honour to represent these iconic spirits in the Australian market.
The Angove organic and Angove McLaren Vale offerings continue to build
momentum in very competitive segments of the market, spurred along by a vast array of medals, awards and reviews. Hollick, Temple Bruer, Tulloch, and Water Wheel have continued to build on their regional success and the addition of Simon Tolley from the Adelaide Hills and Peninsula Panorama from the Mornington Peninsula have been fantastic new additions.
Finally, after launching the original Stone’s alcoholic ginger beer 14 years ago, the past year saw a total revamp of both product and packaging and a massive promotional investment, which was designed to help the brand toward reclaiming the title of Australia’s leading alcoholic ginger beer.
“We want to thank our loyal customers who stood by us during the COVID pandemic and have worked with us to emerge stronger than ever over the past year. Without these win-win partnerships we would all be in very different situation right now,” concluded Boydell. ■
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To make the smartest business decisions, it’s important to have the most up to date and useful insights from across the market. In this section, a range of associations, data organisations and researchers reveal key predictions and things to watch in the retail industry in 2023, while analysing some of the most important reflections of 2022.
ABAC complaints, determinations and breaches dropped to pre-pandemic levels in 2022 ahead of the launch of a new Code this year.
It seems that 2022 saw a return to prepandemic conditions, from the point of view of the Alcohol Beverages Advertising Code (ABAC).
After considerable year on year increases over the past four years, 2022 saw a significant decline in ABAC complaints, determinations and breaches. Over the year, the ABAC Adjudication Panel received 126 complaints and has made or yet to make 63 determinations, 27 of which were upheld, 35 dismissed and one currently pending decision.
Harry Jenkins AO, Chair of the ABAC Management Committee, revealed the themes he noticed in the past year’s results.
“The largest source of ABAC Code complaints and also breaches this year was strong or evident appeal to minors, particularly through imagery relatable to minors and/or confusion with confectionery or soft drink. This is consistently the most commonly raised standard in the ABAC Code, reflecting community concern in relation to this issue. Another common source for complaints is the excessive, rapid or irresponsible consumption of alcohol. To date, all alcohol marketers that were the subject of complaints in 2022 have either removed or agreed to modify material that was found to breach ABAC standards. This is very encouraging,” Jenkins said.
“The most common alcohol marketing media source for complaints and determinations continues to be digital marketing, followed by alcohol packaging.”
2022 marked the first year with a decrease in the percentage of complaints and determinations relating to digital media, after a steady upward trend for a number of years.
In 2023, ABAC will conclude the review of its code, a valuable opportunity for ABAC to engage with the industry and adapt to evolving community expectations as well as industry and marketing developments. This update will also provide clarity about alcohol styled beverages of less than 0.5 per cent ABV.
Jenkins said: “When ABAC launches its new Code in 2023, it is important that alcohol marketers familiarise themselves with the new standards through training opportunities that will be offered and update their systems and procedures to reflect changes in the ABAC Responsible Alcohol Marketing standards.”
Harry Jenkins AO Chair ABAC
In 2022, ABAC commissioned compliance monitoring for the first time, with a focus on social media. This highlighted where educational initiatives should be focused and prompted a range of actions to help companies be more compliant.
In recent years, ABAC has upheld a stronger focus on industry education, particularly through the free online training course and placement compliance checklists.
“Since its launch in March 2021, over 670 alcohol marketers have completed and passed the ABAC online training course. These resources are invaluable in assisting alcohol marketers to understand the Code standards and how to achieve responsibility in alcohol marketing and packaging,” Jenkins said.
Keep educated and up to date on the Code and how to stay compliant via the ABAC website, which includes a wide range of freely available helpful guides and resources, as well as the pre-vetting service.
www.ABAC.org.au
Another key way for alcohol marketers to make sure they uphold the Code is by using the ABAC Pre-vetting Service, which checks marketing material for compliance before it is published. The service is available to both ABAC signatories and non-signatories, and all alcohol producers, distributors and retailers are encouraged to use it.
In 2022, ABAC considered 3,397 prevetting requests, with 590 rejected and therefore not entering the market.
“For a number of years we have been seeing increasing levels of pre-vetting, which is a signal that the industry takes ABAC compliance and responsible marketing seriously by choosing to have their communications independently vetted before going to market,” Jenkins said.
“Pre-vetting remains the easiest and most efficient way for marketers to ensure their promotions are responsible before hitting the marketplace.” ■
Paul McLeay, Chief Executive of Australian Distillers, reflects on a big year for the Australian spirits industry.
2022 celebrated the 30 year anniversary since Bill Lark, the ‘Godfather’ of Australian whisky, successfully lobbied to change the laws to allow craft distilling in Tasmania for the first time in 154 years.
It is unlikely that Bill and the founding members of the Australian Distillers Association could have imagined the growth the industry has experienced in the years that followed.
There are now more than 400 distilleries located throughout Australia - from Darwin to Davenport and from the Margaret River to Manly - with a further 100 distilleries in development.
But despite such explosive growth, the policy settings for the spirits industry have only been tinkered with over the last 100 years. At Australian Distillers, we are of the view that there should be a wide-ranging review into the industry. More than two thirds of Australian distilleries are located in regional areas,
with the industry employing more than 5,000 Australians through jobs in direct manufacturing and production.
While we have made significant progress, we remain hampered by the third highest tax in the world, which is stifling significant increases in production and investment.
That’s why the most significant challenge we face as a category is this unfair tax, which is not sustainable nor conducive to our continued growth. As the industry develops, our focus remains on innovation and premium offerings. We are also committed to doing this in a safe, smart and sustainable way.
New Australian Distillers Association President, Holly Klintworth, recently met with Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, to discuss the growth of the Australian spirits industry. Holly brings a wealth of knowledge to the role, being a second generation distiller from the Mornington
Author: Paul McLeay Chief Executive Australian
Peninsula and the owner of Bass & Flinders Distillery, which is home to award winning gin, brandy and liqueurs.
Australian Distillers is looking forward to a strong 2023, full of progress. One thing we’re looking forward to is the 2023 Australian Distillers Annual Conference, which will be held in Melbourne. We expect 500 craft distillers to come together at this conference to focus on safety, training and sustainable growth. We have a passionate industry that supports each other and is committed to maintaining the integrity of our premium product as we persuade more domestic consumers to enjoy our uniquely Australian artisanal products and we continue to develop our export capacity.
2023 will also see the maturation of some exciting rum to hit the market, especially from Queensland. The innovation and variety of some of the Queensland rum to enter the domestic market next year will be a delight for consumers. ■
There are many ways that the wider retail industry can work together for the better in 2023, according to Activate Group CEO, Keith Quigg.
As we continue to move further away from the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic and their effects, businesses in and around Australian retailers will continue to face challenges. This is something that has been seen throughout 2022 by Keith Quigg, CEO of Activate Group Australia.
In 2022, while there have been numerous approaches to help people resettle into the ‘new normal’, Quigg said that members have agreed on the importance of Activate Group’s mission – to provide them a united voice.
“The past year has been very successful for Activate Group Australia. Having prepared a strategic plan for the next three years the group now has a blueprint to capitalise on the work done in 2022… all agree that asserting merchandising teams as part of the essential services has been a highlight and a success,” Quigg said.
The organisation has seen a massive lift in engagement with the retail industry through its podcasts, direct communications and Activate Industry Report, connecting those from across all retail industry sectors. Of this Quigg said: “Collaboration has been the key!”
For the year ahead, this collaboration will continue to be a core part of the organisation’s activities, both to grow the membership base and also increase value for existing members by providing them with wider communication avenues.
“One of the necessary plans of action is to highlight the work done by service teams and individuals from across our membership and to promote their achievements across the industry. Development of people, even as a group, is a high priority,” Quigg said.
That professional development goal is also behind the expansion of Activate Group’s Joe Berry Award, now in its 37th season, which locates exceptionally talented people and supports their growth.
The shifting challenges of a new year Quigg said that like any organisation, Activate Group is expecting challenges around membership growth in the year ahead, particularly with the current pressures taking the focus of businesses around the country. But he is confident that this is also an opportunity, if these businesses can see “that the solidarity of numbers creates a stronger voice.”
In terms of the challenges that will impact these members in 2023, Quigg said everyone will have the same problem – finding staff.
“There is a great need for a collaborative effort among retail groups to develop an incentive program for young students and undecided people to come to retail. This
industry provides more career opportunities than any other but that message has no clarity. Activate will lead the push for the return of the long-forgotten cadetships to show young talent how much opportunity exists,” Quigg said.
Collaboration will be one of the important things that the industry can use to address in-house labour shortages too.
“Collaborative use of an outsourced service company can give both chain and independent liquor stores relief from the pressures on the existing staff. This collaboration can be no more expensive than inhouse staff but provide the help when it is needed the most,” Quigg explained.
“Activate represents the major service providers who all have a vested interest in the success of the industry. As omnichannel and online trading increases, the need for a rethink on how a retail store operates is a must. By engaging with a key service provider, even for a strategy session, will be a bonus to the forward-thinking retailer.” ■
Warwick Billings, President of Cider Australia, describes the growing opportunities for local cider and how retailers can make the most of this in the year ahead.
“It’s not yet business as usual but things are looking up,” says Warwick Billings, President of Cider Australia, when reflecting on the past 12 months for our local cider industry.
The main takeaway for the organisation in 2022 was that “everything is harder”, with the pressure on Australian cider producers continuing to grow more intense. On the plus side though, the industry is in a good place with consumers.
“The desire to support local has definitely grown through COVID times and I predict this will continue throughout 2023. As people have discovered their range and depth, many have stayed with new-found craft drinks,” Billings said.
Throughout this year, Cider Australia sees an opportunity for retailers to boost this interest further, educating consumers on the great things about local cider and the importance of Cider Australia’s Trust Mark.
“Local cider makers and local retailers need to develop a plan to educate consumers about cider and roll this out. People still know remarkably little about cider and retailers are in the best position to educate and guide customers on their choices,” Billings said.
“Australian craft ciders increasingly bear Cider Australia’s 100% Australian Grown Trust Mark, showing that the apples used are grown in Australia. In 2022, 62 per cent of the entries received in the Australian Cider Awards had the Trust Mark on the label so momentum is growing.
“Australian Cider Day (Saturday 11 March 2023) is a great opportunity for cider makers and retailers to work together to promote cider with tasting events and special offers. One of our priorities in the coming year is to support the industry with in-store educational materials about 100 per cent Australian grown cider.”
Cider Australia has highlighted a range of key elements that retailers can highlight in-store in 2023 to show the potential for consumers, especially as local producers innovate in new ways, including with lower and zero alcohol ciders.
Billings said: “Craft cider suits the evolving and more conscientious market as it is lower in alcohol than wine, made from Australian grown fruit and is gluten free. Cider also suits the Australian climate and palate, so it’s a great choice of beverage.”
For resources and information about Australian cider, check out the Australian Cider Guide at www.cideraustralia.org.au/resources/australiancider-guide ■
Warwick Billings President Cider AustraliaBillings said one of the biggest reliefs of 2022 was Cider Australia being able to restart annual events.
“We ran our annual cider conference in Batlow, New South Wales with a hybrid format, bringing in virtual speakers from the United States, France and Japan,” he said.
“We successfully held not one, but two ‘annual’ cider shows thanks to covid delaying the 2021 Australian Cider Awards to January 2022. The judging of the 2021 show was difficult and without all the fun bits including our gala presentation dinner. The 2022 Awards judging held last November was a leap in the right direction – we did not have to wear masks 24/7, we were able to have a presentation dinner in the beautiful Adelaide Hills, and we were able to bring cider consultant Yann Gilles over from France as our guest international judge. It was great to have Yann’s perspective on Australian ciders and be able to show him some Australian cider regions.”
After introducing several new campaigns in 2022, DrinkWise is looking to expand the scope of its communication in 2023.
2022 was another successful year for DrinkWise, that saw the non-profit continue to expand its program with new campaigns.
DrinkWise CEO, Simon Strahan, gave one example and said: “A major highlight was the launch of the campaign ‘It’s okay to say nay’, targeted at parents.”
This initiative targets the parents of teenagers and responds to a shift in the data around this demographic.
“Despite the significant reduction in underage drinking over the past 15 years, of those underage that are consuming alcohol, an increasing proportion are getting the alcohol from their parents,” Strahan said.
“We know underage drinking can lead to consumption problems later in life, which makes this such an important campaign.”
The immediate focus for DrinkWise in 2023 will be to “accelerate shifts in social norms around consumption.”
As Strahan explains, reaching this target will require a holistic approach to communication, involving external organisations, sporting codes and academics.
“Our ability to implement a whole-ofcommunity approach to education and embed that within existing systems, such as alcohol e-commerce, is on the agenda for the year ahead,” he said.
“The major opportunity for DrinkWise is to maintain an innovative approach to alcohol education.
“New partnerships continue to emerge and we will continue to capitalise on them to
ensure educational moderation messaging is reaching Australian drinkers.”
But this task is not a simple one, and Strahan has identified telling the story of Australia’s shift in alcohol consumption habits as key.
“The ongoing challenge is to reinforce that the culture has changed and that the average Australian has a very different (and better) relationship with alcohol than the average Australian of 30 years ago,” he said.
It’s no secret that the popularity of no and low alcohol (NOLO) products has exploded in recent years – but Strahan believes the penetration of this category across the industry can deepen, with positive results.
“With DrinkWise research revealing around half of all consumers of alcohol wanting to cut back on their consumption, an opportunity exists for more zero and lowerstrength alcohol products to be introduced
Simon Strahan CEO DrinkWise
across all sectors,” Strahan comments.
