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“The big thing for us is that we’re both family-run com-
panies and that’s really important to us as brands. It makes
it a lot more personal as brands and everything that we do
together,” he says, noting that it’s important to find a part-
ner that markets itself in a manner that is nontraditional
and makes an impression.
“If you look at Alec Bradley as a company, they’re very
maverick with their advertising and how they put products
on the market,” explains Bechard. “We talk about how
Glenfiddich is also very maverick. It’s the first single malt
whisky to be marketed in the world. I think that’s a nice tie-
in with what Alan [Rubin] does with Alec Bradley. It’s not
your usual branding that you tend to see done with a cigar.
That’s what’s nice about the partnership we have.”
Rubin acknowledges that it’s a challenging time for the
tobacco industry, especially for those who work with premi-
um cigars after the 2016 deeming regulations were imposed
by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). With many
tobacco retailers having a limited amount of shelf space,
finding creative ways such as these special pairing and tast-
ing events is key to helping retailers move products. As you
devise your marketing plans for the New Year, think of the
special relationship between Glenfiddich and Alec Bradley
and seek out your own partnerships to help get your prod-
ucts noticed and purchased by consumers.
TBI
A PROFITABLE PAIRING
Whisky and cigars is a pairing enjoyed by many
consumers—a reason why scotch is being add-
ed to many retail stores and venues catering to
cigar aficionados. According to Bechard, the U.S.
is the biggest market for scotch whisky. Still, Be-
chard says there are plenty of people new to the
world of whisky who attend tasting sessions, all
in search of not just a new product but an entire-
ly different experience than what they’ve already
had. His secret to getting consumers hooked on
anything you’re trying to sell? Be ready to teach
and educate the consumer about all the facets of
your product.
“What I love about doing tastings is that I’ll have
somebody come to a session and one of the ques-
tions I’ll ask is, ‘Who here has never tried scotch
whisky before?’” he says. “If it’s a group of about
14 people, then maybe four or five people will
put their hands up. I’ve had the experience where
years later, these same people will come up to me
and will tell me about their whisky journey and I
think that’s incredible. They will tell me how they
didn’t like it when they first came to my tasting ses-
sion but when they got a bit of knowledge about
it, they enjoyed it and [continued to] go out and
explore it years after that first tasting.”
[ T O B O N L I N E . C O M ]
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