‘I heart wine’ brand gets first big marketing push

UK producer and distributor Copestick Murray has launched the first big marketing campaign for its ‘I heart wine’ brand in the UK, as its sales grow to nearly 10 million bottles.

Robin Copestick, co-founder and director of Copestick Murray

The new outdoor campaign, which was developed by Bray Leino, launches this month and will run throughout May and June, featuring on the London Underground, on billboards and in stores.

Founder and managing director Robin Copestick said the launch would help boost further awareness of the brand with consumers while building on recent successes that had seen in the five years since launching.

In 2016, global sales of the brand were close to 10million bottles, with around 80% of that coming from the UK, helping the brand be worth more than £46m RSV. The I heart Pinot Grigio and I heart Prosecco recently topped wines in the Impulse sector, according to Nielsen data, as well as returning “impressive” sales online, according to Copestick

He added that the “first meaningful campaign” would also show current and potential customers that Copestick Murry was committed to supporting the brand nationally as well as within their own stores.

“While I heart is proving to be hugely successful we need to improve brand awareness with consumers,’ he said. “Despite Brexit, currency concerns and other challenging market factors we are convinced that we can continue our impressive rate of growth and we now need to support the brand at all levels.”

As revealed by db last month, the brand has recently added new regional wines to the wine brand, marking a departure from the variety-led direction taken by the brand which originally aimed to tap into the 70% of consumers who buy wine purely by grape variety.

The new additions, which will be on show at this year’s London Wine Fair, include a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, a Mendoza Malbec and a classic Rioja that will tap into the strong growth of these areas, as well as a sparkling ‘I heart Asti’.

Copestick said the move would drive the brand forward in a competitive and challenging market. “In a complex and confusing category, I heart Wines puts the consumer at the heart to ensure that choosing the wine they like is quick and simple,” he said.

Copestick, which has been fully owned by German group Henkell since May 2016, has recently upped its commitment to the on-trade with a new strategic partnership with online drinks distributor Ooberstock, which includes its I heart wine brand, as well as Henkell’s flagship Mionetto Prosecco.