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DEBUT SUNTORY HOUSE ACTIVATION CAPTURES 125-YEAR SUNTORY LEGACY
Debut Suntory House activation captures 125-year Suntory legacy
Ahead of the official launch of Suntory Oceania’s $3bn partnership, Suntory House offered a glimpse into the brand’s philosophy and its bold future in Australia.
A year since Suntory Oceania was announced, the drinks giant invited industry partners to immerse themselves in its 125-year legacy at the Suntory House experience in Sydney.
Offering a glimpse into the company’s bold ambitions for the future, the exclusive activation was attended by more than 350 partners in Oceania, bringing the Suntory spirit and portfolio to life like never before.
Mark Hill, Managing Director of Suntory Global Spirits Oceania, says: “It’s been over a year since we made the announcement, and at that time we spoke about bringing the best of Suntory to Oceania. With Suntory House, we had the opportunity to start showing our partners what this means.
“A big part of it was explaining who Suntory is, sharing a little bit about our wonderful 125-year history and dedication to craftmanship. We had rooms where we showcased our portfolio of amazing brands with the intent to get our partners equally excited about what we’re creating and about partnering with us.”
Capturing the spirit of Yatte Minahare
Suntory House was the true embodiment of the brand’s philosophy, and a rare opportunity to introduce core partners to Yatte Minahare – the favourite saying of Founder Shinjiro Torii and the basis for Suntory’s fearless spirit to dream big.
Darren Fullerton, CEO of Suntory Beverage & Food Oceania, commented: “When the opportunity came to create the partnership, with Yatte Minahare in mind, it quickly became a bigger opportunity to bring the best of Suntory to Oceania, and to truly become a Suntory business and show what is possible.
“That’s what the Suntory House was all about, we invited people into a truly immersive experience to not only see and hear who we are, but to feel the spirit of Suntory.”
Visitors to Suntory House were guided through five immersive spaces including the Light Waterfall, Streets of Tokyo and Spirits Reimagined – The Founders Way, showcasing Suntory’s ambitions for the ANZ region, the legacy behind the portfolio and sustainability commitments.
With unique backdrops that showcased the neon-lit streets of Tokyo and traditional Japanese architecture, the activation offered a glimpse into Suntory’s commercialisation, brand efficacy and commitment to innovation.
Visitors heard about the impact of the pandemic on consumer behaviour, from the surge in off-premise sales and at-home cocktail making, to the significant growth of RTDs, while also looking to post-pandemic trends such as nostalgia and moderation which continue to influence the category.
With a vision to create richer experiences for tomorrow’s drinkers, Suntory shared plans to deliver insight-led innovation.
As guests moved through Suntory House, they also learnt about the Founders Way, which is a unique approach to brand building inspired by the founders’ spirit, and a commitment to the continuous refinement.
Growing for Good
Storytelling is deeply embedded in the spirit of Suntory, and the activation allowed the business to share an update on its new $400m carbon-neutral multi-beverage facility in Queensland, where momentum is already building ahead of the official partnership launch next year.
The state-of-the-art facility is at the heart of the Oceania journey, set to become the production and distribution hub for more than 40 brands coming from the new partnership, with non-alcohol production already underway.
Gordon Treanor, Licensed Sales Director for Suntory Oceania, explained: “We’ve invested over $400m building a fully carbon neutral facility with 7000 solar panels and cutting edge technology that enables us to live up to the philosophies that Suntory has believed in for many years: sustainability, innovation and craftmanship.”
Fullerton added: “Part of the DNA for Suntory is Growing for Good, and as much as Growing for Good is about long-term sustainable growth, it’s also about giving back to society and the planet, and that really comes through in the greenfield plant that we’ve commissioned. It will be carbon neutral, and there is some unique first-to-market technology being invested in.”
As the largest FMCG investment into Australia in the last decade, the new site will unlock end-to-end ownership of Suntory’s Oceania supply chain, enhancing opportunities to disrupt the beverage market through product development and innovative category growth across the multibeverage portfolio.
“It’s really important that we’re able to have influence and control over our entire end-to-end supply chain, and this is to ensure that we’re able to adapt and change and bring innovation and opportunity from across our portfolio to the marketplace,” stated Treanor.
“This allows us to do that in a way that maintains the quality and craftmanship that we’re focused on, but it also sets a new benchmark in terms of its focus on sustainability and quality.”
With Suntory Oceania set to become fully operational by mid-2025, more than 400 roles will be recruited to bring the partnership to life and drive expanding supply chain and RTM teams.
“We’re looking to recruit a team across all function and geographies, in total bringing on board over 400 new employees into the Suntory family across all areas, including supply chain, sales and commercial,” says Treanor.
“We’re looking for people who are passionate, driven and excited about the opportunity ahead and the chance to design and build something really special here in the Australian marketplace.”
