Gaymer invests 24M

Published: 23 July, 2008

The Gaymer Cider Company is to spend 24 million on promoting its new range - its biggest investment in 10 years.
The company, formed by Constellation Europe 18 months ago, owns several brands, including Blackthorn, K and Olde English, but it will spend the money on three new premium brands: Gaymer's Original, Orchard Reserve and Addlestones. The investment will be split three ways:
10m on promotions;
8m on POS material, including branded glassware
for the on-trade; and
6m on consumer marketing.

Gaymer's Original will be sold in the off-trade in 330ml and 568ml bottles, at 4.5% ABV.

The product will also feature in a 3m TV and newspaper ad campaign in April and May.

Orchard Reserve, which is packaged in 750ml bottles, is being marketed as a great-with-food' alternative to wine. It made its first appearance more than a year ago, but Mills added, cryptically, that the cider-makers had, at the time, decided to keep it to themselves'. The third new product is Addlestones, a packaged version of the draught cloudy cider.

Gaymer MD John Mills said that the cider category had seen an amazing' amount of growth in the past year, partly, he acknowledged, thanks to the success of the Magners brand, owned by Scottish & Newcastle. He said that cider was now the fastest-growing category in the drinks market and that sales of cider had overtaken RTDs for the first time in five years.

He said: We feel we're ideally placed to tackle the market. We have the ambition and the passion to drive the category forward. I intend for this business to take a confident and dynamic approach to leading our industry.'

Mills added that Blackthorn would be ending its 3m shirt-sponsorship deal with Bath Rugby Club after eight years. The money will be reinvested in above-the-line consumer advertising, he said.

Printer friendly version