“These alternatives are referenced in the World Health Organisation Global Alcohol Action Plan 2022-2030 and have the potential to assist those drinking at risky levels to cut back on their consumption and reinforce the concepts of choice and responsibility.”
Finally, Strahan took the opportunity to call upon the alcohol industry to stand with DrinkWise and join the growing network of businesses that are supporting a more responsible approach to alcohol consumption.
“Three additional market-leading companies have joined as DrinkWise contributors in 2022, providing crucial funding for credible, evidence-based alcohol education programs,” Strahan said.
“DrinkWise encourages other marketleading producers who want to play a role in the continuation of a safer drinking culture in Australia to get in touch.” ■
A key takeaway from the Euromonitor International Global Consumer Trends 2023 Report is that 75 per cent of consumers did not plan to increase overall spending in 2023 (28 per cent are actively planning to decrease spending), with saving money and budgeting described as top of mind for purchasers.
Forty-six per cent of respondents told Euromonitor they planned to increase saving money in 2023, with only 10 per cent saying they would decrease their saving.
Methods for making this saving are varied - 21 per cent of consumers said they planned to increase their purchases of private labels or store brands, while 61 per cent said their shopping habits in this regard would remain unchanged. Additionally, 31 per cent of consumers stated they would increase their visits to discount stores over the next 12 months.
Euromonitor warned that major brands cannot rely upon consumer fidelity either, stating: “Affordability and bargains often precede brand loyalty.”
And for retailers, over half (56 per cent) of those professionals surveyed said that their company had increased prices of products or services as a response to inflation. Two-thirds said the rising cost of raw materials had an extensive impact on their company in 2022.
Similarly, ‘buy now, pay later’ (BNPL) solutions continue to gain momentum, with Euromonitor reporting that these services reached a global lending value of USD$156 billion in 2022. The analysts also predict that BNPL will increase in importance for businesses as they seek to offer ‘budgeteers’ a means to purchase. Nevertheless, 56 per cent of retail professionals said their company does not offer BNPL options, with Euromonitor identifying this gap as an unmet potential for the industry.
There is still an opportunity in convenience, with 44 per cent of consumers saying they are willing to spend money to save time. Yet, bricks and mortar establishments retain their appeal, with a third of survey respondents saying they like
to browse in stores even if they don’t need to buy anything. Retailers should also consider the impulse purchaser, with nearly one fifth (19 per cent) of those surveyed saying they often make purchases unexpectedly.
Ethical concerns are also maintaining their position as a key motivator for consumers, particularly with gender equality.
“Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) should sit at the centre of core values,” Euromonitor’s report reads.
According to the report, 59 per cent of female consumers believed their choices can make a difference in the world, while 46 per cent said they preferred to take charge and lead. Worldwide, there has been an increase in female disposable income too (albeit set against a larger increase in male spending power), predicted to reach over USD$8,000 in 2024.
Gen Z is shown to place particular importance on social issues, with 30 per cent of this cohort saying they make purchase decisions based on brands’ social and political attitudes, while 24 per cent boycott brands that do not share their personal beliefs. ■
of Growth Scope.
Author: Andrew Nowicki Director Growth Scope
We often hear manufacturers and retailers outline their strategy to target the premium consumer, and therefore capture a higher average price for their products while also recruiting consumers into more premium offerings. This strategy is very successful for some, and less so for others.
It is very true, there are some consumers who always buy premium, so striving to make your brand part of their repertoire is the holy grail for some. The challenge, however, is that these consumers are few and far between, and targeting them incurs some of the most expensive marketing spend, making the barriers to success very high.
The reality is that the premium consumer is a niche, and in contrast, the mass market for premium offers is far more attainable and far less costly to target. Nearly all consumers have specific occasions on which they choose to ‘premiumise’ their consumption. In fact, research by IRI Asia Pacific in 2021 found that the consumption occasion is the number one factor that would prompt drinkers to pay more for the alcoholic beverages they regularly purchase. By understanding which occasions are more likely to attract premium product preferences, you can quicky identify where the opportunities to capture more value are.
At Growth Scope, we segment the market into 13 distinct consumption occasions. The chart on this page depicts these occasions, whether each over or under indexes in terms of commanding ‘premium’ product preferences, and the relative price paid per serve of alcohol consumed. Data is based on the 12 months up to 30 September 2022, looking at all off-premise occasions and their associated relative price paid.
Parents socialising over index most on having premium needs, and also command one of the highest price premiums per unit of consumption. In fact, social occasions in general command a greater incidence of premium needs in comparison to solo or with partner only consumption. That is, with the exception of Generation Z who are the least likely cohort to have premium needs when socialising,
and instead are slightly more likely to premiumise on lower tempo more intimate occasions.
Also important to note is that due to the influence of promotional pricing and cross category repertoires, premium needs do not always result in the highest actual price being paid. Parents drinking together over index on having premium needs, but command one of the lowest price premiums per serve.
Nuances of course exist by category, sub-category, gender and premise of consumption and this article has barely scratched the surface of the premiumisation opportunity that can be uncovered through Growth Scope. Instead it simply serves to highlight that the ability to capture the greatest share of value from the coveted premiumisation opportunity exists within the individual occasion rather than the individual consumer or shopper themselves.
At Growth Scope we continually measure how each drink was consumed and purchased, covering all categories, occasions, premises, channels (both physical and online), and retail banners. Our clients are able to leverage Growth Scope insights to aide in capturing not only the price premium that different consumption occasions can generate, but also the market share gains that come from understanding and targeting the most important consumer and shopper needs. Find out more at: www.growthscope.com.au ■
The death of the physical store has been greatly exaggerated. Whilst the pandemic opened the digital commerce floodgates, there has been some return to physical store shopping.
Recent Ipsos data indicates that shoppers are spending a significant portion of their shopping time in-store. Alcohol has one of the highest in-store time and purchase levels of categories Ipsos tracks, with between 73 per cent of shopping tasks (researching, buying, browsing) and 74 per cent of purchases, depending on the category, happening in physical stores.
But this is not to say that everything has returned to ‘normal’.
Some reports indicate that digital commerce sales will overtake physical store sales globally as soon as 2024. It would be easy to assume that the role of the physical store is shrinking in the face of the emergence and scaling of a number of types of digital commerce.
In fact, the reverse is true, as the roles the physical store plays in a consumer’s commerce ecosystem of channels, touchpoints, retailers and brands is expanding in some ways.
Historically the role of the physical store revolved around exploration, display,
demonstration, transaction and perhaps some after-sales servicing. Over the past decade the experiential role of stores particularly has increased. The pandemic underscored both the experiential opportunities (AR, VR, metaverse) and limitations (tangibility, sensoriality, human connection) of digital commerce types. During and since the pandemic the role of physical stores in fulfilling digitally placed orders has also accelerated markedly. Whilst from a retailer’s or brand’s point of view the physical store serves both sales and marketing goals, from a shopper’s standpoint the store serves a number of functional, experiential and human purposes. The functional, experiential and human roles of the physical store have all increased.
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated innovations in delivery and collection in new ways including curbside and direct-toboot pickup, online order fulfilment from physical stores using third party shoppers, and ‘dark stores’ for quick commerce ondemand delivery service providers.
Then there is the world of returns, exchanges and refunds, where shoppers now expect to be able to return a product bought online to a physical store. Across the world, retailers of all kinds are responding to this need.
Obviously this increased logistical
functionality requires operational improvements across a number of elements including signage and point of sale materials for navigation; staff and space allocations and locations for in-store and curbside pickup; and space, staff and processes for product returns, exchanges and refills.
The more inherently emotional customer experience elements – those of status, enjoyment and belonging – can be best leveraged in the in-store experience to enhance relationships, particularly through the human connection with store staff.
Physical stores have the capability to be immersive, entertaining and sensorial in a way that digital means such as AR and VR cannot fully deliver. This means activating all five senses, particularly touch, smell and taste (as sight and sound can be replicated digitally).
Personalisation talks to belonging and status by using customers’ names and knowing their sales histories. Providing store staff with both product and customer information and history enables them to add value to the customer’s experience.
Customisation of the product also talks to belonging and status. Then there are the ‘flagship’ experiential permanent stores driven by brands which have been on the rise for the past decade.
Brands and retailers of the liquor industry have yet to truly capitalise on immersive experiences in the same way, such as transporting people via VR experiences to cellar doors, vineyards, distilleries and offering virtual brewery tours. This begs the question – licensing issues notwithstanding – why brands haven’t done this yet given they have experience in cellar doors already. Liquor is behind other sectors in the in-store experiential aspect – tastings currently are merely demonstration, not immersive.
Functionally, providing experiences includes moving away from one-size-fitsall to personalisation and geo-targeting; providing a range and experience tailored to the local demographics.
Consumers visit physical stores for the human aspect. Only 25 per cent of shoppers currently turn to chatbots for help, and this is decreasing. People want to talk to a real human in real life, in a real environment. Not only can store staff recommend specific brands, they act as advisors.
Convenience, the dominant motivation behind most online shopping (six in 10 people shop online for convenience, versus only three in 10 for physical stores), does not necessarily equate to humanity - in fact, it may be the
reverse. Convenience is the result of removing friction points that are not necessarily traffic-driving themselves. Ease, speed and simplicity are not channel differentiators; any commerce channel, whether digital or physical, is expected to provide a simple and easy experience. Consumers have come to expect seamless commerce experiences. Convenience is now merely the cost of entry, rather than the end game.
Fluid channels means changing store metrics, and possibly the model
Digital and physical commerce channels are no longer competing but merging, creating the need to redesign and measure customer journeys across channels based on their needs. Simple examples include the ability to access product information in-store via QR codes on stock, or the ability to buy online whilst in the physical store.
This fluidity, where shoppers move between channels and experiences whether online or offline and often don’t differentiate between them, means organisations need to think about how the physical store can support and incorporate digital commerce channels, and vice versa.
Given the multifaceted roles of the store, we have collectively moved beyond the fundamentals of sales per square metre, and display and price compliance measurement, although such metrics still matter as the ‘baseline’. The expanded role of the physical store means the expanded need for metrics and success measures to match the store’s new roles and objectives. What is the relative importance of each of volume, revenue, profit, trial? How will sales volume and fulfilment be tracked, including the store’s role as the gateway to a digital sale? With investing in designing store experiences comes the need to measure customer experience and demonstrate impact on customer retention, advocacy, and share of spend.
It also may mean reassessing store
network footprints based around the cost/ benefit equation. How can the physical space pay for itself, if some or much of it becomes experiential (and the capital spend per outlet increase accordingly) rather than transactional, or if it serves as a gateway to a digital sale? How and where would the sale be attributed? We are already seeing retailers in other sectors ‘right size’ their store network footprints with fewer but bigger flagship stores, or shift to specific locations such as local high streets rather than city centres.
Then there is ongoing challenge of seamless handoffs and a consistent experience between touchpoints in consumers’ commerce ecosystems, whether physical or digital. How can organisations build capability in a physical store to acknowledge the touchpoints and conversations a shopper has already had (likely online) with the organisation, in order to personalise recommendations?
In a world with a plethora of commerce channels, where the lines between shopping IRL and URL are blurred, and in which shopping has become an activity not a place, physical stores need to provide more reasons to shop in-person than the convenience of shopping at home. Physical stores must continue to evolve roles, formats, experiences and operations to meet consumers’ commerce ecosystem needs.
The liquor sector is not currently capitalising on the opportunities that expanded store roles represent. Whilst there have been some moves in the logistics area with basics such as click and collect, experiential and human roles are not being tapped into as they are in other retail sectors.
The physical store is morphing as consumer behaviours change. Are you ready to evolve with it? ■
References:
1. Ipsos Essentials, Wave 66 November 2022, AU sample n=500.
Read an expanded version of this story via The Shout: bit.ly/3J5Bw5H
While supporting the needs of its members, the association is readying for a big year of events, awards, education and collaboration.
Although 2022 saw the easing of many pandemic restrictions in Australia, it still brought a unique set of challenges for our local brewers, according to Kylie Lethbridge, CEO of the Independent Brewers Association (IBA). She said that while many people thought a magic wand would make us all forget about the struggles of 2020 and 2021, last year was very much focused on recovery and continued survival.
For the association itself, one of the heartbreaking issues of 2022 was the impact on the IBA events calendar, with the cancellation of Good Beer Week and BrewCon, yet again for the third time.
And while these large scale events couldn’t go ahead, Lethbridge was pleased to see so much else on the agenda on a smaller and more localised level. Having started in the IBA top job at the very start of the pandemic, 2022 gave some of the first opportunities for Lethbridge to visit members nationwide, at events such as the Western Australian Brewers Association Conference, as well as beer festivals, networking events, meetups and one on one meetings, all of which will ramp up again in 2023.
“Members really enjoy coming together and hearing from the IBA, so having the team visit brewery members around the nation has been extremely valuable,” Lethbridge said.
Lethbridge said things are looking up for the year ahead, noting: “Fingers crossed, we’re looking forward to a more positive and stress-free 2023.”
With a 10 year roadmap now in place, the IBA is confident in meeting its members’ needs with some really exciting activities planned and a continued supply of what it hopes will be highly valuable resources.
Some predicted highlights of the year ahead will be the highly anticipated return of Good Beer Week and BrewCon, which are set to be better than ever in 2023
after their hiatus. The Independent Beer Awards (known as the Indies) will also be back this year after exponential growth, with entries doubling between 2020 and 2022.
Another positive focus of the year ahead will be around consumer engagement to raise awareness of independent craft beer, which Lethbridge says is now seen in the realm of “good quality beer in general” rather than something that people are unsure to try.
