Can celebrity and high-end extensions boost gin in global travel retail? - Category Intel

Gin is a tough category in global travel retail right now. It may not be the largest spirits segment in the sales channel, but it has played a sizable part in the wider recovery charge for spirits in GTR since the Covid-19 pandemic – figures for the channel from IWSR show gin’s volumes in 2022 leapt by 112%, compared with scotch whisky’s +77% and vodka’s +68%.

The result of this, of course, is brands fighting for shelf space and demand-driven price variations. In the October issue of Global Drinks Intel magazine, for example, we reported that Bacardi’s Bombay Sapphire brand has been subject to price variations of more than 40% in airport stores – a tell-tale sign of the level of competition in the category.

Brand owners are stepping up, reimagining the juniper-led spirit to make it more memorable and exciting for travellers. Three arrivals unveiled at October’s TFWA World Exhibition & Conference in Cannes just might make beverage alcohol buyers sit up and take note.

Aviation American Gin

Fronted – and co-founded – by Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds, Aviation has entered GTR for the first time with a channel exclusive. The brand has achieved huge market share in the super-premium segment (US$25-plus for 75cl) in the US, where, according to Impact Databank, it was the third bestseller by volume in 2023.

Diageo bought the brand for $610m in 2020 from Reynolds and other shareholders, and is banking on the star’s appeal to drive airport sales. Diageo Global Travel MD Andrew Cowan commented: “Suffice to say we are thrilled to be introducing Aviation to travel retail globally – and with an exclusive.”

Aviation American Gin Expedition Strength is bottled at 46.5% ABV and rolling out in a 1-litre bottle. The liquid has the brand’s original blend of seven botanicals, but is more concentrated, delivering brighter citrus notes and a bolder taste. At World Duty Free stores at London Gatwick, the expression carries an SRP of GBP29.89 ($39.14), while at Heinemann’s Copenhagen Airport store, it costs DKK379 ($55.40).

The large promotional images of Reynolds accompanying the product are likely to garner attention and generate sales. Throughout October, Aviation American Gin ran a pop-up at Barcelona Airport Terminal 1, offering travellers the chance to sample two signature cocktails: the negroni upgrade and bee’s knees. More will follow.

Brockmans Wÿld

Forget super-premium, UK-based Brockmans has taken this to another level with Wÿld, its eccentric but innovative launch designed to shake up the gin category. The GBP350 ($460), 70cl gin debuted at the Carlton Hotel during TFWA Cannes.

The bottle is flamboyant and – at 37cm – almost double the height of a normal gin, while the liquid inside is said to be “ultra-exclusive – the kind of which has never been showcased before”. Wÿld is made from 15 botanicals “hand-foraged by local communities from far-flung corners of the world”.

Only 3,000 units will be released in 2025, and Brockmans plans a new vintage annually “to echo the natural changes in the ingredients’ environments, from the growing location, soil type and microclimate”. It means every collection will be a little different, though the core flavour profile will epitomise the classic London Dry style.

“We are putting gin in the same category as high-end tequila by elevating gin to an ultra-premium level,” Brockmans MD Jean-Dominique Andreu told Global Drinks Intel. “For travel retail, we are looking at locations like Ibiza, Mykonos, Dubai, Las Vegas and New York.”

Wÿld will be available in the channel through travel retail brand builder JP-GTR.

Le Tribute

‘Old but new’ is the brand’s catchphrase. The core Le Tribute line is a citrus-led herbal gin made by family-owned MG Destilerías since 2016, though the company’s gin-making history dates back to 1940. Le Tribute is already available in more than 50 countries, but is now making its way into global travel retail with a 1-litre channel-exclusive.

The brand has the benefit of having its own “perfectly matched” tonic water under the same branding and design. The approach could stand out well on-shelf in any airport store’s gin section, although MG Destilerías has yet to decide on this concept.

The bottle’s squarish shape and vertical grooves are both elegant and distinctive. Category buyers might also be swayed by the fact that MG Destilerías still makes another highly regarded brand – Gin Mare, which was sold to Brown-Forman in 2022.

The owning family want to move MG Destilerías into premium channels like GTR, with cruise ships and high-end hotels identified as targets. Le Tribute’s premium mixers will also play their part. Leading the charge is MG Destilerías USA president José Chao. He is well known in the channel, having been a former VP of travel marketing at Bacardí for more than 12 years until 2010.