Spirits Forum 2006

This inaugural one day event, comprising four separate themed seminars, will be the major premium spirits event for 2006.  Date: Wednesday 22 February, 2006

  THE DRINKS BUSINESS – SPIRITS FORUM 2006

  Date: Wednesday 22 February, 2006
  Time: 9.30am – 5.00pm
  Drinks reception: 5.00pm – 7.00pm

This inaugural one day event, comprising four separate themed seminars, will be the major premium spirits event for 2006. The Spirits Forum 2006 will provide the discussion platform for the opportunities and challenges facing premium spirits and super-premium spirits in the UK’s on- and off-trade.

Each of the four seminars will feature guest speakers from the premium spirits industry and will be chaired by Ian Wisniewski and Charlotte Hey.

THE SEMINARS:

THE FUTURE PROSPECTS FOR PREMIUM AND SUPER-PREMIUM SPIRIT BRANDS

• Future prospects depend on the level of consumers trading up from standard to premium and from premium to super-premium. What evidence is there of this happening and how can it be encouraged?
• To what extent are future prospects limited by the sustained growth of inexpensive brands, which shows that many consumers currently aspire to saving money rather than aspirational brand values.
• With the number of super-premium spirits growing rapidly, how many super-premium brands will achieve the distribution required to generate meaningful volume?
• Some consumers trade up on the basis of product values, while others are motivated purely by a sense of status, how do you cater for both groups?

WHAT IS THE ROLE OF EDUCATION IN DEVELOPING PREMIUM SPIRITS IN THE UK?

• How important is education as part of your marketing campaign?
• How do you co-ordinate trade and consumer education campaigns – do you always lead with the trade?
• As some consumers are happy with evocative sound-bites, while some  bartenders want very detailed information, how do you ensure you get the right level of information to the right people?
• The trade increasingly want individual brands to provide generic tastings and information, which means bartenders and retailers may end up preferring a competitor’s brand, is this an inevitable risk you have to take?

HOW TO DEVELOP INTEREST IN AGED PREMIUM SPIRITS

• What is driving the current growth of interest in aged spirits, flavour, heritage or status?

  Getting consumers beyond their initial prejudice of aged spirits is a major challenge, so how do you get them to actually taste the product?

• Is mixability the best or the only way forward to broaden the appeal of aged spirits?
• Aged spirits have lost the digestif slot which they used to have a monopoly on – is it worth re-inventing the digestif slot as a contemporary “late night, hanging out” experience in which to savour aged spirits?

HOW ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS CAN HELP TO BUILD A BRAND: EDUCATION VERSUS ASPIRATION

• What should the initial focus of a campaign be, education or aspiration, and how can a campaign evolve beyond the initial message?
• The traditional route into the market was a major ad campaign, whereas many brands now have a soft launch through bars, so how has the role of advertising evolved over the past 10 years?
• At what stage of a brand’s life-cycle do you need to provide trade and consumer advertising support?
• How accurately can you target the desired consumer group by using the full range of advertising possibilities, including radio, TV, bill-board, magazines, bus shelter posters, cabs, and so on.

THE SPEAKERS:

GUEST SPEAKERS INCLUDE:

• David Meyers, Managing Director, Moet Hennessy UK
• Roger Harrison, Marketing Director, Pernod Ricard UK
• David Bromige, Creative Director, The Reformed Spirits Company
• Dave Steward, Managing Director, Wybrowa Vodka
• Giles Fisher, Spirits Buyer, Waitrose
• Alistair Viner, Spirits Buyer, Harrods
• John Glaser, Managing Director, Compass Box
• Nick Morgan, Brands Director, Diageo
• Mark Ridgwell, Taste & Flavour
• Claudia Brendel, Senior Research Manager, Freshminds
• Justin Blade, 42 Below
• Alistair Byran, AIS
• David Paskins, Gorgeous Group

Strictly by invitation only
Guests will be selected from the premium and super-premium spirits industry, representing
brand owners/managers, retail buyers, senior on-trade professionals and leading independents.

To apply for tickets simply contact:
Emma Seel, Peretti Communications, Babmaes House, 2 Babmaes Street, London SW1Y 6HD
Telephone: 020 7915 4777 E-mail: emma.s@peretti.com