The Hot Are Getting Hotter
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Spring 2016 | V.2 BURKE DISTRIBUTING THE HOT ARE GETTING HOTTER A Burke Distributing Publication Retail Edge Seasonals Burke Beer Blog New Products Programs ANTHONY VON MANDL OF MIKE’S | SPRING SELECTIONS | A LOVELY TIME FOR LAGERS Letter toTHE TRADE HOPE EVERYONE ENJOYED THE HOLIDAYS! In This 2015 was a year of change at Burke for certain. I ISSUE I am happy that it is behind us and I am thrilled to say that without a doubt, we can look back at 2015 and realize how pivotal a year it was for all of us at Burke. Cover Story .........................1 I am excited about 2016, our 81st year in business! Although we started out without the Patriots playing in the Super Bowl, my spirit is still high with the Brewer Highlight .................2 belief that we can grow our volume and share in the coming year. Our beer portfolio is off to a sluggish start here in the first quarter but we expect that Fernandez Brothers .............3 to turn around by the end of March. Our Red Bull business and spirits business continues its healthy growth. 2016 is starting to shape up as a very Jake n Joes .........................4 exciting year! As some of you saw, the Red Bull Flugtag (which New Products .....................5 means “flying machine” in German) is coming to Boston for the first time in August. The event will take place on the Charles River and will attract over 40,000 spectators. We are excited that some of the Burke employees have Seasonal Selections .............9 Spirits .............................. 15 “2016 is starting to shape up as a very exciting year!” Programs ......................... 16 Retail Edge ...................... 20 expressed an interest in working together to build a flying apparatus to enter into the event. The event is open to the public (and therefore there are no tickets), and I highly recommend joining us on August 20th! Right after that, Burke Beer Blog ............... 21 over the Labor Day weekend (9/2 -9/4), Boston will host its first ever Grand Prix. This will be a huge event that will attract all the premier racers as it will be the final race of the year and those vying for the final points for the championship will be racing! Inside our latest issue of Heady Times, you will read about the innovative sports chain, Jake n Joes, and the meticulous care that goes into the success of Fernandez Bros liquor store. You will also hear from our beer blogger, Patricia Sheehan, about the resurgence of American lager. We hope you enjoy the introduction to all our new spring products, and that you are able to use Heady Times as an additional selling tool for you and your employees! Cheers, Heady Times is published four times a year, courtesy William G. Burke of Burke Distributing Corporation. President Follow @BostonPours CoverSTORY The Hot are Getting Hotter Authentic Mexican imports are the only beers with sales trends that rival the craft beer category and Constellation Brands are among the top sellers. Y NOW YOU KNOW THAT MEXICAN BRANDS ARE THE DRIVING force behind the ongoing success of the imported beer category. BBut did you know that Constellation has five brands among the top 20 best-selling imports sold in the United States? Corona Extra, Modelo Especial, Corona Light, Pacifico and Negra Modelo are all part of Constellation’s portfolio. In addition to their status as best-sellers, Modelo Especial and Corona Extra are the number one and two leading growth brands in the country. Corona Extra alone accounts for 25% of the import beer market and so it is not surprising that it is the best-selling imported beer in the United States. The newly designed Corona Extra can is one reason for that brand’s growth. The package represented more than 40% of Corona’s volume growth in 2015. Modelo Especial, up 18% this year, is growing in all 50 states. Consumers purchased more than 60 million cases in 2014 and its market share has doubled in just five years. Its growth isn’t expected to slow down anytime soon. Constellation sees a huge opportunity for the brand to grow beyond its loyal base of Hispanic fans. Their research revealed that 86% of general market male beer drinkers are aware of this iconic brand, but only 40% have ever actually tasted it. To capitalize on this fact, Constellation will hit the air waves in 2016 with television ads aimed at English speaking consumers. The campaign, called Discover the Especial, focuses on educating general market consumers about the brand’s heritage and full flavor taste. Corona Light continues to garner its share of devotees as well. Last year the beer was available on tap for the first time. Corona Light connects with both male and female consumers and it contains only 99 calories. The brand’s latest advertising will tout Corona Light’s