Amathus announces plans for two new stores
Top merchant Amathus Drinks, which celebrates its 45th anniversary this month, has revealed plans to open two new stores at the start of 2024, expanding its brick-and-mortar offering to 11.
With seven stores currently in London and sites in Brighton and Bath, Amathus will open two new stores in Oxford and Wimbledon in 2024, despite nationwide financial pressures.
Currently, about 75% of Amathus’ operations are supplied to bars and restaurants, while 25% is e-commerce and brick-and-mortar retail. By increasing its store offering, Amathus is looking to move that to 50/50.
Tom Miller, commercial director at Amathus Drinks, said: “Each Amathus Drinks store has around 5000 different products which can be overwhelming for the consumer. Our Amathus Drinks’ store teams are all WSTA trained and have a passion for drinks, which enables our customers to have a curated shopping experience.”
Not resting on its laurels, Amathus has plans to expand its high-street offering even further, to expand to 20 stores in the future.
Miller added: “With the rise in consumers wanting to have a great drink and experience at home, Amathus Drinks’ believes retail provides an opportunity into the rise of home drinking occasions.”
With such a wealth of products available in stores, the merchant is well-placed to report on the latest trends in the sector. Jeremy Lithgow MW, head of wine at Amathus Drinks, has overseen a substantial growth in Greek wine for the business.
“In terms of Greek wine generally, we have seen consistent annual double-digit growth in Greek wine sales over the last five years, and over that period we have expanded our range from two wineries in 2018 to 12 by this autumn, with four additions this year alone. Greece is blessed with a range of high-quality, distinctive indigenous grape varieties such as Assyrtiko and Xinomavro, varied terroirs and the current generation of talented and motivated winemakers successfully applying winemaking techniques while retaining regional identity – in short, everything you could want from a wine-producing country. Most excitingly, we’re only at the beginning of this contemporary phase of Greek wine; the best is still to come,” said Lithgow MW.
As for spirits, over the past few years, Amathus has been at the forefront of the Agave trend. “It’s our second biggest category behind whisky, and it’s the premium end of tequila that is seeing the most growth,” added Miller.
To celebrate its 45th anniversary, Amathus has released eight new limited edition bottles. The Amathus team worked closely with several distillers to choose a cast, blend, or vintage which was then sold exclusively to Amathus to celebrate the milestone.
The list of upcoming limited edition bottles includes Château du Breuil Fût 17043 Calvados Pays d'Auge 22YO 45th Anniversary, François Voyer Cognac Grande Champagne Amathus 45th Anniversary, Michel Couvreur 22YO Single PX Cask Malt Whisky Amathus Selection 45th, Jacoulot L'Authentique Fine de Bourgogne AOC 20YO Amathus 45th.
Keywords:
Search
56-58 Church Walk, Burgess Hill, West Sussex, RH15 9AN
Registered in England No. 6646125. VAT No. 938 4452 95
