INTERNATIONAL. Pernod Ricard’s Havana Club rum has climbed to the top slot of the IWSR’s annual Elite Brand list, published in the September issue of IWSR Magazine.
The brand has featured regularly in the list and has moved up from number three in 2011 to claim the number one position. With a five-year CAGR of +7.4%, sales in 2011 reached 3.8 million cases: an impressive result given that the brand is excluded from the world’s second-largest rum market, the US, because of its Cuban origins.
Havana Club is the largest-selling brand of those which meet the IWSR’s criteria – they must sell over 1 million cases worldwide, with at least 40% of sales outside their main market to demonstrate international presence. They must also maintain a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of at least +5% for the last five years – i.e. 2006-2011 – to demonstrate sustained performance.
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Pernod Ricard also owns the number two Elite Brand, Jameson Irish whiskey. Jameson has risen fast, driven by its performance in the US, where the brand has achieved a five-year CAGR of +24.8% to reach 1.3 million cases in 2011. Volumes increased by double-digit rates in 47 out of 50 states.
Eristoff, Russian Standard and Finlandia all maintained their presence on the list.
William Lawson, another Elite Brand regular, had an impressive +10.4% five-year CAGR thanks to its continued strong performance in Russia. Russia has also played a key role for new entry White Horse, owned by Diageo, which reached the 1 million case mark in 2011. Diageo has two additional new entries in the list, Scotch whiskies Black & White and Old Parr, with both brands posting strong growth in Brazil.
Aperol is another new entry following its success across Europe; the brand saw the largest five-year CAGR of the Elite Brands of +25.3%. The Campari-owned brand has driven growth through a strong on-trade presence and popularity among younger drinkers with the Aperol Spritz cocktail.
Barceló, from Dominican Republic, is the only other rum on the list and has the second largest five-year CAGR of +23.3%.