IBA will drive this interest in 2023 with a number of activities, including its first ever direct to consumer education campaign, to boost recognition of the Independent Seal.
“Research we did in 2021 via focus groups all over the country gave us fascinating insights into the consumer’s mind… it very much showed that Australians want to support our locals, we want to know that what we’re drinking is actually contributing to helping a fellow Aussie. That was reinforced during the pandemic and hopefully will continue,” Lethbridge said.
“By going direct to the consumer we aim to raise awareness of what it means to be independent. Ideally, this will drive demand and hopefully, more people purchasing beer that displays the Independent Seal,” Lethbridge said. ■
Kylie Lethbridge CEO Independent Brewers AssociationCrossindustry collaboration
Lethbridge gave a shout out to everyone in this year’s National Liquor News Industry Leaders Forum, noting the collaboration needed across the industry to address mutual challenges.
“We’re all in this together, we’re all facing similar issues, so I wish all the industry the best of luck,” Lethbridge said.
“We feel like we’re part of an industry that can work more cohesively - our legislative issues and our taxation framework are shared and are still tough.”
The way people interact with retail brands is evolving at break-neck speed. As manufacturers and retailers transition to a new age of customer experience, the focus must now be firmly on connecting and converting consumers in a wide and growing range of shopping options.
But at the same time, we’re navigating new postpandemic disruptions led by soaring inflation and the fast-rising cost of living. And the record high cost of doing business is passing on price increases to valuecraving consumers.
So how can you win with shoppers just as we start to recover from the last bout of turbulence?
In fact, there’s a lot to be leveraged from COVID. It delivered a super rapid acceleration of data, media and technology advances, which when converged and leveraged, effectively provide invaluable insights to best understand the values that different shoppers seek today and into the future. The impact? The ability to build and deliver the right customer experience every time on every platform, no matter the headwinds.
IRI discusses why customer data is key to connecting experience and disruption to win with shoppers.
Shifting shopping behaviours are testing loyalty and values – how will you respond? Shopper behaviours can change rapidly – who can forget the great toilet paper frenzy of 2020?! But alongside the COVID turbulence came massive e-commerce growth and striking changes in consumption patterns – trends that will remain embedded, shaped and reinforced by new consumer expectations. Yet not all pandemic innovations will survive as people respond to the cost of living crisis the best they can.
In fact, how we will respond will change swiftly as household budgets are squeezed tighter and price becomes even more intrinsic to shopping decisions. Loyalty will be tested. Values will be tested too. Shoppers are increasingly switching brands and retailers as FMCG prices continue to hike. And with this, elasticity will return. Brands once immune to price sensitivity could see product volumes drop off a cliff. To avoid that outcome, brands and retailers must plan for this likely scenario and be prepared to respond quickly.
We expect a lag in inflation to affect retail spending into 2023 as its true impact is revealed. But as the gap between the producer price index (PPI) and the consumer price index (CPI) grows, retailers will soon have no choice but to close it. This will require you to prepare by:
• Monitoring volume and being ready to switch tactics
• Investing in innovation now
• Focusing on assortment and considering pack alterations
• Being ready to promote products you know you can supply
• Targeting your shoppers based on price sensitivity
It is no doubt the era of the consumer – but one size does not fit all. Omnichannel shoppers are highly valuable to retailers, spending more than double what in-store only and online only customers buy.
Online shoppers are also more loyal to retailers, so it’s critical to capture their tendency to spend more share of wallet with a single retailer. But with the role of the store changing, it’s all about applying an integrated lens over how the same shopper uses each channel on their path to purchase.
More than ever, you need to know how people feel and how they’ll shop in the moment – and that’s all about the experience. Consumers are open to ordering directly from you and sharing their data if it will result in a better shopping experience or reward.
To connect in this current environment, utilising data will help you:
• Manage the social impact of inflation
• Invest in the tech reshaping retail
• Tap into your customer’s emotional intelligence
• Balance value with experience
• Prioritise your purpose and build communities that resonate.
We’ve reached a new age in customer experience, where to be successful through disruption, it’s imperative to understand shifting shopper behaviours and stay on top of the retail experience evolution by utilising the latest in data, technology and media. But fine tuning the individual experience will matter more than ever.
Success also includes ensuring that shoppers can use their loyalty privileges and enjoy seamless service and fulfilment, no matter where or how they purchase. Augmented decision making will enable you to move faster than the speed of change. It will only be possible by integrating collective vision, technology and democratised and personalised access to insights for business users.
So, with inflation expected to peak in 2023 – what’s your long term strategy? Disruption is not going away and its critical to support your customers through it.
This inflationary environment gives you an opportunity to get organised to springboard towards 2024. Test and trial new tech, new innovations and new launches now. Build loyalty while showing you care during inflation. Remember, the consumer is now in the driver’s seat, and you need to meet them where they are. Smart data utilisation will amplify your understanding of and dialogue with them. The future is about using technology in ways that create more time and value – for your company and your customers. That future is already here. Are you ready? ■
“The future is about using technology in ways that create more time and value – for your company and your customers. That future is already here. Are you ready?”
There are some great things already on the cards for the Liquor Stores Association of WA this year, as it advocates for the best for the state’s independent liquor retailers.
With a review of the WA Liquor Act on the cards for 2023, this year will be an important one for the Liquor Stores Association of Western Australia (LSA WA), as it continues to support and advocate for its membership of independent liquor retailers across the state.
One strong positive out of the year already is in the LSA WA’s recently announced joint venture with Bendigo Bank and Tyro Eftpos Solutions, which will help members save on merchant transaction fees. Coming into effect as of 1 February, the exclusive deal took over a year of negotiations to come to fruition.
Peter Peck, CEO of LSA WA, said the initial reaction to this partnership has been impressive, with many people commenting that it seemed too good to be true.
“There is no financial benefit whatsoever for the LSA. The deal that we negotiated, we negotiated for our members, and so it is our members who will benefit financially, not us,” Peck said.
“We’re here for the members. We’re not for profit, we’re not here to make money - we’re here to supply services. The board decided that instead of putting a hand in to get money out of the pockets of everyone else, we’d rather help everyone’s business become more and more profitable.”
Achieving such a great outcome for members was made possible by the LSA WA’s focus on communication, core to how the association can maintain an array of incredibly strong relationships.
“It’s about communication, but it’s got to be two-way communication. It’s easy to talk at someone, but if you’re not listening, you
While Peck said the liquor industry in each Australian state or territory is “an entirely different kettle of fish,” it can be beneficial to look to each other for potential improvements.
“There are things that happen on the east coast that we learn from, and hopefully there are things we do here that the east can learn from,” Peck said.
This is why LSA WA also maintains constructive communication channels with other companies and organisations outside of its membership remit of independent liquor retailers, for example, with Endeavour Group.
won’t be able to find pathways that work for everyone,” Peck said.
This approach has proven useful in LSA WA’s relationship with the WA government, which Peck said is “majorly important”, particularly in the past year when there was a change of Minister.
“The government’s got a job to do, and
it’s not an easy job. We don’t want to become part of their problem, but be part of the solution, and that seems to be happening at the moment,” he said.
Other focuses for 2023 include a continued look into the state of the Banned Drinkers Register (BDR) in WA. Peck said has this has seen some really good results recently, as it benefits the industry and community with a targeted approach towards minimising alcohol-related harm.
“We’ll be looking at ways to improve and enhance the BDR, and would envisage that it’s going to expand into different areas, which we see only as a positive,” Peck said.
LSA WA has also hit the drawing board for its 2023 WA Liquor Industry Awards, with some potential interesting changes to look out for.
Finally, LSA WA will continue to support its corporate partners as much as possible in 2023. Peck said that without these sponsors, membership fees would be five times the amount they are now, and it’s important that members can understand and appreciate this. ■
here’s to the summer of love
Value and innovation continue to grow for New Zealand Wine, according to industry expert, Natalie Grace.
2022 was an incredible year for New Zealand’s wine industry. Although volume has been at decreased levels since the small vintage of 2021, an increase in value has created some strong numbers in the last year, as described by industry expert Natalie Grace, Founder of Perfectly Rieslingable.
“From a sales value perspective, the New Zealand industry performed incredibly well in 2022, with exports for the year to September at an all time high of $2.02 billion, up six per cent from the previous year. This value increase is due to a rise in value per litre, with volume having decreased four per cent from a year ago,” Grace said.
“Continued strong export growth is forecast for the coming months, and export volumes that fell steadily following the small 2021 vintage, have now started to rebound with increased volumes available from vintage 2022.”
This growth in exports, on a global scale, will be positively impacted in 2023 thanks to the free trade agreements with the UK and European Union, and the removal of travel restrictions.
“With borders now open allowing accessibility to these and other export markets, producers are moving forward with confidence in seeking new opportunities and reconnecting in person with established partners,” said Grace.
New Zealand’s wine industry has always been known for its innovation in grape and wine science, and Grace notes this has continued with several new initiatives launched in 2022.
One such initiative is the Sauvignon Blanc Improvement Programme, led by the Bragato Research Institute, which works to sequence the DNA of New Zealand’s iconic Sauvignon Blanc grape, looking for patterns of natural mutation that could help vineyards respond to potential future challenges.
“The programme aims to make New Zealand’s wine industry more resilient to a changing climate and other threats by identifying desirable traits among variants, while maintaining the characteristic New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc wine flavour and aroma,” explained Grace.
Globally, wine companies have also been using technology including blockchain and NFTs on labels to protect the integrity of their wines. One initiative from New Zealand that takes this a step further comes from
forensic science company Oritain, alongside wine producer Pyramid Valley, which have teamed up to allow consumers to trace their wine from soil to glass via an Oritain Trustmark. This verifies the signature of each parcel of land on each wine bottle, providing confirmation that what is in the bottle is exactly what left the winery.
“The technology ensures ultra-transparency from the producer, guaranteeing the wine is true to source while maintaining confidence the supply chain has not delivered a fraudulent wine, or that there’s been no modifications at any point in the supply chain,” said Grace.
Initiatives like this will be ones to watch from New Zealand winemakers in the year ahead, as Grace predicts increasing consumer demand for information and transparency. One area that consumers will seek more information about in 2023 is relating to sustainability, regenerative practices and winemaking additions (or lack thereof), as the desire for knowledge about what we consume continues.
Grace said the New Zealand wine industry is well placed to meet such demand, with widespread commitment to sustainability through programs such as Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand.
“I think we will see more producers sharing these credentials more widely, whether this is through visual cues on the bottles themselves, or story-telling through digital channels. The pathway for communication between brands and the end consumer is much narrower than it once was, and being a small and nimble industry allows us to make the most of that,” Grace concluded. ■
NielsenIQ and CGA research reviews how shopper habits are being shaped by cost of living increases and impacting the on- and off-premise market in various ways.
Author: Marco Silva Director, Customer Success NielsenIQ
After two years of social disruption, 2022 was the year Australians were finally able to enjoy social gatherings and out of home entertainment as they had prior to the pandemic. However, whilst inflationary pressures and a higher cost of living may well impact this behaviour in the near future, this doesn’t have to spell doom and gloom for the liquor industry.
The Australian consumer, as with many other markets around the world, is facing the highest cost of living increases in recent years. Pressure from higher prices for basic spending, housing, grocery and transportation is inevitably leading consumers to make tough choices. Higher average prices have been the major growth driver for FMCG since early 2022, and although consumers are increasingly looking for promotions, these are becoming harder to find in most categories where retailers and manufacturers are reducing promotional activity. Two thirds of the top
30 categories are being promoted less YoY, including fresh fruits and vegetables, fresh meat, and fresh seafood, to name a few.
Consumers have also been looking into alternative ways to save: 50 per cent are saying that they have been cooking more at home, 42 per cent said they are minimising waste, and 43 per cent said they are spending less on clothing and grooming.
Coupled with the fact that many Australians are still working in a remote or hybrid environment, all of this would inevitably result in more meals prepared at home. As a reference, in October 2022, there were 42 per cent more consumers expecting to spend more on groceries over the next 12 months, and 25 per cent of consumers are expecting to spend less in out of home dining/entertainment.
These numbers suggest that we might expect to see more pressure on the on-premise channel, but potentially some positive impacts in off-premise,
which aligns with trends seen during recessions, such as what happened in the US during the GFC.
However, consumers would still need to indulge, which could lead to us to the ‘hourglass effect’ in some categories, where both the value and the premium segments grow at the expense of mainstream, as consumers look for a more premium product to replace an occasion where they would normally consume out of home.
Looking at the latest liquor trends for the last 12 months, we see that the average price per unit of off-premise major categories such as beer/cider and wine has increased over and above inflationary levels (10.8 per cent and 9.7 per cent MAT until 06/11 versus YA). Within this channel, most categories are facing declines versus YA, mostly driven by a negative impact on the average number of occasions. In 2021, we have been cycling through a series of lockdowns, resulting in social disruption where out of home entertainment options were being restricted thus skewing liquor occasions in favour of off-premise spend.
Despite some consumers looking to the off-premise to buy premium products instead of consuming out
of home, there continues to be an element of pent-up demand for on-premise visits, especially for important or milestone celebratory occasions. Although the frequency of on-premise visits has been declining, overall average spend has not, suggesting consumers are focusing their spend on a couple of big occasions per month.
The online channel for liquor still has some room to catch up with online for other FMCG categories, although the online channel still grew penetration in beer/cider and wine. Across all liquor categories, bulk buying continues to become more prevalent online, as evidenced by higher units per occasion in online shopping and consumers likely wanting to maximise their delivery fees. Therefore, retailers and brands alike need to truly understand their shopper profile to be at the centre of those bigger purchasing occasions.
