With overall tequila sales rising and
upscale expressions becoming an everlarger niche, retailers and tequila
producers see the category's fortunes
increasing into the future.
By David Lincoln Ross
oday's tequila marketers continue to innovate, with new and established creating category-expanding
sparkling and flavorful line extensions, launching scores of 100% agave entries at a variety of retail price
points from $25 on up to triple-digits, and devising new promotional, merchandising and advertising
programs with greater frequency and reach as never before.
Yet for all that activity, surely the biggest news in years in this growing
category is that the Jose Cuervo brand is moving on July 1 from worldwide
drinks giant Diageo, its longtime global and U.S. marketer, to Proximo
Spirits, a New Jersey-based importer owned by the Beckman family, whose
ancestor, Jose Cuervo, founded the Mexican distillery in 1795.
Cuervo remains the U.S. leader, with sales of more than 3.1 million cases
nationally in 2012, exceeding the next leading tequila brand, Patron, by more
than a million cases, according to the Beverage Information Group's 2013
Handbook Advance. For the record, Diageo North America said through a
spokesperson: "Diageo remains committed to the tequila category and Don
Julio will be our main tequila offering for the time being."
For his part, Juan-Domingo Beckmann, Casa Cuervo's chief executive
officer, said in a widely reported statement, "Diageo has been a significant
partner of Jose Cuervo for many years, but with 10 generations of tequilamaking in the family, Casa Cuervo is excited to embark on this next chapter
in the strategic expansion of its world-renowned tequilas."
Shortly after Beckman's announcement, Proximo's CEO and president,
Mark Teasdale, commented in a prepared statement: "Jose Cuervo is the world's As of July 1, the sales, marketing and distribution in the
biggest tequila brand, and we are excited to take over its sales, marketing and U.S. of Jose Cuervo tequila
distribution for the USA and Canada."
portfolio will be handled by
For Proximo Spirits, which was formed in late 2007, the arrival of the Jose Proximo Spirits, joining the
Cuervo juggernaut is bound to be a transformational event. It will surely place top-selling tequila brand in the
U.S. with Proximo's 1800
new operational pressures on its sales and marketing departments, while simultequila portfolio, which is now
taneously offering it greatly increased sales leverage with its distributors as well the fourth best-selling tequila
as merchants, on- and off-premise. All this for a company which has since its in the U.S.
T
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StateWays I www.stateways.com I May/June 2013
