Diageo have signed over the sales, distribution and marketing of five brands in the UK, including J&B Rare and Jeremiah Weed Brews, to Catalyst Brands and Marblehead.
Catalyst will now distribute Jeremiah Weed Brews, J&B Rare and three variants of Pampero (Blanco, Especial & Anniversario) and Marblehead will distribute Amer Picon and Crown Royal. Both agreements will take effect from 1st March 2015 and will cover both the on and off-trade.
Jeremiah Weed Cider Brews comes in two variants: Jeremiah Weed Sour Mash Brew and Jeremiah Weed Root Brew. J&B Rare is a blend of forty-two Scottish malt and grain whiskies, and Pampero is a Venezuelan rum. All three of these brands are currently already on sale in GB, whilst Amer Picon (an orange flavoured Bitters often served as an aperitif) and Crown Royal (a blended Canadian Whiskey) are both part of Diageo’s global portfolio but will be new to the GB market.
All of these brands will remain owned by Diageo. Andrew Cowan, Country Director, Diageo Great Britain, comments: “We are confident that we have chosen two great partners in Marblehead and Catalyst Brands. Catalyst have proven brand-building expertise and have delivered strong results in the past two years. Having worked with Marblehead on the distribution of Ypióca in the UK, we believe this is a successful model for growing some of our smaller, and more specialist, brands in this marketplace.”
Emma Wykes, Managing Director of Marblehead, comments, “We are delighted to now have the opportunity to do something exciting with the both Amer Picon and Crown Royal in the UK market. We feel confident, with our breadth of expertise, that much success lies ahead for both of these brands.”
While Gary Squire, Managing Director of Catalyst Brands, says, “Our track record of growing brands in both the on and off-trade gives us confidence that we can accelerate the performance of J&B Rare, Pampero rums and Jeremiah Weed Cider Brews in the UK market.”