Waterford Distillery, producer of the world’s most naturally flavoursome single malt whiskies, has appointed Craftwork as its new UK distributor.
Craftwork will now expedite product roll-out for the full Waterford Whisky range, and sister brand Renegade Rum.
Under the new distribution partnership, announced today, both brands will benefit from expanded UK distribution operations.
As specialists in distributing premium beverage brands, the appointment of Craftwork marks a vital time of development for Waterford and Renegade - highlighting a commitment to the UK market as consumer demand for premium offerings remain high. In total, rum accounts for 14 per cent of all spirit sales in the UK, and whisky owning a 13 per cent share.
With an established global reputation and recent expansion into the US market, European sales for both Waterford Whisky and Renegade Rum are growing at pace. With a wide variety of whisky bottlings and rum variations to choose from, the line-up will include signature bottlings and a brand-new core range of original natural whiskies and rums, over the next two years.
“Craftwork is established as an influential and leading distributer across the beverage segment within the UK market, and I am delighted to assign both the Waterford Whisky and Renegade Rum brands to their existing product offering,” James Cowan, sales director at Waterford Whisky and Renegade Rum, said.
“We are excited at the prospect of building upon our existing distribution and look forward to a successful partnership, furthering both brands’ presence in the UK as a key territory to support growth.”
Mark Dawkins, founder and managing director of Craftwork, added: “At Craftwork, we are committed to working with the best producers, brand owners and products for our prestige portfolio. Couple that with our vision to grow our whisky and rum portfolio, and it doesn’t get any better than every credential of Waterford Distillery and Renegade Rum.
“We are delighted to be the new UK importer distributor and cannot wait to work with the team, on these brands, with our customers.”
Waterford Whisky and Renegade Rum were launched in 2014 and 2018 respectively by Mark Reynier, founder and chief executive, who boasts more than four decades of industry experience. Both brands combine world-leading terroir technology with locally-grown ingredients, to distil the world’s most flavoursome single malt whisky and cane rum expressions.
Gherkin brand Mrs Elswood has unveiled a new duo of snack pickles in handy pouches for maximum on-the-go enjoyment.
The innovative new Mrs Elswood Pickle Bites are available in convenient 50g packs – perfect for on-the go snacking, picnics and lunchboxes – in fiery Peri Peri and the original Classic flavours.
“Delivering all the much-loved punch and crunch of a Mrs Elswood Gherkin but now in a handy pouch for extra convenience, we’re confident that Mrs Elswood Pickle Bites will be a hit with consumers seeking a new vegetable-based snacking experience,” commented Mat Moyes, Marketing Controller for Mrs Elswood.
“We know that consumers are increasingly seeking healthier snacking alternatives – and a pickled vegetable fits the bill perfectly. Pickles are a wonderfully versatile little product – delicious either on their own or when pimping up the dullest of dishes!” added Moyes.
“However, virtually all pickles sold in the UK come in jars and we appreciate that when people are out and about, they don’t want to be dealing with a load of pickle juice so we’ve developed a pickle with all the flavour and barely any brine and popped them into pouches to help consumers enjoy our gherkins wherever they may be.”
Mrs Elswood Pickle Bites are the result of the meeting of three key trends – convenience and portability, the desire to snack more healthily and the growing consumer desire to zing up the everyday with flavours developed specifically to put a punch into lunch.
The launch of Mrs Elswood Pickle Bites comes as gherkins continue to show strong growth in the UK (+10.6 per cent value growth). Mrs Elswood is now the UK’s #1 gherkin with a 17 per cent value share.
Gluten-free, vegan and kosher with an 18 month shelf-life, Mrs Elswood Pickle Bites (RRP £1.79 per 50g pouch) are available through brand owner Empire Bespoke Foods, a leading UK importer and distributor of speciality foods.
Rowntree’s has announced the launch of its latest innovation - Jelly Tots Tangy, as it celebrates the 60th birthday of Jelly Tots.
A vibrant and playful twist on the much-loved classic Jelly Tots, originally launched in 1965, this new creation steps into the sour space, offering fans a flavourful experience that combines nostalgia with tanginess!
Made with real fruit juice, the sweets are not only bursting with flavour but are also vegan-friendly, appealing to a broader audience who value delicious treats.
Packaged in a 140g sharing bag, Jelly Tots Tangy (RRP £1.50) is perfect for any sharing occasion, whether it's a family gathering or fun sociable events with friends.
“At Rowntree’s, we are dedicated to bringing joy and innovation to our fans. With Jelly Tots Tangy, we’ve taken a beloved classic and added a refreshing twist that we believe will resonate with both new and loyal fans alike,” Hayley Nixon, senior brand manager for Rowntree’s, said.
“It’s not just a sweet; it’s a fun experience to share and enjoy together!”
Jelly Tots Tangy rolls out in stores nationwide this January.
Mars Wrigley has launched two new Extra Refreshers price marked packs (PMPs), perfectly suited to the convenience channel. The Tropical and Bubblemint flavour PMPs are now available in 30-piece bottles and soft chew format, providing retailers with an additional opportunity to drive gum sales.