As we move into 2023, with the competition for share of wallet as fierce as ever, having a clear channel strategy for both your on- and off-premise Australian liquor buyer that is aligned with your customer segmentation is critical to succeed. ■
Silva Director, Customer Success NielsenIQ
Marco
“Retailers and brands alike need to truly understand their shopper profile to be at the centre of bigger purchasing occasions.”
With significant reviews to liquor legislation slated to occur in states around Australia, Retail Drinks is anticipating a busy year of advocating for the industry.
After a strong year of positive policy advocacy outcomes in 2022, Retail Drinks Australia is anticipating a crowded legislative agenda ahead this year, impacting the liquor retail industry nationwide.
Retail Drinks CEO, Michael Waters, said: “There are planned reviews of Liquor Acts and Regulations in NSW, VIC, the ACT and the NT; Drug & Alcohol Strategy reviews in WA, TAS and Federally; a review of the Container Deposit Scheme in SA; as well as the formal adoption and roll-out of the Banned Drinker Register in WA, following their trials in the Pilbara, Kimberley and Goldfields since late 2020.”
The online space is one area in particular that Waters expects will attract a large proportion of regulatory attention, which will be a key focus for Retail Drinks in 2023, as it builds on its world-leading, industry-first Code of Conduct.
“Across the nation, the leading item for governments’ agenda is e-commerce regulation so online alcohol sale and delivery continues to be a priority for Retail Drinks,” he said.
“Unfortunately, some Regulators think retail is the greatest contributor to alcohol-related harms. Some policy makers believe there are heightened risks associated with online sales and sameday delivery.
“We will continue to strengthen our Online Alcohol Sale & Delivery Code of Conduct, improve Signatory compliance and encourage its use by Regulators.”
In 2023, Retail Drinks will also begin a new cycle of communicating with the industry for medium-term planning, which will help develop the next three-year strategic plan. With its clearly defined advocacy strategy, Waters said Retail Drinks will build a refreshed policy and advocacy framework.
As is the case for any year, the next 12 months will see Retail Drinks and its members continue to be committed to earning community endorsement to operate and grow responsibly and sustainably.
Waters said: “Our industry’s long-term success relies on maintaining our social licence to operate.
“Increasing cross-border government collaboration amongst the states and territories means policy experiments in one place are more likely to spread. Therefore, action on core issues is necessary, even in small jurisdictions.
“We are demonstrating strong industry leadership, building momentum and delivering value where it counts. We are enhancing your freedom to retail responsibly.”
Like most industries, liquor retailers are likely to see a tightened labour market over the next 12 months. This is an area where Retail Drinks will look to assist and guide members, although Waters concedes: “There’s no easy fix to this issue.”
Retail Drinks does offer support to members on all HR-related issues though, through its dedicated in-house HR Advisor which provides free and bespoke advice and assistance on all people and culture matters, at all stages of the employment journey.
Enhancing the ability to retain staff is one method of navigating the current issue businesses face, and Retail Drinks is looking to provide members with further crucial guidance here.
“We recognise that many independent liquor retailers have minimal infrastructure, resources and training support in their network, and need assistance in the development of their staff. They value the importance of having access to cost-effective training yet getting them to allocate the time and resources towards training has always been a challenge,” Waters said.
“There is an ongoing need to train young people to build career paths and to retain staff who often consider their employment as a short-term job, rather than a long-term career.
“Retail Drinks has recently commenced our Industry Training project and the re-development of the 10 online learning courses originally developed by our former national body ALSA. Once completed, members – owners, managers and staff will be able to access them completely free of charge as an ongoing member benefit.” ■
Roy Morgan data shows that Australian alcohol consumption was up during the pandemic, with some categories’ performance continuing to see impacts.
New data from Roy Morgan’s Alcohol Consumption Report shows the proportion of Australians who drink alcohol was at 67.8 per cent in the 12 months to September 2022, up by 1.6 percentage points since the pre-pandemic period in the 12 months to December 2020 (66.2 per cent).
The number of Australians drinking wine, beer and spirits reached pandemic highs during 2021 as Australians were stuck at home for extended periods during the many lockdowns that different parts of the country experienced. However, consumption of RTDs (ready to drink) has continued to increase and is now at a record high.
In the year to September 2022, a total of 13,615,000 Australians (67.8 per cent) aged 18+ consumed alcohol in an average four-week period compared to 13,021,000 (66.2 per cent) in the year to December 2019 – an increase of well over 500,000 Australians.
The standout alcoholic beverages over the course of the pandemic have been RTDs, for which consumption increased from 2,101,000 Australians
(10.7 per cent) pre-pandemic up to 3,695,000 (18.4 per cent) – a massive increase during the pandemic of over 1.5 million people.
Roy Morgan data shows the most popular alcohol is wine, which has stretched its lead during the pandemic with the number of Australians drinking wine increasing from 8,065,000 (41.0 per cent) prepandemic to 8,909,000 (44.4 per cent) in the 12 months to September 2022 – an increase of almost 900,000 people.
Also enjoying a ‘pandemic boost’ has been the spirits category with 5,824,000 (29.0 per cent) Australians now drinking spirits, up from 5,465,000 (27.8 per cent) – an increase of over 350,000.
In contrast to RTDs, wine and spirits, the major category that hasn’t been able to arrest a long-term decline is the beer category. Although consumption of beer did increase during the early stages of the pandemic, this momentum has not been sustained.
Now just under a third of Australians, 6,636,000 (33.0 per cent) consume beer, down significantly from
“Exciting new alcoholic products can make an almost immediate impact on the marketplace.”
7,353,000 (37.4 per cent) who did so in the 12 months to December 2019 just before the pandemic struck and turned the world upside down during much of the past three years.
The most significant driver of the increase in consumption of RTDs over the last three years is the spike in popularity of alcoholic or hard seltzers – which launched in the Australian market just before the pandemic began in November 2019.
A ‘waterfall chart’ of consumption of alcoholic or hard-seltzers by age group shows the new drink is most popular among younger Australians, with nearly one in five aged 18-24 (19.1 per cent) and over one in five aged 25-34 (22.1 per cent) drinking an alcoholic or hard seltzer in the 12 months to September 2022.
Alcoholic or hard seltzers are also popular with people aged 3549 with more than one in 10 Australians aged 35-49 (10.4 per cent) and almost one in 10 people aged in their 40s (9.5 per cent) drinking an alcoholic or hard seltzer in the 12 months to September 2022.
The popularity of the new drink, which has grown in prominence quickly over the last three years to already capture over one in five of the key 18-34 year old market, shows that exciting new alcoholic products can make an almost immediate impact on the marketplace.
These findings are from the Roy Morgan Single Source survey, Australia’s most trusted and comprehensive consumer survey, derived from in-depth interviews with over 60,000 Australians each year.
Find the full Roy Morgan Alcohol Consumption Report at: https:// store.roymorgan.com/products/australia/fmcg/alcohol/currency ■
Source: Roy Morgan Single Source Australia, Jan–Dec 2019, n=15,197. Oct. 2021 – Sep. 2022, n=63,680. Base: Australians aged 18+.
Proportion of Australians who consumed ‘alcoholic or hard seltzers’ in the 12 months to September 2022 – by age
Source: Roy Morgan Single Source Australia, October 2021 – September 2022, n=63,680. Base: Australians aged 18+.
Proportion of Australians aged 18+ who consume alcohol in an average four-week period.
If you’ve spent much time out in the field in recent months, you’ve probably noticed one thing in particular: change.
Change in categories, change in range, change in space allocations.
Not to mention the change you can’t see at the shelf edge, as cost pressures continue to impact the economics of the liquor store and the products that fill it.
And with these changes, more and more people in the industry are realising just how important it is to incorporate and embed shopper behaviours into their strategy.
Retailers are crying out for a more rounded, less introspective vision from their suppliers. One that blends key shopper insights with keen consumer knowledge and results in a more effective approach to the big challenges the market faces.
So, what are those big challenges from a shopper’s point of view? Our annual survey of more than 20,000 liquor shoppers is always on hand to give you the clues you need.
Few men took Shania Twain all that seriously when she listed her complaints against them in the late 90s. In 2023, we should all sit up and pay attention to what
female shoppers are telling us about the off-premise liquor channel.
Specifically, they’re not that impressed either, or not as impressed as they were.
Go back to 2019 and you’ll find it was female shoppers who registered higher overall satisfaction (which is the average of satisfaction ratings on all 16 measures tracked by Shopper Intelligence, weighted by their importance) in the channel when compared to males.
Today, the situation is inverted and the score from females has been dropping since 2020.
Males now record a score of 67 per cent, compared with 65 per cent among females. Doesn’t look catastrophic on paper, but the direction of travel does make this worth exploring in more detail.
The precise root of their dissatisfaction differs category by category. In wine, females have greater concerns about product authenticity and availability than their male counterparts. In spirits on the other hand, the biggest satisfaction gaps lie in areas like the enjoyment of the shopping experience and availability of different pack types to suit their needs.
The bottom line is this is a meaningful and, I’d argue, concerning trend. Only cider sees females outscoring males on overall satisfaction. So, wherever you are in the store, there’s something here to think about.
I heard an industry leader say last year: “Gen Z are the future for us.”
If that’s the case, there’s more to do with this cohort, because our research shows they’re the least satisfied age group in off-premise liquor. 18 to 24 year olds are much less content than the average liquor shopper, with overall satisfaction of just 59 per cent. In wine, that drop to 55 per cent, but perhaps more worryingly in RTD categories, the figure is only 53 per cent.
This is really eye-opening considering the array of sweeter flavour profile drinks winning space right now and the marketing dollars behind them.
Now, this is where shopper insights come to the fore and shed light on what’s going on. When they shop, these guys are in fact pretty happy with the products they’re buying. New product innovations are important to them and broadly speaking, they feel they’re getting what they want.
What’s not floating their boat is some of the practical aspects of liquor shopping. Layouts of both stores and shelves, plus perceptions around availability, are causing headaches.
Why? Because younger shoppers are far more likely to buy for a specific occasion and for immediate consumption. One in two buys with a particular occasion in mind and eight in 10 intend to consume the same day. For context, only one in three over 55s plan to drink what they buy on the day they buy it.
In general, the traditional way stores are set up and navigated just doesn’t serve those needs as well as they could. Time for some deep thought if our industry is serious about evolving and putting the young shopper at its core.
I want to finish on a positive by calling out the huge opportunity for our industry in the reduced alcohol space, if we can get it right. I say that because we know conclusively that this shopper is not the same as the traditional liquor shopper. Their shopping motivations and behaviours are different, so they demand a distinct strategy.
As an example, their most critical importance factor is not price, as it is for traditional alcohol
shoppers. In fact, it is the ability to identify value at shelf.
That’s not all. Innovation, information, promotions and pre-store comms are all much more critical if you want to engage the non-alcoholic shopper.
Businesses this year will need to ask how seriously they want to take the non-alcoholic opportunity. The answer to that will determine how much time they invest in understanding this shopper.
These are just three of the areas of change Shopper Intelligence has identified in the last twelve months.
If you want to partner more effectively and show you can adapt to change, now’s the time to act.
Don’t cut and paste, don’t go with black and white strategies. Get under the skin of the specific dynamics, behaviours and motivators that drive shoppers in your category. That’s one way to make change work for you this year. ■
For help making the most positive changes in your business in 2023, contact David Shukri at Shopper Intelligence: https://shopperintelligence.com.au/
Australia’s spirits industry enters the new year in a positive mood, ready to meet the challenge of ongoing economic uncertainty while catering to the public’s increasingly sophisticated drinking habits.
I have been heartened by the wonderful success stories emerging from our sector in the past 12 months.
Of course, we have just witnessed an interesting year in Federal politics. It is still a rarity in Australia for a sitting government to be voted from office. I think most pundits would agree the Albanese Government has enjoyed a strong start to its tenure with the Prime Minister receiving strong approval ratings.
The Federal Parliament too has changed markedly with a record number of independent and non-aligned MPs sitting on the crossbench. With change comes opportunity, and I am firmly of the view that we can activate reform for our sector in the Parliamentary term.
That is why we feel the time is right for a broad review into our industry to investigate our contribution to the economy, and to identify barriers and opportunities for our continued growth.
We will work with the Federal Parliament to ensure they understand the challenges facing our industry. We will be constant and unerring in delivering a firm message: that with modest and sensible changes to our policy settings, we can unleash the real potential of our sector.
As we start the new year with renewed energy to progress our policy agenda, we also brace for the next CPI increase on 1
February, which will see the spirits excise rate edge dangerously closer to $100 per litre of alcohol.
Our message to Canberra is unambiguous: Australia’s most exciting industry is being held back by one of the world’s most punitive tax systems. It is unsustainable and a handbrake on our industry’s growth and innovation.
Excise reform will deliver long-term economic benefits to the nation. It will be positive news for the bigger global brands, allowing them to increase their investments in Australia, through advanced manufacturing and by sourcing greater amounts of local product. It will also help smaller and niche operations grow their businesses so that they can compete on the world stage.
There is no doubt we will face challenges in the year ahead. The economy remains a challenge for many Australians and our sector is not immune. But equally we know that our best days lie ahead. Changing community attitudes towards alcohol means our sector is well placed to cater to adults who enjoy great taste and variety, in moderation to ensure maximum enjoyment.
I am optimistic about our future. Our alliance with the Australian Distillers has been a great success and together, united in our determination, we will ensure our concerns are heard where it matters.
Let’s make 2023 a year of real change so that our spirits industry can continue to grow and innovate, for the benefit of all. ■
Have you ever wondered how your favourite brands and products appear on the liquor store shelf in different stores? Why are they located in that aisle? Why do some brands have more space on the shelf than others?
