In the 2022 National Liquor News Industry Leaders Forum, Paul Gloster, Chief Marketing Officer at Lyre’s Spirit Co, describes how consumer preferences are changing.
Non-alcoholic drinks producer, Lyre’s Spirit Co, has been riding the burgeoning no and low alcohol wave in Australia since the business began in Sydney in 2019. With big dreams from the start, Lyre’s has exploded on an international scale to become one of the quickest growing drinks brands to ever come from Australia, now available in more than 50 countries and experiencing four digit growth.
But for Chief Marketing Officer, Paul Gloster, it’s the incredible results on home soil that have been a huge highlight for the brand in the past year.
“Our biggest success has been the way the Australian market, both trade and consumers, has embraced Lyre’s and the whole concept of non-alcoholic spirits. We really feel like it’s broken through from being a trend on the horizon to being something people are actually really embracing,” Gloster told National Liquor News.
“We’re seeing reports globally that Australia is starting to lead the world in adoption of non-alcoholic [drinks alternatives].”
Lyre’s has played a key role in helping Australian consumers see the non-alcoholic drinks market as a really credible part of the industry, and that is illustrated in its great results and developments in 2021. This includes the recent launch of Classico, the brand’s first full size non-alcoholic sparkling wine, which Gloster described as an “amazing success” just weeks after launch. This was then joined by two non-alcoholic agave spirits, as well as a London Pink Spirit, which will have 10 per cent of all Australian sales donated to the McGrath Foundation.
Another bright spot of the Lyre’s portfolio alongside the new releases has been the RTD range, allowing consumers to partake in non-alcoholic drinks in an easy and convenient format.
For 2022, Gloster said the focus will be about building on these successes and “continuing to accelerate growth from momentum we’ve picked up… It’s really about putting our foot down next year in 2022, as much as we possibly can.
“We’ve always got a couple of things in the pipeline, rounding out the rest of the portfolio. So there will be even more ways you can make it a Lyre’s.”
A message to retailers
As the biggest local non-alcoholic spirits producer, Gloster said Lyre’s has an important message for retailers about the sector – now is the time to get on board with the no and low alcohol trend.
“Definitely get behind the trend and support it. It’s happened – it’s not just coming soon, it’s here,” Gloster said.
“There’s always consumers that are looking for a high quality non-alcoholic substitute, and having that ranged in your store is really important going forward. This trend is definitely not going away.”
Stay tuned for the upcoming April issue of National Liquor News, which includes an analysis of the current state of the no and low alcohol (NOLO) segment in Australia.
Read more from the 2022 National Liquor News Leaders Forum here.