Developing and investing in new products is crucial for any successful consumer-oriented business. Of course, consumers can be fickle, and it is difficult to curry their favour year to year. So, spare a thought for William Grant & Sons, the owner and producer of Glenfiddich whisky. For their premium whisky, the product time horizon is not several years, but several decades.
The firm has, for example, just launched the Glenfiddich 1977 Rare Collection, a 40-year-old single malt whisky. Tapped from a single cask, it is beautifully rich, sweet and oaky. Just 150 bottles are to be made available for retail sale. To ensure an adequate return on investment, these will not come cheap – a single bottle will set you back $4,352.
William Grant & Sons is no stranger to moving high value goods. The company knows it is a case of following the money. The firm was an early pioneer of the duty-free spirits market, recognising they could capitalise on the concentration of high net worth consumers jetting through the world’s airports.
To that end, William Grant & Sons has partnered with Heinemann Tax & Duty Free for the launch of the 1977 Rare Collection. Bottles will only be made available in Heinemann’s stores at Sydney and Kuala Lumpur’s international airports, highlighting the strength of the travel retail market and its importance to luxury brands like Glenfiddich.