flavor versus other light beers. Rounding out this group of best-sellers are Pacifico and Negra Modelo. Pacifico remains a strong discovery brand on the East Coast as the bulk of its national sales come from the western United States where it is popular among surfers. And Negra Modelo continues to show great momentum – its sales have increased by nearly 11%, but more interesting than its sales trends is the niche this beer has carved out for itself. Negra Modelo’s unique flavor makes it great for pairing with food which makes it very attractive to anyone who considers themselves a foodie. One industry analysist remarked that the brand sits at the “intersection of imports and craft.” No wonder it is the #13 Import Growth Brand. The Constellation Brands have an extraordinary growth story and many industry professionals don’t doubt that Constellation will continue to grow share in the United States. But one person is absolutely convinced that Constellation will see impressive sales trends for many years to come. Rob Sands, the President and CEO of Constellation Brands – a guy who puts his money where his mouth is, made a bold prediction back in February while speaking to Wall Street stock analysts during a routine earnings call. Said Sands, “We think that doubling the business over the next ten years is certainly a doable number based on what we think is going to happen in the beer market and in particular how imports are going to continue to grow.” www.burkedist.com HeadyTimes v.2 1 BrewerHIGHLIGHT Anthony von Mandl Founder & Chairman of Mike’s Hard Lemonade Co. “Constantly surprising and delighting Ready-to-Drink Cocktails and the new consumers in ways they never imagined!” Palm Breeze, Mark Anthony Brands is the undisputed leader in the FMB segment. VERYBODY THINKS THEY KNOW MIKE’S Hard Lemonade, the American beverage icon “Mike’s represents the American dream,” E that took the country by storm when it was von Mandl explains. “The one where you launched in 1999, but few know the back story could start out with just an idea and create about Mike. a real business, one that could drive against even the biggest competitors, one Mike is really Anthony von Mandl, Founder & that you could launch out of your garage Chairman of The Mark Anthony Group, one of North America’s most with very little money, making something diversified and successful private alcoholic beverage companies. With the that consumers absolutely love and could creation of Mike’s Hard Lemonade, von Mandl created an entirely new call their own.” beverage category, Flavored Malt Beverages (FMBs), by crafting the first real alternative for men to enjoy on beer drinking occasions. von Mandl believes that for the next generation of alcoholic beverage “We found that up to 25% of guys didn’t particularly want to drink beer, consumers, it’s all about flavor. “There has but couldn’t be seen holding anything else in their hand,” said von been a growing demand from the millennial Mandl. “That all changed with the creation of Mike’s Hard Lemonade – consumer for a higher alcohol product taking the great taste of lemonade, the type your Grandmother used to that still tastes amazing. Our proprietary make, using all natural ingredients and giving it a kick.” malt base is so clean that it allows us An entrepreneur from the start, von Mandl launched a one-man wine to use delicate natural flavors, even in importing business back in 1972. His passion for wine may have only an 8% [ABV] product.” For von Mandl, been surpassed by his dedication to quality and determination for brand this explains the success of their Mike’s building. Merely importing fine wine was not von Mandl’s endgame. Today, Harder Lemonade lineup which includes as the proprietor of Mission Hill Family Estate winery in the Okanagan such flavors as Lemonade, Black Cherry, Valley, British Columbia, he is an award-winning winemaker who is Cranberry and a variety of seasonals, all passionate about putting this emerging region on the world wine map. with an 8% ABV and all available in 16 oz. cans. Consumers are believers, too, and von Mandl’s interest in wine has taken him to all parts of the globe. Mike’s Harder is on track to outsell the During his travels, he noticed that it was hard for men to drink anything Mike’s core brands. other than mainstream beer on beer drinking occasions. He explains, “I wanted to create a beverage that guys could call their own – one they The company’s most recent product launch, could associate with, that would surprise and delight them from the first Palm Breeze, or “Vacay Every Day,” as the sip, one they would rush out and tell their friends about… And that’s folks at Mark Anthony refer to it, is made exactly what happened with Mike’s.” with exotic tropical ingredients and tastes a bit lighter than typical malt beverages.