Behind the scenes, there is an enormous amount of planning taking place to ensure that supply is plentiful and regularly replenished. Failing to plan is planning to fail. This golden rule underpins the end to end process, and this is where analysis and actionable insight power every step in the supply chain from new product inception to replenishment, driving brand awareness and increasing the velocity of sales.
At Strikeforce, there are multiple touchpoints that continuously deliver brands to ‘the last mile’ in the most efficient and effective manner. Throughout the planning and activation phases, data-driven insight is interwoven into the decision-making process, providing reference points to establish the best course of action. The journey begins with our people. Like many other businesses, a major challenge is staff recruitment and retention during a period of historically low unemployment. Our People & Culture team is constantly onboarding new and exciting talent to complement our experienced and engaging field activation team.
Our Space Planning team, once notified by the client that they are involved in an upcoming range review, begins the briefing process to work out where the item is going to sit on the shelf. The briefing is absolutely critical to align and understand the opportunity and how it can be exploited.
The objective is to navigate the myriad of SKUs that are already available for sale and logically apportion the right amount of space to the right products in the right location. From there, final planograms are designed and delivered.
Shelf presence, positioning and optimal exposure to shoppers are the major benefits delivered,
influenced by category insight to ensure growth drivers are identified and actioned.
Once the client has been informed by the retailer that their proposal has been accepted, our Vendor Replenishment Team clicks into gear. Test orders are raised to ensure the correct item is set up. Firm orders are placed for arrival into the retailer DC. Orders are then placed and dispatched to stores. Once initial orders are filled, ongoing replenishment kicks in. Promotional programs are monitored, and orders are adjusted for expected uplift in sales.
Analysis of demand at launch, ongoing sales trajectory anticipating uplifts when on promotion and forecasting ensure adequate supply in-store and on the shelf.
In parallel, our Planning Team is in full swing determining where we are going and what we are doing. A major focus is placed
on where we go, how often we call, the type of activation and speed to market to build the plan and frame up the picture of success.
The optimal plan includes logistical considerations - POS distribution, credits, tools of the trade, and where required training and assessment of team members before they set foot in the store. Other factors considered are scale, costeffectiveness, scalability, and agreeing on the store universe leads to an optimised call file.
Analysing the target shopper from a demographic perspective shines a light on what the ideal store universe looks like and which priority stores to target, ensuring an ideal launch platform for the brand.
Once these steps have been taken the Activation Team comes to the fore. The focus is on getting the brand to the right locations and right stores at the right time
into as many shoppers’ baskets as possible.
Then, once the brand has been included in the retailer’s range as part of the new planogram as efficiently as possible, the focus switches to maintenance and mechanics associated with promotional activations for the duration of time the brand is ranged.
Our brand activators are constantly updating store and activation status through our proprietary Merx software to continually allows us to monitor progress. As information flows from the field, the data is captured and packaged ready to be dispersed throughout the business to assess and measure the performance of each activation.
The data drives continuous improvement and increases return on investment for every dollar.
Analysis and insight into the length of call and frequency help determine what the optimal call cycle should be and, if required, corrective action taken to meet and exceed objectives.
Finally, once the brand is available and has full distribution, our Extravert Team engages with shoppers to amplify brand presence and highlight the type of product, benefits and attributes and, wherever possible, get samples of the brand into shoppers’ hands.
While campaign objectives can vary, generally it’s about getting the brand or item into the consciousness of the shopper before they reach the fixture and make their purchase decision.
Sampling and two-way communication are a feature of this phase in the brand launch journey. A key benefit is elevated awareness amongst shoppers almost ‘turbocharging’ sales during the critical launch period.
Analysis of shopper demographics points activity to the right stores to engage with the largest possible pool of target shoppers.
In summary, brands need dedicated people passionate about creating positive outcomes. Strikeforce is a people business and connecting our collective efforts through data and actionable insight is core to ongoing success for clients and their brands. ■
After 2022 brought solid progress in some key markets, Wine Australia is hoping to build more success for local winemakers in the year ahead.
For Wine Australia’s CEO, Dr Martin Cole, the past 12 months marked a year of solid communication with the Australian wine industry.
“I’ve spent a lot of 2022 on the road, visiting wine regions all around the country to talk to growers and winemakers in person. These meetings gave me an opportunity to really listen to what the sector wants to see from Wine Australia,” Dr Cole said.
“We want to ensure that the Australian grape and wine sector is as profitable and resilient as possible.”
As Dr Cole outlines, it’s no secret that the country’s grapegrowers and winemakers have faced some of their most significant challenges in recent years.
“The sharp reduction in exports to mainland China following the imposition of significant deposit tariffs, the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic (including the continuing impact of the global freight challenges), rising inflation and economic headwinds, capacity issues following a record vintage, and a wet start to the growing current season have combined to make it a difficult time for our sector,” Dr Cole said.
However, he feels that there are also many positives to take from what has been a year of adaption for the industry.
“This is an incredibly resilient business and there are some positives happening as well. In export markets alone, many markets this year saw an increase in consumers’ perception of the quality of Australian wine, with the long-term trend significantly increasing,” Dr Cole continued.
“And we’re seeing excellent growth in exports to North America and Southeast Asia.”
An ever-present drinks trend of the last few years has been premiumisation, and Wine Australia expects this to continue into 2023 in the wine sector.
“We have seen some rapid change in consumer preferences towards more awareness of what they buy, where they buy it from and how it is made,” Dr Cole explained.
“Most notably, we’re seeing a trend around the globe towards consumers drinking less but trading up. There’s a big interest in lighter reds and refreshment, and these trends are what’s driving our strategy towards premiumisation across all price points.”
Dr Martin Cole CEO Wine AustraliaThe CEO is also anticipating this trend to impact the look of wines in the new year, as drinkers expect a more premium experience from every aspect of a product.
“There is also increasing consumer expectations around packaging and visual engagement that is developing, which will be an interesting area to watch,” Dr Cole said.
For Wine Australia itself, environmental, social and governance (ESG) is set to be a significant focus in 2023, continuing the progress made in this space over the last year.
“The critical ESG initiative, for example, has started seeing additional value for the sector and will increase both buy-in and impact on these projects and investments,” Dr Cole said, reflecting on 2022.
And when asked to outline the major focuses of Wine Australia over the next 12 months, Dr Cole highlighted the “strengthening of our focus on ESG and the commencement of the development of the Emissions Reduction Roadmap to provide more support for the sector’s sustainability goals.”
“The sector has confirmed to us the urgency in investing in sustainability, which we are doing on a number of levels including the Emissions Reduction Roadmap for the sector, an ESG business plan for the sector, the Sustainable Winegrowing Australia program and various R&D projects to meet our needs into the future.
“Sustainability will continue to shape our conversations and innovations,” Dr Cole concluded. ■
Based on data collected through Snooper (Wiser’s crowdsourcing platform) over the past four years in over 1,000 stores across Australia, we have collected the best practices on how to maximise the ROI on your off-location during key selling periods.
More than one in six in-store brand purchases are made when the brand is offlocated and displays can lead to up to 13 per cent revenue increase. In the US, marketers spend about $60 billion per year on in-store merchandising and shopper marketing with an increase of eight to 10 per cent each year since 2008.
The rising battle for floor space might mean that brands could lose visibility despite significant investment in POS material. Therefore, we always recommend tracking share of display (rather than an absolute amount of POSM) as a key success metric when measuring the ROI on off-location strategies and designing marketing plans.
Moreover, it’s important to look at it from the shopper’s occasion perspective and not
only focus on your direct competitors, as categories may be competing for the same occasion. For instance, Wiser’s Share of Visibility data collected across hundreds of national liquor stores during the end of August/September 2022 period indicated that for the Father’s Day occasion, wine category displays achieved five times the amount of visibility to spirits, despite the investments made by some spirits players in branded display stands tailored to the occasion.
Based on our latest shopper insights survey, wine seems to be over-indexing for this occasion, as 67 per cent of shoppers indicated that they would buy spirits as a gift for Father’s Day, when asked about their preferred alcohol category. Note that this trend has been recurring over recent years as our 2019 reports showed that wine made up 53 per cent of displays but only 28 per cent share of purchases.
When looking at 2023, the winning brands will be those forecasting their display investments to achieve their fair share of offlocation space (rather than looking solely at their display penetration). Those considering the cross-category dynamics during key selling weeks based on past trends (and
therefore accounting for occasion-based indirect competition), will have higher chances of increasing their visibility in-store and catching shoppers’ attention.
Theming can help you win, especially during under-exploited key selling weeks
Whilst location remained the number one lever for impactful displays for our shoppers, with size of display second, theming is third throughout the year. But theming is ranked as significantly more important during the festive season than at other times of the year, as shoppers look for inspiration, with or without a price discount.
However, despite the impact of in-store theatre on purchase intent, it appears that only a minority of brands consider theming as a core element of their off-location strategy. In 2019, fewer than one in five brands themed their displays festively, and this dropped even further in the following years. Last year, most festive initiatives were actually led by retailers through dedicated gifting stations.
Some key seasonal events seem to be under-exploited and could be further leveraged by brands to increase sales. For
example, branded themed spring racing displays, particularly for sparkling wine and Champagne, were largely missing in action altogether over the past four years.
There are also other key seasonal events that seem to have untapped potential. Easter celebrations are for instance anchored in Australians’ routines. According to our shopper insights survey conducted in 2021, 85 per cent of shoppers interviewed were planning to celebrate Easter. Our report also indicated opportunities, with most seasonal displays being cross-category retailer initiatives, and the number of off-located displays decreasing by nearly 30 per cent between the festive season and Easter. Our shopper community found no single branded displays for Easter despite 35 per cent of our respondents suggesting they would be likely to choose an Easter liquor gift from a bottle shop.
In 2022, we also found that footy finals, although being considered as an occasion associated to the liquor category, seemed to be a missed opportunity both from an absolute number of displays and from a theming perspective. The average number of display stands by store was halved versus Father’s Day (also happening in September), which indicates that there is still an opportunity to play during this key sporting event.
Regarding in-store theatre, the only manufacturer who seemed to have visibly invested for this occasion was CUB, which had impressive activations promoting their beer portfolio through specific prizes to win for the occasion.
Retailers themselves weren’t found to be specifically promoting the event: while national banners referred to Father’s Day on gondola ends and off-located displays in early September, they did not particularly highlight footy finals for the remainder of the month. For instance, BWS only changed their message on gondola ends from ‘last minute gifts for Father’s Day’ to a ‘sharing’ theme (“Sip these with friends”), without specifically referring to footy finals.
Liquor players should look at best practices in grocery as inspiration on how to best leverage these key selling periods. Occasion-based marketing can be learned from supermarkets, where brands manage to create relevance through theming even in the absence of direct category association with a given seasonal event. For example, Coca-Cola has been playing with impressive themed displays yearon-year for both footy finals and Easter. Another interesting example is illustrated by Wonder: the bakery brand managed to highlight footy finals in 2020 as part of its activation strategy through a consumer promotion to win the “ultimate footy fan experience”.
In short, there are several occasions on which liquor brands can tap into to gain instore real estate and further leverage sales. Make yourself relevant during each key selling event and catch shoppers’ attention through themed displays as consumers are looking for fun, large and creative displays while shopping. It will be interesting to see how these trends will evolve with the Rugby World Cup almost overlapping with occasions like Father’s Day, footy finals and spring races in 2023.
Snooper, part of Wiser’s Commerce Execution Suite for brands, retailers, brokers and distributors, features a ‘key selling weeks toolkit’, with three complementary data series: Share of Visibility, Share of Catalogue and Instore Shopper research. Key seasonal events are covered in the reports and requests can be made by contacting Snooper direct. ■
Sources:
The Wine Industry Suppliers Association (WISA) has strived to become a more inclusive and engaging body after its refresh in 2022.
The Wine Industry Suppliers Association (WISA) had an exciting year in 2022, rebooting the organisation with refreshed branding, new logo and name adjustment to become a more inclusive and engaging body.
Shirley Fraser, outgoing Executive Officer for WISA, said this was one of numerous highlights for the association this year, noting great positives also coming from WISA’s events and partnerships.
“Some of the highlights were WineTech 2022 (June) in partnership with AWITC/ Expertise Events, Wine Industry IMPACT Conference in Bendigo (October) in partnership with Global Victoria/Wine Victoria, Wine Industry IMPACT Awards (September) and the Awards Gala Dinner (November) with 410 wine industry coming together,” Fraser said.
“We partnered with the Wine Industry Mentor Program, FOMENT tech program and attended events in regions. We were also part of Australian Grape & Wine committees, connecting discussion for supply chain in the carbon emissions reduction roadmap work of Wine Australia and introducing solutions for those facing challenging times.”
Many of these events and partnerships saw record rates of interest, and in some cases were the first iteration since COVID began. They were complemented by numerous other travel engagements for WISA, as members came together at industry events, workshops and meet ups around the country.
At the time of writing, WISA is looking to locate and onboard a new custodian, with Fraser set to move on in late January after leading the refresh of the association since
June 2021. Until a new Executive Officer begins, the WISA leadership team, ratified at the recent AGM, will be at the helm.
Fraser said: “2023 sees Tim Stead as Chair, Liz Schoen as Deputy, Nathalie Taquet as Treasurer and Amy Bishop as Secretary to lead the new group which also includes Daniel Polson, Robin Shaw, Steven Scott, Eric Wilkes and new members Ron van Buuren and Adrian Fiocchini.”
Across this year as a whole, WISA will be focused on supporting the wine industry through issues such as flooding and wet spring conditions that will create challenging vintage influences, and surplus stocks that will strain the local market.
