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MARKETING BRANDBUILDER – War Baby
“standfirst”>Viña Sol was born as far back as 1942, and was originally marketed as the “Spanish Chablis”. Robyn Lewis traces the history of this expanding global brand from Torres
Viña Sol was born as far back as 1942, and was originally marketed as the “Spanish Chablis”. Robyn Lewis traces the history of this expanding global brand from Torres
1942. A year that was right at the heart of World War II; a year in which the holocaust began in earnest, the Battle of Stalingrad was fought resulting in estimated casualties of over two million and the Battle of the Atlantic raged in the ocean. Anne Frank receives a diary for her 13th birthday
and Mohammed Ali is born. Casablanca and Bambi make it to the cinema, Bing sings about a White Christmas and somewhere in the turmoil of a war-torn Europe, Miguel Torres Carbó (the third generation
of the Spanish family of winemakers) undertakes a long journey to the US and spots a business opportunity.
At this time French wines were extremely popular in the States and with France occupied by the Germans, Torres saw that a “French-like” wine from Spain could prove a wining formula for American consumers. Thus he set about developing a wine and a branding proposition and Viña Sol was born.
Originally marketed in those early days as a “Spanish Chablis” the wine did well in its targeted export market. The name was intended to evoke the sunshine and heat of Spanish vineyards and the ripe character of the grapes, all of which meant that beyond the austerity of the war years the brand has found appeal with consumers across the world. Indeed, the brand has gone beyond success in its first market to popularity in more than 100 countries world-wide to date and is now a key global brand in the Torres portfolio.
Perhaps surprisingly for a wine intended from the start to reach an export audience, one of the most successful markets for Viña Sol is Spain itself. Here the wine sells year round through both the on- and off-trades. “It suits Spanish foods well, things like tapas or grilled fish,” says Miguel Torres Junior, who looks after the brand today. “We have just launched a new TV ad in the domestic market, which we hope will bring more women to the brand. Currently we have found that the Viña Sol consumer in Spain is older and more masculine than the average white wine consumer and we want to attract new drinkers. This advertising appeals to women, though of course we have been careful to ensure that the brand is still attractive to men,” he explains. There is also new packaging on the way, which is intended “to be a bit more stylish to express the lightness of the wine. But again we have been careful to also retain the essence of history and quality that made the brand appealing to its existing consumers.”
One of the advantages of having such a huge presence in its own market is that the brand has been able to capitalise on the holiday associations that many European consumers have with Spain – and this seems particularly true of the UK, where some 2.2m bottles of the brand are sold each year, around 50% of all Torres UK sales. “People often initially experience Viña Sol in Spain and they then enjoy drinking a bit of their holiday when they get back home,” says Torres Junior. “It represents the essence of the Mediterranean, the sun and the light.”
From a product of war-torn Europe to a brand associated with holidays, good food and sunshine, isn’t a bad journey for any brand. “Our objective is to be the best selling Spanish white wine in the world and we are getting there,” says Torres Junior. On past form it would be hard to believe the brand doesn’t at least have a fighting chance of achieving it.
© db March 2006