Boost for Glenmorangie and Drambuie with pooling of supply resources
Glenmorangie and the Drambuie Liqueur Company are pooling resources to handle supply of their brands - but they both said they would remain independent.
They have set up a joint venture, Glenaird, to handle everything from whisky sourcing to bottling and warehousing for both companies.
It will look after Drambuie whisky liqueur and Glenmorangie's whiskies, which include Glen Moray and Ardbeg as well as the core Glenmorangie range.
But Glenmorangie will continue to handle sales and marketing of its brands, while Guinness UDV remains responsible for Drambuie. Both sides said it would save a substantial sum of money, which would be pumped into developing their brands.
Stuart Jeffray, director of corporate affairs at Drambuie, said: "The savings from the new arrangements will enable Drambuie to invest in the development of our brand range and our future as an independent family company."
Glenmorangie's chief executive, Paul Neep, said: "We believe this arrangement will deliver cost benefits for Glenmorangie, allowing us to invest in further strengthening our leading malt brands."
According to The Publican Newspaper's Brands Report 2001, Drambuie has remained steady in the top 180 drinks brands while Glenmorangie remains in the top 200 compared to last year.
Glenmorangie, which will manage Glenaird, has invested heavily in its logistics operations after being hit by problems in the past. Two years ago, it found 192,000 bottles of whisky lying unsold in a warehouse, which meant it had overestimated the volumes which had been sent out to the trade.
Last year, US drinks giant, Brown-Forman, which owns Jack Daniel's whiskey, bought a 9.36 per cent stake in the whisky distiller with the option of increasing its shareholding. While it strengthens Glenmorangie's hold on the North American market, Mr Neep said it did not mean the 158-year-old distillery would lose its independence.
