An industry-wide marketing campaign aimed at improving the ‘pile it high, sell it cheap’ image of cider is being launched in the next few months.
It will represent the most concerted effort in recent years to give cider a quality profile and comes amid a spate of recent activity, including ScotCo’s decision to get rid of extra free on white cider and Merrydown’s announcement that it will avoid discounting this Christmas.
The campaign will be led by the National Association of Cider Makers (NACM) and will be aimed at trade buyers, retailers and the general public.
The details are still being thrashed out, but the initiative will include a CD called ‘Cider - the heritage for a great future’.
This will look at the state of the market, the history and future of cider making and retailing tips. NACM spokesman Simon Russell said a major challenge was to change retailers’ poor perceptions of the category, which in turn resulted in severe discounting pressures.
“We want to make people aware of the heritage and breadth of styles of cider,” he said. “It’s the oldest alcohol in the UK and we want to show how cider is still relevant today.”
Cider had suffered from the rise of ready-to-drinks, but volumes were starting to rise again, he said.
Helen Thomas, managing director of Westons Cider, who will become chairman of the NACM in 2005, said most of the industry’s marketing had in the past been left to Bulmers and Taunton. Both had since lost their independence.
It will represent the most concerted effort in recent years to give cider a quality profile and comes amid a spate of recent activity, including ScotCo’s decision to get rid of extra free on white cider and Merrydown’s announcement that it will avoid discounting this Christmas.
The campaign will be led by the National Association of Cider Makers (NACM) and will be aimed at trade buyers, retailers and the general public.
The details are still being thrashed out, but the initiative will include a CD called ‘Cider - the heritage for a great future’.
This will look at the state of the market, the history and future of cider making and retailing tips. NACM spokesman Simon Russell said a major challenge was to change retailers’ poor perceptions of the category, which in turn resulted in severe discounting pressures.
“We want to make people aware of the heritage and breadth of styles of cider,” he said. “It’s the oldest alcohol in the UK and we want to show how cider is still relevant today.”
Cider had suffered from the rise of ready-to-drinks, but volumes were starting to rise again, he said.
Helen Thomas, managing director of Westons Cider, who will become chairman of the NACM in 2005, said most of the industry’s marketing had in the past been left to Bulmers and Taunton. Both had since lost their independence.
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