Portfolio Refresh

Ed Cottrell, new managing director for global travel retail at William Grant & Sons, is convinced of the need to constantly renew the company’s product portfolio, the former soldier talks to Joe Bates

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WILLIAM GRANT & SONS has a new man at the helm of its duty free business. Oxbridge-educated Ed Cottrell is a former platoon commander in the Coldstream Guards with more than 14 years of experience with Diageo, as well as senior roles at Enterprise Inns (commercial director) and Bibendum Wine (sales director). Cottrell took over the high-profile position of managing director, global travel retail, from Justin Weston in June this year.

“I know other channels in the drinks industry very well so it will be interesting to put that knowledge into practice in travel retail,” says Cottrell. “Global travel retail is a new environment for me, certainly one with its own specific opportunities and challenges, but one where I am confident of bringing relevant new insight and ideas.”

Cottrell takes over a key player in the scotch whisky-oriented duty free liquor business. According to the IWSR, WGS was the sixth largest spirits supplier to duty free in 2014, ahead of major names such as LVMH, Rémy Cointreau and Edrington. Glenfiddich is, of course, WGS’s star player in duty free, but the long-term leader of the single malt category in duty free is increasingly being challenged by fast-growing Speyside rival, Chivas Brothers-owned The Glenlivet.

WGS has been fighting back, opening shop-in-shop style boutiques showcasing the Glenfiddich range in locations as diverse as a Scandlines’ border shop in Germany, frequented by Scandinavian ferry passengers, and DFS Group’s swanky new Duplex stores in Terminals 2 and 3 of Singapore Changi airport, arguably Asia’s most important hub airport from a travel retail perspective.

WGS has also climbed aboard the travel retail exclusive bandwagon that so many of its rivals had been on for many years, releasing in 2013 its much-anticipated Cask Collection, which will unveil new packaging at Cannes. It is a core travel retail exclusive range comprising three variants: Select Cask, matured in bourbon, European oak and red wine casks; Reserve Cask, matured in sherry casks, and Vintage Cask: a smoky variant aged in European and American bourbon casks .

The distinguishing feature of this non-age statement range was the solera vat marrying and finishing process, which was created by malt master Brian Kinsman to mature the whiskies. The vats were built at the Glenfiddich distillery especially for the Cask Collection. The vats are always kept more than half full to ensure continuity of colour, aroma and flavour, the system taking inspiration from the Solera system used to mature sherry and rum.

Cottrell defends the company’s decision to launch the no-age statement Cask Collection range. “When we have created a product without an age statement it is because it has been driven by a desire to create a whisky with unique flavours and profiles supported by a powerful story, unique process or innovation,” he says. “We will continue to innovate, creating exceptional whiskies with as well as without an age statement.

“We have two of the most celebrated malt masters in the industry, David Stewart and Brian Kinsman. David in particular is recognised within the industry for pioneering techniques that are now standard practice. Brian has picked up David’s mantle and both have the freedom to experiment using a combination of old and young whisky.”

WGS has certainly not given up on age statements, however. Alongside the Cask Collection sits the travel retail-exclusive 15-year-old Distillery Edition, and the Age of Discovery range: three 19-year-old whiskies in a variety of cask finishes. Filling out the Glenfiddich portfolio are numbered single cask vintages from its Rare Collection, which are exclusive to selected travel retail outlets.

Cottrell agrees that age is “very influential” in the purchasing decision of many travelling shoppers. “It acts as a signpost for quality and helps enthusiasts and connoisseurs navigate the category and a brand’s range,” he says. “In consumers’ minds age is an indicator of quality, the general consensus being that the older the whisky the better the quality and therefore worth paying more for. The family that owns William Grant & Sons had the foresight to lay down plentiful stocks for future generations, resulting in an unparalleled collection of single malts. It is this exceptional aged stock of whiskies that sets the brand apart from competitors.”

While Glenfiddich remains WGS’s most important brand, there’s no denying which of its major brands has been growing fastest in recent years. Its Scottish rose and cucumber-infused gin Hendrick’s grew in volumes by nearly a third in 2015 and, according to the IWSR, it, along with Tanqueray and Beefeater, added another 50,000 cases in travel retail last year to help the 1.2m-case gin category grow by 6%, faster than any other spirits category.

The brand’s curious marketing mix of Victorian-themed absurdity and Terry Gilliam-inspired surrealist nonsense continues to drive airport promotional activity. For instance, in June at Frankfurt airport’s Heinemann Duty Free shop in Terminal 1, passengers were invited to pedal a Master Serve ’O’ Matic bicycle to slice up cucumbers which were than added to samples of Hendrick’s & Tonic for passengers to try. The bicycle was supported with floor and wall graphics, branded shelving and a free gift with purchase.

In sharp contrast to Hendrick’s, Drambuie liqueur, which WGS acquired back in 2014, has seen its duty free sales fall in recent years.

At this month’s TFWA World Exhibition the company will unveil new packaging for the ailing brand in an attempt to restore its fortunes. “Drambuie is our secret and I am really excited about it,” Cottrell insists. “It has a strong brand identity and brilliant distribution.

“Since acquiring the brand in late 2014 we’ve been examining the best ways to re-engage with existing drinkers and to connect the brand with an entirely new generation of consumers.

“The first stage is to introduce a new upgraded presentation that we will be showing to our customers in Cannes.”

The relaunch of Drambuie aside, it’s going to be a relatively quiet Cannes for WGS in terms of launch activity compared to last year’s hectic show, which saw the twin launches of both the Art Deco-inspired House of Hazelwood blended scotch whisky and the science-themed Grant’s Elementary travel retail range.

This year, however, the spotlight falls on Tullamore Dew. There’s new 50cl packaging for both Tullamore Dew Cider Cask Finish, and the sherry-cask finished Tullamore Dew Phoenix.

“Constantly reviewing and refreshing the portfolio is absolutely necessary if we are to ensure the total offer is right for our travel retail partners and, in turn, their customers,” says Cottrell.

“The changes and additions this year sit alongside our most recent collections such as Grant’s Elementary, a global travel retail-exclusive range, and brands such as Glenfiddich, The Balvenie, House of Hazelwood, Monkey Shoulder and Hendrick’s gin, which create a compelling and undeniably ‘must-stock’ offer.”

Cottrell might be a newbie to travel retail, but he certainly understands the importance of Cannes to the duty free business.

“We are proud of the strong and collaborative relationships we have with our customers,” he says. “We place an enormous amount of importance on these relationships, and Cannes gives us a great opportunity to continue strengthening our bonds with our partners.”

GIVING PASSENGERS A VIRTUAL DISTILLERY

Move aside Google Glass, the new marketing gadget of the moment is the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset. Liquor brands have been eager to adopt the new technology this year to give passengers an immersive in-store experience.

In June William Grant & Sons offered passengers the opportunity to experience a virtual tour of the Glenfiddich distillery at Aelia’s stores in Paris Charles de Gaulle airport at a 29sq m pop-up shop. The Journey into the Mind of the Malt Master experience included amazing drone footage above the Dufftown distillery and CGI-created views from inside a mash turn. Steaming copper pot stills slid past the viewer, fermenters dropped down, and thousands of casks in the warehouse built up around them.

“At WGS we’re continually looking at new ways to introduce consumer engagement and theatre within the airport retail environment, in a way that reflects the DNA of the brand in question,” says WGS regional marketing manager Emma Humphreys. “This virtual distillery tour continues the rich vein of innovation that Glenfiddich is known for, using cutting-edge technology to take travellers into the heart of the brand’s family-based, craft-oriented heritage.”