“There is no market for substandard wine so making the best version of the grapes this vintage may need some assistance from inputs, equipment, ideas and tech. WISA encourages members to participate, engage and innovate as we collectively work together on topics including how to approach efficiency, staff shortages, sustainability, tech automation, alternative approaches and more,” Fraser said.
WISA is the only association in wine that
Shirley Fraser Outgoing Executive Officer Wine Industry
focuses on supplier businesses, which enables it to understand the value chain and drive the need for connecting and supporting all links in this chain.
“Appreciating and understanding the whole value chain provides empathy and foresight into what is coming. Suppliers include retail and distribution, right from grape to glass. Any business is welcomed into WISA,” said Fraser.
Fraser also encouraged the retail industry to get involved with WISA, either by entering the WIIA Award for distribution and logistics, or by becoming aware of what supply chain pressures could flow down to the retail level.
“Ask questions, engage and share new ideas as what may help you could be in development but not being adopted if not seen as in demand. The more whole-ofsector we can be, the more relevant and effective our businesses selling something (grapes, wine, inputs, packaging, services, tech, tourism, marketing) will be,” she said.
“Wine styles, packaging formats, storytelling, efficiency in distribution, sustainability, and trends, affect retail success and options.” ■
We take a look back at some of the defining stories of the industry in 2022.
BoozeBud has sought to consolidate its position as a leading online liquor retailer with the acquisition of established wine e-commerce retailer, Get Wines Direct.
Boozebud said that the merger with Get Wines Direct would create a business with over 200,000 active customers.
CEO and Co-Founder of BoozeBud, Alex Gale, believes the purchase will be mutually beneficial, saying: “Get Wines Direct has an exceptional team that has built a business with a well established customer base and a broad set of retail capabilities.
“BoozeBud will benefit from bringing Get Wines Direct knowledge and experience into its business, and Get Wines will benefit from BoozeBud’s digital, marketing, and operational strengths.”
Similarly, John Harris, the Head of Get Wines Direct said: “Get Wines Direct have been looking to align with another like-minded online retailer to form one of the country’s largest online liquor retailers.”
Get Wines Direct was established in 2001 and has sold over 40m bottles of wine.
Asahi Beverages has unveiled its latest sustainability agenda, which builds upon previous commitments whilst introducing new targets. Key targets include:
• 100 per cent of purchased electricity from renewable sources by 2025.
• Zero waste to landfill at Asahi’s manufacturing sites and warehouses by 2030.
• Net zero carbon emissions by 2050 – with engagement of Asahi’s suppliers to reduce carbon emissions beyond the company’s core business operations.
• Transition to 100 per cent eco-friendly (compostable, bio-based or 100 per cent recycled content) materials for PET bottles by 2030.
Robert Iervasi, Asahi Beverages Group CEO, said that this move was not a token gesture, noting: “Sustainability is core business for Asahi Beverages.
“We are determined to do much more than make vague and distant promises that gather dust. That’s why we’ve already made some incredibly important transformative and tangible changes to become more sustainable.”
Casella Family Brands (CFB) has taken full ownership of Australian Beer Co. (ABCo.) after Coca-Cola Europacific Partners Australia (CCEP) decided to sell its interest in the business.
The deal sees CCEP complete its exit from the beer and cider categories, following its earlier decision to exit the production, sale and distribution of beer and Magners cider products in Australia.
“ABCo is an exciting business led by a state-of-the-art brewery, and we welcomed the opportunity to acquire full ownership,” CFB Managing Director, John Casella, said.
CFB took full in control in July, 2022.
Coles Group has reported its financial results for the first half of 2022, with liquor sales revenue of $2bn for the half, an increase of 2.7 per cent on the prior corresponding period.
Comparable liquor sales grew by 1.8 per cent on the PCP and 16.9 per cent on a twoyear basis, and for the second quarter, liquor sales revenue increased by 2.8 per cent with comparable sales growing by 2.1 per cent and 15.2 per cent on a two-year basis.
The group said that liquor sales growth for the half was driven by strong e-commerce sales, with Liquorland the strongest performing banner.
“Strategic investments in e-commerce capacity continued during the half with the launch of a fourth e-commerce dark store in New South Wales which supported strong e-commerce sales growth of 60 per cent and penetration of 4.8 per cent in the first half, compared to 3.0 per cent in the prior corresponding period,” a Coles spokesperson said.
Endeavour Group has announced a new drinks line called Loud & Proud, with 100 per cent of profits going to support LGBTQIA+ programs.
The range of six drinks, described as ‘bold and colourful’, includes a selection of wines, a hard seltzer, and a pale ale.
Ash Martin, the Co-chair of Proud at Endeavour Group, said: “We are thrilled to unveil our fabulous drink range, Loud & Proud, that aims to celebrate diversity in the wider community – loudly, proudly and openly.”
Funds raised by the new range will be donated to Pride Foundation Australia, which has pledged the money to support programs that help those in the community dealing with substance abuse.
Liquor Barons has launched a new digital engagement hub to make the liquor retail experience extra special for its customers.
In partnership with audience engagement platform Komo, the new Barons Locals Hub brings a uniquely creative edge to Liquor Barons’ marketing, with gamification tactics and virtual engagement strategies. For example, the hub launched with an Aussie Slang trivia challenge, where users could win a $5000 audio package.
Liquor Barons General Manager, Chris O’Brien, said he is excited for the hub to add more value to consumer experiences.
“Consumer loyalty is liquid gold. It is so important we create value for those loyal customers. With over 110,000 members, our goal is to amplify these experiences through the Komo platform, creating a connected and engaged community across the state,” O’Brien said.
The 90 Liquor Barons stores across WA come together under one marketing house, which means the whole network benefits from this new engagement hub.
Australian retailers have joined with their worldwide counterparts in boycotting Russian products, following the nation’s invasion of Ukraine in February. Major retailers, including Endeavour Group and Coles Liquor, were among those removing Russian products from sale.
A spokesperson for Endeavour Group said the company was in the process of removing Russian products from its retail, hospitality and online businesses, including Dan Murphy’s, BWS, Cellarmasters and ALH Hotels.
“As an organisation, Endeavour Group is deeply concerned with the situation in Ukraine and we join the calls for peace,” the spokesperson said.
A spokesperson for Coles Liquor also noted the withdrawal of Russian products was currently in process across the business, and said: “The thoughts of everyone at Coles Liquor are with the people of Ukraine and we hope for a peaceful resolution to the current crisis as soon as possible.
“We have engaged with our suppliers on community concerns regarding the sale and distribution of Russiansourced products, and resolved to remove a number of Russian-sourced drinks from sale.”
Independent retailers and banner groups also took action, with Independent Liquor Group (ILG) removing promotional support for Russian vodka, as members took action on a store-by-store basis.
“Essentially, we won’t be supporting these products, they will be removed from all promotional calendars. Our members have made a choice – a large part of our membership base have pulled the products from the shelves and we support that,” said ILG CEO, Paul Esposito.
Retail Drinks Australia has announced two new appointments, with Endeavour Group’s Michael James joining the Board as Chain Store Member, and Jonathan Russell joining the management team as Head of Policy & Advocacy.
Retail Drinks CEO Michael Waters welcomed the new appointments and said: “Both Michael and Jonathan will be tremendous assets to Retail Drinks, particularly given their extensive career experiences which will be of significant benefit to the Association as we continue the implementation of our three-year strategic plan and continue to build our momentum and on our solid foundation.
“We are extremely fortunate to have persons of Michael and Jonathan’s calibre join the organisation and we look forward to the contributions they will make in their respective roles.”
DW8, the parent company of WineDepot and Kaddy, has announced that the WineDepot team, network and operations will be brought under the Kaddy brand.
As part of the DW8 reshuffle, WineDepot Market’s customers were moved to the Kaddy Marketplace before the end of April. WineDepot’s fulfilment operations, including Parton Wine Distribution, were folded into the new Kaddy Fulfilment brand, which serves both consumers, and trade customers.
Dean Taylor, Kaddy and DW8 CEO, said: “The consolidation of our platforms and services into the Kaddy brand allows us to continue providing end-to-end services and creating an unrivalled offering for Australia’s $37.2 billion liquor market.”
Australian Venue Co (AVC) has selected Liquor Marketing Group (LMG) as its partner of choice to rebrand 21 liquor retail outlets.
After an extensive tender submission process, AVC selected LMG to undertake the rebrand of the stores, located across five states. LMG began the rebranding in February 2022, with the refreshed stores sitting under the Bottlemart, SipnSave and Harry Brown retail banners.
LMG CEO, Gavin Saunders, said the new partnership will support the shared business goals of both companies.
“AVC’s portfolio is strong in both numbers and iconic venues and LMG is thrilled to have been appointed as their preferred partner. This exciting new partnership is built on a foundation of shared business goals – both AVC and LMG are steadfast in our commitment to creating exceptional, local customer experiences and delivering excellence at scale,” Saunders commented.
AVC Chief Operating Officer, Craig Ellison, said the ability to tailor each store to local communities would be extremely beneficial under this partnership.
He said: “We share a similar ethos to LMG of empowering our managers to tailor their business to the local community, so it’s a really strong alignment for us.”
The Australian Government has banned the export of luxury goods to Russia, including wine and spirits, which includes both direct and indirect exports that happen through third party companies and countries.
The ban prohibits the supply, sale or transfer of “wines (including sparkling wines), spirits and spirituous beverages” directly or indirectly to, for use in, or the benefit of Russia. This means producers that use third party exporters or distributors need to take reasonable steps to ensure products are not exported to Russia.
In a media statement, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator Marise Payne, said: “These sanctions target President Putin and his wealthy enablers, not ordinary Russian consumers. They are being undertaken in coordination with key partners to restrict the Russian elite’s access to such goods.
“The Australian Government is deeply committed to imposing the highest costs on Russia for President Putin’s illegal and unprovoked war.”
Endeavour Group has opened the first of Dan Murphy’s new premium concept stores in the Sydney suburb of Lane Cove.
This new Dan Murphy’s Cellar store is part of the retail group’s response to an ongoing trend of premiumisation in liquor retail and is inspired by the original Daniel Francis Murphy’s love and passion for wine. The Cellar is described as possessing “a curated range of hard-to-find bottles” on display in a climate controlled environment.
Dan Murphy’s Managing Director at the time, Alex Freudmann, said the move towards more premium products was a key motivator in opening this store.
“We know that customers are drinking better, which is why we wanted to create destinations where wine lovers can discover and access some of the best wines from Australia and the world,” he said.
Two Australian drinks companies have now signed on to major deals with American brand, Molson Coors. Good Drinks Australia has entered into an exclusive agreement to distribute Molson Coors brands in Australia, while Coopers Brewery has signed on to handle the production of certain Molson brands.
The new partnerships will see Good Drinks distribute many of Molson Coors’ most prominent products, including Miller Chill, Miller Genuine Draft, Coors and the Molson Canadian brands; while a separate long term agreement will see Coopers manufacture Molson Coors products at its South Australian brewery.
Molson Coors brands represent approximately 15m litres per year, and in an ASX announcement, Good Drinks stated that it expects the partnership to deliver “an additional $35m-$40m in revenue, and $3m-$4m EBITDA annually.”
The ‘Brand in Hand’ campaign by Liquor Marketing Group (LMG), activated in Bottlemart and SipnSave, has generated strong results for member sales, lining up with the start of the 2022 NRL and AFL seasons.
“Sport has always been in the wheelhouse for Bottlemart and SipnSave, so there was a clear opportunity to develop a strong consumer activation linked to this occasion that was supported with compelling marketing, catalogues and upweighted digital platforms,” said Damien Page, General Manager – Merchandising and Marketing at LMG.
The promotion saw customers receive a free branded stubby holder with transactions over $60. The activation also included a QR code where customers could enter a draw to win a range of at-home entertainment packages.
The result was an overall nine per cent like for like increase in dollar sales for the four weeks ending 29 March 2022, compared to the same period last year. At a category level, this was illustrated by increased sales of seven per cent for beer, nine per cent for wine, 11 per cent for spirits and 17 per cent for RTDs.
This growth was underpinned by increased customer spend per transaction, with 88 per cent of all retail sales growth during the campaign coming from transactions above $60. Online engagement also grew to an all-time high, with e-commerce sales up 67 per cent compared to the same period a year ago.
“It’s the most successful brand campaign we have ever run,” said Page.
IWSR has released a report which has identified delivery speed as a “key battle ground for online alcohol sales”.
Guy Wolfe, Strategic Insights Manager at IWSR, stated: “Although consumers in different global markets place different levels of importance on delivery speed, one clear trend that we’ve identified is that speed is growing in importance everywhere.”
The report found that in Australia, the willingness of millennials to pay extra for fast delivery was slightly above the global average, while those in the baby boomer generation were significantly more hesitant.
In an Australian market debut, flatter wine bottles made of recycled PET plastic have been launched in select Liquorland and First Choice Liquor Market stores.
The bottles were designed by sustainable packaging company Packamama, and have been adopted for the launch by Accolade Wines’ Banrock Station and Taylors Wines’ One Small Step labels.
The design is said to be 83 per cent lighter than typical glass bottles, and allows twice as many bottles to fit in a standard case of wine
“We are highly motivated to launch our climate-friendly bottle at Coles with Accolade Wines and Taylors Wines. Coles’ ambition to be Australia’s most sustainable retailer is powerfully aligned with our ambition to deliver the world’s most scalable, sustainable bottle,” said Packamama Founder, Santiago Navarro.
