More grist for the mill

Miller Brands opened its first UK office a year ago, pledging millions in brand support. Marketing director Jean-Pierre van Lin describes his vision of success

Speciality beers have a big

challenge ahead. What's your vision for making them work?

"At the moment our focus is very much on Pilsner Urquell. The beer has been available in the UK for two years - in October we decided it was time to reintroduce it to consumers as we believe it merits far greater success. We want to make it more familiar to a wider audience. We're concentrating on London for the beer at the moment, but we will be concentrating on a more national level in six to 12 months time. Our aim is to get glasses into all pubs that stock Pilsner in less than a year."

What sort of outlets are you

targeting?

"We're only interested in selling our brands in outlets that have a passion about their beer range - which have an understanding of what customers want. We are distributing it in the best gastropubs and top-end pubs, and spending a lot of time educating staff on the brewing process and its provenance. We're not trying to be élitist or niche - we're just very careful and passionate with our brands."

What do you think of the work pub groups are doing with

speciality beers?

"There is an opportunity for all the pub groups to have an offering of speciality beers - most pubs could have a wider range than they currently offer.

"The most important thing is that bar staff know the difference between the beers. Whether a licensee has five or 10 beers, it's interesting to start selling them by promoting their differences. Staff should be able to step in and act as beer consultants to customers. It's about having the appropriate language to talk about the beer with customers.

"That is something we are planning for all brands. We have literature for bar staff on Pilsner and Peroni, but we can do more. We'll launch consumer-facing leaflets and mats that people can read in coming months."

Pilsner Urquell has a long UK herirtage, but has been off the radar for a few years. Has getting it back into pubs been tough?

"Getting Pilsner into pubs is not a tough sell - when we find the right pubs, the barmen are familiar enough with their customers to know that the beer will work well for them."

Would you bring out an extra-cold version of Pilsner Urquell?

"Pilsner Urquell was brewed to be served at 7°C, so that's how it must be served. We wouldn't bring out an extra-cold version as it would ruin the beer's authenticity. By serving the beer in the way it is designed to be served, people recognise the beer's high-quality taste profile - and are happy to pay more."

Do you have any innovation planned?

"We don't want to ruin the beer's authenticity, so we prefer to use value-added promotions to attract consumers. For example, we invest in glassware made of Tritan crystal."

What plans do you have for Miller Brands' other beers?

"We have a differential approach to our brands: Pilsner Urquell is for discerning consumers in top-quality outlets; Peroni is all about the Italian style applied to the beer, so it fits well in high-end restaurants or stylish City bars, and Miller Genuine Draft is for 18- to 24 year-olds, for higher-energy occasions. Castle's South African heritage means we can easily capture South Africans - it works well in places like Walkabout. For Miller, we've only used TV in Scotland so far, and we are looking to use it in different ways. Miller Genuine Draft has a greater potential market in England and Wales than it currently has, so we'll be tackling that in the next year. Growing the brands will be slow. We're not interested in having high levels of share of voice - we believe that's one of the ways of staying special. We have no plans to bring in any more beers as we have our hands full with Pilsner."

But SAB Miller is a big group with many beers worldwide and we wouldn't want to confine ourselves to the brands we have right now."