Fever-Tree has grown up. Last year it was voted SME brand of the year. Now it’s mixing with the big boys - and winning.
The share price, which has risen tenfold to 1683p, values Fever-Tree at a staggering £1.96bn, making it bigger than Britvic.
And with “genuinely innovative” product development, said one judge, “they have taken on the mighty Coca-Cola (Schweppes) and beaten it.”
“Fever-Tree has reinvigorated an old market through quality,” said another. “It’s not only taken tonic and mixers by the scruff of the neck, but arguably dragged gin up with it.”
A third judge also praised the “provenance of the ingredients and the superior quality of the product”. A fourth said Fever-Tree had a “passionate approach, it’s a brand that scares older, bigger competitors. It has a strong story, it has great new product development. It’s doing extremely well in a category it almost singlehandedly invented, and is still continuing to innovate.”
Examples of innovation from 2016 included the UK’s first all-natural cola created specifically for mixing with spirits and made with typically exotic ingredients like Nigerian kola nut, Mexican lime and Madagascan vanilla.
And with international markets being explored hard (it’s now sold in 50 countries), there is plenty more growth to come. It’s taken a while but rivals are fighting back. Britvic launched a range of premium mixers in 2016 and Coca-Cola revamped Schweppes to play on its heritage. But with Fever-Tree continuing to grow - in the UK and abroad - it could just be too little and too late.
No comments yet