Milan-based Campari Group will put three key brands – Aperol, Wild Turkey bourbon and Glen Grant whisky– in the spotlight at the inaugural Moodie Davitt Virtual Travel Retail Expo.
The Gold Partner (#Virtual Stand WS-G5) plans to reassure its partners about the group’s resilience, long-term plans and its commitment to travel retail.
The Expo, the company said, presents the perfect opportunity for brands and other travel retail stakeholders to work together on the channel’s recovery.
Campari Group, founded in 1860, is the sixth-largest player worldwide in the premium spirits industry, trading in over 190 countries.
It owns 21 plants worldwide, and has its own distribution network in 21 countries. The company has a portfolio of more than 50 premium and super-premium brands, including Aperol, Campari, Wild Turkey, Glen Grant and Appleton Estate. |
The company’s growth strategy is to combine organic growth through strong brand building and external growth via selective acquisitions of brands and businesses.Campari Group Global Travel Retail Managing Director Leigh Irvine outlined the company’s belief that COVID-19 related problems within the travel industry will bring innovative solutions and, eventually, improvements.
“While we are still in the eye of the storm, it is difficult to get your head up and see what lies ahead,” he said. “But, like the loss of intra EU duty free in 1999, this crisis will bring undoubted change.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kx3PTdxvRlQ
Aperol has, according to Campari Group, developed into a “global phenomenon”. It rates as the fastest growing top 50 spirit brand in the travel retail channel over the past five years. A classic Italian bitter aperitif, Aperol is known for its bright orange colour, its unique taste and low 11% alcohol content, and the popularity of its Aperol Spritz cocktail. |
On a personal note, Irvine said he hoped the problems of 2020 would bring “realism and balance to the dynamics of the Trinity in airports”.
“I suspect that it will bring further blurring of the boundaries of the channel, as retailers look to mitigate future risk through accelerated diversification.”
In the short term, according to Irvine, “understanding the mindset of the returning customer, how to connect with them, the tone of voice, the content, will be key to the speed of a shared recovery”.
Asked how travel retail should engage with travelling consumers to endure a sustained recovery, Irvine’s response was clear and concise: “Gently, and with care and simplicity”.
“We have all been bombarded with conflicting information and messages for a long time. It is also likely that the crisis will complicate the process of travel at least in the short term, so creating a sense of clarity, simplicity and calm in the shopping/consumption moment will be key,” he added.
‘Real bourbon, no apologies’ Campari Group is determined to “bring something new to the American whiskey category” with its Wild Turkey bourbon. According to the brand, the bourbon is “different for good reason, and it all comes down to premium ingredients, select barrels and a lot of patience”. Wild Turkey will showcase its progressive range, starting with Wild Turkey 101, whose bold and spicy character make it perfect for the Old Fashioned cocktail, and moving onto premium and exclusive sipping bourbons, said the company. |
Of industry partnerships in this new era, he added: “When things get difficult the normal process is landlords lean on retailers who then lean on brands. We hope that the depth and severity of this particular crisis will highlight that the cake is big enough for everyone to enjoy a fair slice and allow some old dynamics to be reassessed and changed.
“We are all in it together, so let’s find a way that works for everyone.”
Glen Grant is a small boutique distillery founded in Speyside, Scotland in 1840. Its delicate liquid is born out of an innovative distillation process and the use of purifiers, ensuring that only the finest vapours condense into spirit.
|
Glen Grant boasts an awarded aged range, from ten to 18 years old, all to be spotlighted at the Virtual Travel Retail Expo.“We are all in it together, so let’s find a way that works for everyone”
Travel retail, Irvine added, “doesn’t exist in glorious isolation”. “Thankfully our brands continue to be sought after and enjoyed by consumers in domestic markets.
“When those consumers return to travelling, our job is to show the very best version of our brands to them, and to build on that domestic success,” he concluded.