On June 10, 1952, the Liquor Stores Association of Western Australia (LSA WA) was officially created to give a united voice to the state’s independent liquor retailers. The association celebrated its 70th birthday on that same date in 2022.
At the top for this 70th milestone is CEO Peter Peck, who, alongside Chair Lou Spangolo, has seen the LSA WA and its members through the unprecedented times of the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Peck, the reason the LSA WA has been able to pivot with its members and achieve such great outcomes for so many decades comes down to its unwavering focus and agile operation.
“Our foundation is really easy – we’re here to make sure that people who want to run a small family business can do so on a level playing field,” Peck said.
Peck said it’s clear that a lot can change in 70 years and a lot will change in the 70 to come. But it will remain a core part of the LSA WA to support independent liquor retailers in WA to roll with the challenges as they arise.
The next phase of the NSW Government’s Liquor Amendment (24-hour Economy) Bill 2020 has come into effect, with online age verification requirements introduced for same day alcohol deliveries.
It’s the final phase of regulation rollout for online alcohol deliveries under this legislation in NSW, following other tightened measures in December 2021 and then July 2022.
Same day alcohol delivery operators need to use an accredited ‘identity service provider’ under the Australian Government’s Trusted Digital Identity Framework (TDIF) in order to verify customer ages.
However, in the lead-up to the rollout of these requirements, Liquor & Gaming NSW said it recognised unforeseen issues from businesses trying to implement the technical solutions.
Therefore, the NSW Government has announced it intends to establish alternative processes that can be used while technical issues are being resolved. For the initial 12 months until June 2023, delivery providers will have more options to verify customer age.
Endeavour Group CEO Steve Donohue has announced the appointment of Agnieszka (Agi) Pfeiffer-Smith to the role of Managing Director, Dan Murphy’s.
Pfeiffer-Smith was previously the Chief Strategy Officer for Endeavour Group, and took the reins from outgoing Managing Director, Alex Freudmann - who had been at the helm since 2019 and navigated the retail giant through the pandemic and demerger from Woolworths in 2021.
Endeavour Group Managing Director and CEO, Steve Donohue, said: “Under Alex’s leadership, the Dan Murphy’s team has regained its position as trend leader in the industry. Alex has supported the creation of new store formats, and together with the endeavourX team, he has overseen Dan Murphy’s digital platforms become the ‘front door’ for customers.”
Donohue also commented on the appointment of Pfeiffer-Smith, saying: “Agi was appointed Chief Strategy Officer for Endeavour Group in April 2020, and has been integral to defining Endeavour Group’s future path, having been a key architect behind the development and implementation of the Group’s initial strategy, following the 2021 demerger from Woolworths.
“It is a testament to the strength of our internal talent that we are able to appoint Agi… She is ideally positioned to lead Dan Murphy’s through the transformative change currently underway.”
On July 15 and 16 Aldi opened The Trophy Room, a pop up bar serving up the retailer’s wine, gin and cheese at ‘at home’ prices.
Tickets to the venue were priced at $4.41 each, reflective of the perglass cost of the Aldi wines and accompanying cheese platter.
Jason Bowyer, Aldi Wine Expert and Buying Director, referenced the ongoing cost of living crisis when introducing the experience.
“Quite simply, Aldi wins hands-down when it comes to price and quality. At a time when consumers are cutting back, they don’t have to compromise when they shop with us,” Bowyer said.
“The Trophy Room is a first for Aldi Australia, demonstrating that a fine wine and dining experience doesn’t have to dent your wallet. And what’s even better, you can replicate the exact experience at home.”
Retail Drinks Australia has bolstered its member services offering, introducing a new program to help retailers save on merchant fees.
The Retail Drinks Merchant Services Pricing Comparison Service was created in partnership with Payments Consulting Network and is a bespoke and unique program that anticipates significant savings for retailers.
Michael Waters, Retail Drinks CEO, described the need for the service, and said: “For an independently owned and operated retail liquor store, annual merchant fees can range from $5,000 to $25,000… Our recent member pilot of several small, medium and large liquor stores with current average annual merchant fees of $11,215, resulted in an average saving of 33.75 per cent.”
Coles Liquor has announced the opening of its first ever Liquorland store in Tasmania, connected to the first brand new Coles supermarket to be opened in the state in 12 years.
Liquorland Glebe Hill Village, located in the Hobart suburb of Howrah, has a significant focus on local drinks, with more than 320 Tasmanian-made craft and boutique wines, beers and spirits.
Coles Liquor Chief Executive, Darren Blackhurst, said: “Our drive to be a simpler, more accessible, and locally relevant drinks specialist can be seen with the launch of this store and the celebration of the Tasmanian brands we have in store for our customers.
“Local sourcing is a key focus and we are proud to partner with over 60 local suppliers and producers to showcase Tasmania further.”
Together with the attached Coles, the store is expected to create more than 100 new jobs and support sustainable growth for Tasmania’s food and beverage industry.
Giuseppe Minissale, the Owner of Porters Liquor in Lansvale for 18 years, has hailed the store’s redesign and relaunch as a great success.
“It was old, it was tired – but it was very strong in spirits, we carry something like 1200 SKUs of spirits in our stores,” Minissale said.
“But we couldn’t display or show the products very well, because they were always behind each other and [we were] not being able to just effectively put them in the best light.”
Minissale took inspiration from an unusual source when developing the new-look store, as he explains: “We wanted to create a duty-free style store and we wanted to create store that was fresh and lively and bright.”
Good Drinks Australia (GDA) has acquired the award-winning Stomping Ground Brewing Group, in a deal which will enable Stomping Ground to continue operating as an independent brewery.
“Independence is a core value for both Good Drinks and Stomping Ground, and we want to keep that alive. Stomping Ground and Good Drinks are stronger together than apart, and that’s why we’ve come together,” said GDA Chief Operating Officer, Aaron Heary.
Steve Jeffares, Founder of Stomping Ground, added: “There has been a long courtship as we got to know each other, and Guy, Justin and I are excited and confident that, working within the GDA business, will help us both become stronger.”
Jeffares, along with fellow founders Guy Greenstone and Justin Joiner will remain involved in the day-to-day running of Stomping Ground and long-time Head Brewer Ashur Hall will also remain and will continue to run brewing operations in Collingwood.
“With GDA’s help, our beers and brand will be more visible and available than ever before,” Greenstone said.
The store’s redesign has had an instant impact, as Minissale notes: “It’s premium, it’s really premium, we’ve seen a spike in our Champagnes, our rosés have really taken off, all our premium wines have taken off.”
The store was relaunched with an event that attracted leading figures from across Australia’s liquor industry, who were impressed by the refurbishment and its potential.
The WA Government has announced plans to strengthen the state’s Banned Drinkers Register (BDR), and extend its current trial in the Pilbara, Kimberley and Goldfields regions.
In the current trial regions, anyone buying takeaway alcohol must have their ID scanned against the BDR at the point of sale, with the scanner notifying staff if the customer is on the register.
During the trial period, the University of Western Australia was tasked with producing an interim report on the effectiveness of the BDR, which has identified potential improvements to the scheme. The WA Government has reacted to the recommendations in this report with proposed new legislation.
Consultation has begun on the new proposals, which include expanding pathways for problem drinkers to be put on the register, with more options for police and courts. For example, police would have the ability to apply to have someone placed on the BDR for alcohol-related offences outside licensed premises, including drink driving or alcohol related violence.
Diageo has acquired Australian coffee liqueur brand, Mr Black, which was launched in 2013 by designer Tom Baker and distiller Philip Moore.
In 2015, Diageo acquired a minority stake in Mr Black through Distill Ventures, the Diageo-backed accelerator program.
Mr Black is now the fourth brand to exit Distill Ventures and join the Diageo portfolio and the first Australian brand, a move which Diageo Australia Managing Director Angus McPherson said was “hugely exciting”.
Frank Lampen, CEO and Co-founder of Distill Ventures, said: “It was love at first taste with Mr Black, and Tom Baker is one of the most intuitive brand builders we’ve had the pleasure of working with.”
Baker will remain actively involved with Mr Black and said he was looking forward to working with the Diageo team to build on Mr Black’s success.
Top Shelf International (TSI) has unveiled the brand for its first release from the Australian agave spirit project.
Named Act of Treason, the spirit will join NED Whisky and Grainshaker Vodka in the TSI portfolio of premium spirits brands, and will carry on the TSI focus of bringing the best of Australian provenance and creativity to its spirits.
Top Shelf International’s President Agave and International, Trent Fraser, said: “Our mission is to create a stunning, regionally-expressive, Australian terroir driven spirit to the world and we are already feeling a buzz of excitement about creating this new agave spirits category.”
The Northern Territory Government has released the three year evaluation of the Minimum Unit Price (MUP).
The MUP was introduced in amendments to the NT Liquor Act in 2018, and was set at $1.30 per standard drink contained in the alcohol product, meaning that no alcohol could be sold below the price of $1.30 per standard drink.
The evaluation report was developed by independent consultants, Frontier Economics and Yarning, with “extensive stakeholder consultation and analysis of data.” This report concludes the MUP has been effective, while also acknowledging the difficulty in evaluating the scheme without considering the assistance of other measures currently in place to also address alcohol-related harm.
Key findings that the NT Government has highlighted in the report include a reduction in alcohol-related harm in a range of key areas since 2018, a reduction in the supply of low-cost, high alcohol products, and “no evidence to suggest the MUP had any negative effects on industry, tourism or the NT economy.”
Maison Mumm has released its first Australian sparkling wine, with Australian winemaker and sparkling wine specialist, Trina Smith, collaborating with GH Mumm Chef de Caves, Laurant Fresnet, on Mumm Tasmania.
The wine is part of the Mumm Terroir series, which celebrates exceptional Pinot Noir wine regions. It recognises Tasmania’s pristine nature and maritime climate, ideal for creating sparkling wines with finesse and complexity.
Smith said: “I was thrilled to introduce Tasmania as the region to source grapes for our Terroir series and couldn’t wait to collaborate with Laurent Fresnet.”
Fresnet added: “Partnering with Trina opened up knowledge of the terroir and producers to source the best grapes. With Mumm Tasmania, we are revealing a new expression of Pinot Noir, with the same quest for the utmost quality, and in line with Maison Mumm’s style.”
Wine Australia’s latest Export Report has revealed the lingering impact of import tariffs in mainland China.
Overall, export volumes declined slightly by one per cent to 627 million litres, with a more significant crunch in value (down 11 per cent to $2.01 billion) in the year ending 30 September 2022.
According to Wine Australia’s Manager of Market Insights, Peter Bailey, the figures are skewed somewhat by Chinese tariffs.
“In this report, we’re seeing the tail end of the decline in exports to mainland China having an impact on the total export figures; this is expected to wash out of the figures by the end of 2022,” he said.
“When mainland China is excluded from the data, wine exports to the rest of the world held steady in value, declining by 0.2 per cent to $1.99 billion and increasing by one per cent in volume to 622 million litres.”
Exporters shipped wine to 118 destinations, with the strongest growth coming from Southeast Asia (up 15 per cent to $291m) and North America (up six per cent to $604m).
Independent Liquor Group has announced the launch of the Liquor Coop Warehouse, its own B2B marketplace platform.
The platform aims to be a ‘one stop shopping experience’ for all companies holding a liquor license across NSW. On its launch, the platform had over 5,000 drinks on offer across all categories at wholesale prices.
ILG developed the Liquor Co-op Warehouse in response to the growing market of companies that simply want to purchase what they need, when they need it, with no strings or joining fees attached.
Paul Esposito, CEO of ILG, said: “This initiative is designed to give hotels, bars, restaurants, and others in the liquor industry better buying opportunities with freight free options.”
ILG highlighted this is the ‘ultimate hybrid shopping experience’, combining online convenience and the expertise of human customer service.
Liquor Marketing Group (LMG) has gone live with the new apps it has developed for its Bottlemart and SipnSave banners.
Along with the apps, the website and e-commerce sites have also been relaunched, with enhanced features together in one digital home, to create a seamless, mobile-first shopping experience.
LMG noted research shows 88 per cent of customers are browsing before they shop – the new apps aim to speak directly to that trend with comprehensive search, browse, filter, sort, favourites and save features.
“E-commerce is set to be a major focus for us in 2023. A 91 per cent increase in spend sees a significant investment in digital marketing and e-commerce plans and capabilities. We currently have 234 stores on e-commerce but this development allows us to be even more far reaching so all our members can benefit from online sales and customer loyalty,” said David Gyte, Head of Digital Marketing at LMG.
Wine Intelligence research has suggested that having access to price offers is the most likely trigger to make Australians buy wine online.
According to the report, Australians are looking for special offers, best price guarantees and promotions to reduce the price of online buys.
As wine has the advantage of being able to be purchased in advance of an event or need, having a fast delivery service isn’t as important as the other factors for Australians.
However, in markets like China and Brazil which have a disproportionately high app usage, that changes.
Wine Intelligence reported 82 per cent of those surveyed said the speed of delivery is a more important trigger in those markets, which may prove to be a warning for Australia.
Premiumisation has been a trend in beverage alcohol for over a decade and according to leading drinks market analysts IWSR, postpandemic pent-up demand and price increases saw value growth reach historic highs in the first half of 2022.
Although first-half total volume did not match pre-pandemic levels, IWSR’s findings show that volumes in premium-and-above price bands grew seven per cent in H1 2022 compared to H1 2019, across the 20 key markets.
However, IWSR’s consumer survey in October 2022 indicates that consumer confidence is starting to weaken in many markets.
IWSR said: “Consumer data shows early signs of downtrading and category switching, with consumers primarily moving away from high volume, lower value beverages, such as wine and beer, and moving into lower volume, higher value categories such as whisky, tequila, gin and Cognac.
