Beverage Dynamics

Beverage Dynamics May/June 2015

Beverage Dynamics is the largest national business magazine devoted exclusively to the needs of off-premise beverage alcohol retailers, from single liquor stores to big box chains, through coverage of the latest trends in wine, beer and spirits.

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32 Beverage Dynamics • May/June 2015 www.beveragedynamics.com INTRODUCING the GROWTH BRANDS HALL OF FAMERS F or the first time, Beverage Dynamics has added a new category to the Growth Brand Awards, honoring brands that have shown sustained growth. The Hall of Fame was created to recognize brands that have won at least 15 Growth Brand Awards over the years (since the program's in- ception in 1997). This year, seven spirit brands and one wine brand qualified for that honor. The Hall of Fame Awards were presented during this year's Growth Brand Awards ceremony at the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America Convention in Orlando. Photos and a recap of the event will be included in the July/August issue. The following pages profile each winning brand, highlighting what makes it stand out against the competition and tracing origins as far back as the late 1600s. These eight brands are the best of the best, and we congratulate them on their ac- complishment. We hope that younger brands, or established brands closing in on 15 Growth Brand Awards, will aspire to one day join them in the Hall of Fame. The eight brands in the inaugural class of the Growth Brands Hall of Fame. { BURNETT'S VODKA } HEAVEN HILL BRANDS 17 Growth Brand Awards • 2014 Sales: 2.61m 9-liter cases S ince its introduction in 1991, Burnett's Vodka has led flavored vodka innova- tion. Now available in 37 flavors, includ- ing its original 80 proof and 100 proof, the brand offers the largest portfolio in the vodka category. Burnett's was awarded a Fast Track Growth Brand Award in 2015. Burnett's growth has been bolstered by the flavored category's explosion over the past few years. Last year the brand launched two new flavors — strawberry ba- nana and ruby red grapefruit — as well as a new marketing campaign emphasizing the fun of consumption. "In the year ahead, we'll be continuing the 'More Fun with Burnett's' campaign and launching two new flavors," says Kate Latts, Director of Marketing at Heaven Hill. "We'll also con- tinue our in-store merchandising program with a new display that looks like a blue Solo cup, which is a major way the brand is consumed at young, fun, house- party environments." The recent declines in some cor- ners of the flavored vodka category have not deterred Burnett's. "We've been very prudent to launch flavors that fit with Burnett's equity and have consumer relevance," she says. "We've seen so many brands launch so many flavors and we feel the consumer eventually said, 'enough already!' We've tried not to follow the candy and confectionary flavor craze off the cliff." Burnett's is analyzing its distribution partnerships to optimize which sizes and flavors should appear in each market, working on an account-by-account basis. "We're really trying to paint he picture of our distribution and flavor mix with a finer paint brush to see which products are working best," Latts adds.

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