Lion Nathan Australia has announced that its spirit and RTD brands, McKenna Bourbon and Inner Circle Rum, will be sold in Australia exclusively through Bacardi Lion.
From October 1, the dark spirit portfolio will be distributed through the existing joint venture between Lion Nathan and Bacardi Martini.
“We had a decision to make as to whether to scale up our dedicated Lion Nathan Australia spirit and RTD sales force or invest in and leverage our larger Bacardi Lion platform,” said Lion Nathan managing director, Andrew Reeves.
Lion Nathan will retain ownership of the McKenna and Inner Circle trademarks and maintain responsibility for marketing.
“Our plan is to continue to invest to build these trademarks through both brand marketing and innovation. McKenna and Inner Circle are a very important part of Lion Nathan Australia’s brand portfolio and growth strategy,” Reeves said.