At this late date, you might think the global liquor market was dominated by a few deal-intensive, multinational juggernauts such as Diageo plc and Pernod Ricard SA, selling familiar drinks like Johnnie Walker Scotch and Absolut vodka.
Not so, according to a
new report from the folks at Just-drinks.com. The 10 largest multinationals have only a 14.5% share of the global spirits market, they report, and in Asia their share is a mere 2.8%.
The strategic question for the multinationals is whether to dive into the big local markets for traditional forms of hooch such as
Cahaça, a sugarcane-based product beloved in Brazil, or
shochu, a vodka-like beverage enjoyed in Japan and beyond.
Pernod Ricard sells local products in Thailand and elsewhere, the report says, using the distribution system to support its efforts with international brands. It's a strategy similar to that of InBev SA in beer, which got big enough to buy Anheuser-Busch Cos. by building a huge portfolio of local brands around the world and layering a handful on international brands on top of them.
But the other multinationals apparently don't think the local drinks fit with their international brands, at least not yet.
The Just-drinks authors think this may be a mistake, pointing to the success of tequila in going from a national drink to an international one. This is an even more impressive achievement considering tequila tastes awful and gives you a headache, though the report doesn't get into this.
It's certainly not hard to envision a U.S. marketing campaign for Cahaça, consumed by Brazilians at a rate of 1.5 billion liters a year. Just show some attractive young Americans in a bar, watching Carnival on TV. We'll have what they're having! -
Kenneth Klee
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