“Pockets of down-trading are especially evident in markets with neutral-to-negative levels of consumer confidence.”
Endeavour Group has announced an innovative addition to the Dan Murphy’s app, offering an image search feature for the first time.
Developed by Endeavour Group’s digital arm, endeavourX, the feature uses machine learning to identify over 25,000 drinks labels, allowing consumers to search with images.
endeavourX Director, Claire Smith, said: “This is a great and simple way for customers to find more information about a wine, beer or spirit they are enjoying at a restaurant or dinner party, and to see if it is available in their local Dan Murphy’s.
“The image search feature is a big step towards creating that seamless omni-channel discovery experience, helping customers browse and choose the right product while in store.”
This digital technology upgrade comes after Dan Murphy’s announced significant investment in other technology in the in-store environment. More than 10 per cent of the fleet now uses electronic shelf labels (ESLs) enabling quick price changes to facilitate the brand’s ‘Lowest Liquor Price Guarantee’.
Agi Pfeiffer-Smith, Dan Murphy’s Managing Director, said: “An average store lowers hundreds of prices every week, and changing those price tickets can be quite time consuming, but thanks to ESL, the price beats happen immediately.”
Brick Lane Brewing has installed a 367kw solar project, which will supply 27 per cent of the brewer’s energy requirements and save 374 tonnes of annual CO2 emissions. Managing Director, Paul Bowker, said the move was made in line with Brick Lane’s commitment to achieving ‘true zero’ brewing by 2025.
“We opened the doors to our Dandenong Melbourne facility in August 2018 and we approached the brewing space a little bit different to most, in that we wanted to build a long-term sustainable business. In order to do that we set about putting in place a five-year plan from day one, which was to build a flexible, scalable brewing facility that had sustainability at its core,” he said.
While the business did face challenges during this journey, it is now able to achieve its ambitious sustainability targets as they have always been part of the business model.
“Solar is just one example… there’s smart projects around how we manage trade waste, how we manage refrigeration and energy loads, through to other parts of the business. We’ve just launched a complete logistics warehousing storage side to our business and that takes a huge amount of trucks off the road because we are not going through third parties, we can go straight to national retailers out of here,” Bowker told The Shout
➤ Andrew Graham, Journalist, Australian Wine Review
➤ Andrew Milne, Portfolio Manager, SouthTrade International
➤ Andy Young, Managing Editor, The Shout & Bars and Clubs
➤ Brian Chase Olson, Director, Blend Public Relations
➤ Christine Ricketts, Wine Educator, Endeavour Group
➤ Cindy Panzera, Wine Content Writer
➤ Daryl Fisher, General Manager, Fisher Fine Wines
➤ David Fahey, Wine Consultant
➤ Dean Kornman, National Account Manager, Constellation Brands
➤ Deb Jackson, Former Editor, National Liquor News
➤ Ed Peake, Key Account Manager, Penfolds
➤ Emma Fogarty, Brand Manager, SouthTrade International
➤ Geoff Bollom, Retailer, Porter’s –Glebe and Balmain East
➤ Jack Glover, Marketing Director, Accolade Wines
➤ Joe Turnaturi, Sommelier and Wine Educator, Sydney Wine Academy
➤ Jonathan Leeming, Brand Manager, Taylors Wines
➤ Masha Kyrychenko, Business Development Manager, Accolade Wines
➤ Matt Dunne, Group Wine Ambassador, Joval Wines
➤ Michael Mcintosh, Fine Wine Brand Ambassador, Accolade Wines
➤ Mirko Scanu, Key Account Executive, Penfolds
➤ Nigel Burton, CEO, Burton Premium Wines
➤ Sabine Duval, Brand and Sales Manager, Hungerford Hill Wines
➤ Salvatore Margiotta, NSW Key Account Manager, Pure Wine Co.
➤ Tishena Young, National Account Executive, Constellation Brands
➤ Tom Czerski, Wine Consultant
This collection of outstanding wines is curated from the top ‘Panel’s Picks’ wines, selected by our expert tasters throughout 2022 across three price brackets.
Beresford Grand Reserve Shiraz
Region: McLaren Vale
VIN: 2015 LUC: $95.00
Distributed by: Vok Beverages
“Age is immediately expressed on the nose with delightful dried sultana and spice. Primary fruit is evident with blueberry and cola richness. Huge mouthfeel with intense tannin and length.”
– Ed PeakeAmisfield Pinot
Noir Rosé
Region: Central Otago NZ
VIN: 2021 LUC: $19.89
Distributed by: Déjà Vu Wine Co.
“Strawberries and cream sit alongside a peach pie. This has the whole fruit shop in it. Vibrant with fresh red fruit and stone fruit. It’s big but has a lovely freshness to the finish.” –
Andy Milne
Alma Mora Pinot
Grigio
Region: Argentina
VIN: 2021 LUC: $12.90
Distributed by: Déjà Vu Wine Co.
“More intensity on the nose. Quite pretty. White flowers. Good sugar and fat concentration. Punter friendly.” – Sabine Duval
Taylors The Visionary Cabernet
Sauvignon
Region: Clare Valley
VIN: 2015 LUC: $118.25
Distributed by: Taylors Wines
“It had it all – fruit, oak, subtle development. The balance was excellent and promises great flavour as it ages.”
– Christine Ricketts
De Bortoli Lusatia
Park Pinot Noir
Region: Yarra Valley
VIN: 2017 LUC: $77.40
Distributed by: De Bortoli
“Beautifully perfumed nose. Great fruit resource, unashamedly bold in style. Hits the sweet spot now with beguiling fruit intensity. Long length.” – Michael Mcintosh
Peter Lehmann
Masters Wigan
Riesling
Region: Eden Valley
VIN: 2015 LUC: $31.50
Distributed by:
Casella Family Brands
“This was exactly what I wanted from aged Riesling. Amazing complex nose, developed flavours on the palate, and enough fruit and acid to back it up. Beautiful.”
– Emma Fogarty
Church Road Grand Reserve Chardonnay
Region: Hawkes Bay NZ
VIN: 2019 LUC: $33.42
Distributed by:
Pernod Ricard
“Does everything just right –complex, refreshing, light and drinkable.” – Geoff Bollom
➤ There were nine tastings held this year, published across eight issues
➤ Over the course of these tastings, 739 wines were tasted
Yalumba The Signature Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz
Region: Barossa
VIN: 2018 LUC: $47.13
Distributed by: Samuel Smith & Son
“Round and robust structure. Great fruit intensity without overt sweetness. Plenty of Christmas cake notes and warm spices. Complex and evolving on the palate.” –Michael Mcintosh
Howard Park Jeté Grand Vintage
Region: Great Southern
VIN: 2017 LUC: $32.68
Distributed by: Off The Vine (WA), Thomas Chin Pty Ltd (NT), The Wine Tradition (QLD), Aus Craft Wine (SA), Young & Rashleigh Wine Merchants (NSW/ACT), Alepat Taylor (VIC), DWS Tasmania
“Bright citrus lemon peel integrates beautifully with the subtle French croissant character, The fruit helps with the long finish and all is carried forward on the palate by a refreshing acidity.” – Mirko Scanu
➤ 25 industry professionals tasted on the panel throughout the year
➤ The largest tasting was for Shiraz, with 142 wines tasted
➤ The oldest vintage tasted was from 2008
➤ The highest score obtained was 97
95-100 Classic: an exceptional wine
90-94 Outstanding: a wine of remarkable character
85-89 Very good: a wine with impressive qualities
Contact
Line Shiraz
Region: Eden Valley
VIN: 2019 LUC: $16.90
Distributed by: Brockenchack
“Good fruit up front. Coconut and vanilla on the nose with developing black fruits. High in acidity, fruit and tannins. A complex wine with a lot of depth.” – Deb Jackson
Rosé
Region: Australia
VIN: 2022 LUC: $16.13
Distributed by: Single Vineyard Sellers
“Inviting pale salmon colour with a soft nose of berries and citrus. Wonderfully balanced palate with complexity and lovely clean finish. Delightful.” – Ed
Chardonnay
Region: Eden Valley
VIN: 2021 LUC: $15.85
Distributed by:
Samuel Smith & Son
“Peach, pear, subtle oak. Medium body, lovely stonefruit and red apple.” – Salvatore Margiotta
Classic Tumbarumba
Pinot Gris
Region: Tumbarumba
VIN: 2021 LUC: $17.20
Distributed by: Winestock
“Well rounded and delicious. Richness and complexity on the nose with notes of preserved lemon. Pears come through on the palate with fresh acidity to balance. Delightful finish.”
– Ed Peake
Region: Coonawarra
VIN: 2018 LUC: $22.56
Distributed by: Samuel Smith & Son
“On the palate, it is a beautiful wine with expressive primary red fruit flavours, complex secondary and tertiary characters and ripe, robust tannin structure.”
– Jonathan LeemingMount Pleasant Lovedale Semillon
Region: Hunter Valley
VIN: 2014 LUC: $16.60
Distributed by: Mount Pleasant Wines
“Semillon showing great structure and poise for its age, with more years to come. Acid structure is balanced with a lovely smoky character.” – Sabine Duval
Peake
“There was a good mix of wines across this year’s tastings, showcasing so many regions, styles and producers. I was especially impressed by the value price segment this year, which surprised our panel with its quality on numerous occasions. It’s great to see consumers have such great choices for wine right now, no matter their preferences.”
Brydie Allen Editor National Liquor News
Are you a Sydneybased industry professional interested in joining the panel this year?
Fox Creek Chardonnay
Region: Adelaide Hills
VIN: 2021 LUC: $13.29
Distributed by: Fox Creek
“Nose shows rich intensity with peaches and citrus. A lovely structure and weight with balanced acid giving a moreish mouthfeel. Delightful wine for the price.” – Ed Peake
Louis PerdierBrut
Region: France
VIN: NV LUC: $9.90
Distributed by: Beach Avenue Wholesalers
“Bright lemon sprite nose and an underlying hint of blossom and vanilla. Palate is very well balanced with lemon drops, crunchy apple and a mousselike mouthfeel. Yum!”
– Brian Chase Olson
Pike and Joyce Rapide Pinot Noir
Region: Adelaide Hills
VIN: 2021 LUC: $15.48
Distributed by:
Déjà Vu Wine Co.
“So light in the glass. Delicate nose. Good soft elegant finish. A good example of a Pinot.”
– Geoff Bollom
Region: Eden Valley
VIN: 2020 LUC: $9.68
Distributed by: Millon Wines
“Garnet crimson colour with attractive oak nose. A well rounded and balanced wine on the palate.” – David Fahey
Chardonnay Pinot Noir
Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz
Red blends
Champagne, Prosecco and Sparkling Rosé
Pinot Gris and Grigio Riesling Semillon …and more!
Region: Marlborough NZ
VIN: 2017 LUC: $14.84
Distributed by: Robert Oatley Vineyards
“Good example of a well aged Riesling. Notes of kerosene sit alongside nashi pear and lemon rind. Acidity still nice and firm.” – Andrew Milne
Gaelic Cemetery Celtic Farm Shiraz Cabernet
Region: Clare Valley
VIN: 2020 LUC: $12.90
Distributed by:
Déjà Vu Wine Co.
“Like a black forest cake, in a positive way. Black cherry, vanilla, mocha, and a lingering finish. Very interesting at this price point.”
– Christine Ricketts
➤ Trentham Estate Pinot Gris 2021, Murray Darling, LUC $10.21 (Bacchus Wine Merchants)
➤ Streicker Bridgeland Block Pinot Noir 2019, Margaret River, LUC $22.58 (The Wine Gang (WA), L’atelier Wines (NSW/ACT/QLD), Wines of the World (VIC), Clairault Streicker Wines (other states)
➤ Penfolds Koonunga Hill Cabernet Sauvignon 2021, South Australia, LUC $12.73 (Penfolds)
➤ Rock of Wisdom Superfly Red Shiraz Grenache blend 2021, Barossa, LUC $17.20 (Déjà Vu Wine Co.)
➤ Fox Creek Vixen Sparkling Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Franc NV, McLaren Vale, LUC $17.61, (Nelson Wine Co (Melbourne), Pure Wine Co (QLD/SA/NSW))
February 2023 Annual Leaders Forum
March Easter Retail Trading World Whisk(e)y Day
Natural Flavoured Drinks - Ginger, Mango, Apple, Raspberry, Lime etc. Cognac & Brandy Payment Systems
April World Cocktail Day (Home Cocktails) Mother’s Day Aussie Indie Beer RTD & Seltzer Family Wineries
May West Australian Drinks Provenance Aperitivo Winter Imported & International Beers Australian Spirits Lower Sugar, Lower Calorie Drinks
June France Drinks Provenance New Release Beers for Winter NOLO Drinks
July Victorian Drinks Provenance Retail Snacks Premium Mixers
American Single Malts, Whiskey & Bourbon Retail Banner Groups
Coffee, Nut & Chocolate Liqueurs SustainabilityBrands & Production
August South Australian Drinks Provenance Father’s Day World Saké Day Rum & Rhum Agricole Stocking Imported Wines
September Organic Drinks BBQ Drinks Occasion Alcoholic Seltzer Premium Gin Prosecco for Spring
October Tassie Drinks Provenance Aperitivo Summer Summer Beer Releases RTD The Rosé Report
November New Zealand Drinks Provenance Christmas Summer Beer & Cider Retailing
Whisk(e)y - Scotch & Irish Tequila, Mezcal, Agave Spirit
December/ January NOLO - Better For You Drinks Australian Made/ Australia Day What’s Hot to Stock for 2024 Vodka ALIA Winners
