National wholesalers and general wholesalers are included in the top 3 sectors responsible for 60% of Fentimans growth in 2010. Much of the wholesale growth is driven at a regional level for both general and licensed wholesalers.
Fentimans has enjoyed an increase of 30% in the on trade business in the last year. This has been partly attributable to their range of mixers, but also due to consumer demand for premium quality soft drinks to be enjoyed as an alternative to some run of the mill options available.
Fentimans Traditional Ginger Beer and Victorian Lemonade continue to be numbers one and two in terms of scale and trend, although recently launched additions to the range, such as the Tonic Water and Rose Lemonade, have enjoyed buoyant sales since being introduced to the marketplace.
Despite all the current doom and gloom and reminder that these are ‘austere’ times, there is still a significant demand for more premium products, as Fentimans growth of 20% in 2010 demonstrates. Wholesalers can be confident in promoting to their customers the benefits of stocking Fentimans, from higher profit margins to a simple matter of increasing choice in the range of their premium soft drinks offering:
• Consumers trade up to higher margin products
• Increased profits in tough trading times
• Being seen as up-to-date and in-touch by your consumers, offering something that is premium and different. There are no other botanically brewed soft drinks available.
Fentimans managing director and master brewer (and great-grandson of the founder, Thomas Fentiman) is clear about how important the wholesale market is to Fentimans: “conversations with our independent retail outlets has made it clear that there are two trends: one for economy products and the other for real premium offerings. The growth in the last 12 months in the premium sector has been greatest and as trends do not tend to disappear overnight, I don’t think that we should expect to see any reversal of this.
“One important element of Fentimans marketing strategy for 2011 is to focus on our ‘Seen in all the Best Places’ (establishments such as Gleneagles Hotel in Scotland, the Mandarin Oriental in New York and many other prestigious locations). This raises brand awareness and will be driven largely by the close working relationships developed between members of the Fentimans Business Development team and key regional wholesale accounts.”
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