The gum category is currently growing at a rate of +4.9 per cent year on year (value), demonstrating the revenue opportunity1. The new PMPs support this by enabling convenience retailers to maximise the Extra Refreshers sales in the channel – 90 per cent of shoppers haven’t tried Refreshers and yet 70 per cent of all Refreshers fruit volume is incremental to the category. Additionally, fruit gum is the fastest growing segment in the category and is growing faster than the wider category with value growth of 8.9 per cent.
“The benefits of PMPs are well known – they offer a quick price comparison and can capture the impulse shopper’s attention to drive retailers’ incremental sales,” said Ross Ripamonti, Gum Brand Director at Mars Wrigley. “Our new PMPs deliver on this by providing trending flavours that communicate value to the shopper.
“This is a hugely exciting time for the category and the Extra Refreshers brand. This year, we are putting a multimillion media investment behind our fruit gum range, including Extra Refreshers PMPs, to bring the product benefits to life and support sales within the convenience channel.”
The Extra Refreshers PMP bottles are now available in wholesalers nationwide with an RRP of £2.50.
Mogu Mogu, the viral drinks brand renowned for its unique and delicious nata de coco beverages, has announced the launch of its most popular flavours in 1-litre multipacks.
Exclusively available to independent retailers via Dhamecha, the brand’s bestselling Lychee and Mango flavours – alongside Strawberry and Blackcurrant – are accessible in this high-demand new format.
The launch comes off the back of research commissioned by the soft drinks sensation which found that over a third (36%) of Mogu Mogu shoppers would like to see multipacks in store, while almost a third (29%) also want to see their favourite flavours in 1-litre bottles on shop shelves.
Combining the two by launching six-packs of its largest format, Mogu Mogu aims to reinforce its position as the UK’s fastest-growing soft drinks brand [NielsenIQ, 52 w/e 09.03.24].
“2024 was a bumper year for us. We broke into the Top 10 in Juice Drinks by delivering a quarter of the segment’s growth over the previous two years – more than any competitor. This is largely thanks to our ‘Drink Now’ single formats, which have always been our heartland,” said Indy Jhalli, national account manager at ASCO Foods.
“But there’s been a noticeable shift towards at-home consumption occasions and our shoppers have been rallying for larger versions of their favourite flavours which they can stock up on and share in front of the telly or around the dinner table.
“We’ve worked with Dhamecha to make sure our new 1-litre six-packs are available in-depot, just in time for the January rush, when a huge influx of shoppers are opting for refreshing soft drinks above other beverages to tide them through the month.”
Daniel Spruds, Buyer at Dhamecha Group added: “Mogu Mogu is continuing to go from strength to strength within Dhamecha’s business. Building on this, the introduction of a 1-litre multipack format extends Mogu Mogu’s horizon to better access the growing number of at-home occasions. We are extremely pleased to deliver this new pack format into 2025.”
The Mogu Mogu 1-litre six-packs (RRP: £3.49 per bottle) are available exclusively to retailers via Dhamecha in four major depots: Wembley, Croydon, Barking, and Leicester.
Leading ice-cream tub brand Ben & Jerry’s has announced the launch of two new indulgent SKUs - Bohemian Raspberry and Brookies & Cream Sundae.
Bohemian Raspberry is a non-dairy music-inspired raspberry SKU celebrating 50 years of one of the world’s most iconic songs. Ben & Jerry’s Brookies & Cream Sundae is an innovative new flavour, inspired by the flavour combination of brownies and cookies to create a brookie, bringing the bakery-favourite to the ice cream category for the very first time.
Ben & Jerry’s Bohemian Raspberry launches in partnership with Queen and celebrates the 50th anniversary of the band’s iconic song, Bohemian Rhapsody. The collaboration flavour of Bohemian Raspberry is part of Ben & Jerry’s Non-Dairy range, made with the brand’s oat-based non-dairy recipe. The new tub includes fudgy brownies and rich raspberry swirls tapping into the growing trend for berry and raspberry flavours which saw more than 18 million searches in 2024. Proceeds from Bohemian Raspberry will go to the Mercury Phoenix Trust, which helps fund the global fight against AIDS.
Ben & Jerry’s Brookies & Cream Sundae is the latest addition to Ben and Jerry’s successful Sundaes range, which has grown 32 per cent YoY, bringing together the ice cream innovators two most popular flavours (Cookie Dough & Chocolate Fudge Brownie) into one legendary Sundae. The new SKU features creamy vanilla ice cream packed full of fudgy brownie-style cookie dough, golden cookie swirls, and white ampersand chunks, perfectly showcasing how the best things are even better when they’re together.
“We're thrilled to introduce two fantastic new ice creams from Ben & Jerry's. First up, Bohemian Raspberry is making a comeback, as a non-dairy flavour. We first launched Bohemian Raspberry back in 2007 after a fan’s suggestion, and what could be more rock ‘n’ roll than bringing it back to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Bohemian Rhapsody,” Flo Howell, country business lead at Ben & Jerry’s UK, commented.
“Brookies & Cream Sundae embodies our belief that good things are even better together. Combining cookies and brownies was a no-brainer for us, and consumer testing showed it’s a hit.”
Like all Ben & Jerry’s products, the new SKUs are made with Fairtrade Certified ingredients including vanilla, sugar and cocoa.
Both Ben & Jerry’s Brookies & Cream Sundae and Ben & Jerry’s Bohemian Raspberry are available in the grocery, convenience and wholesale channels from this month.