NED Australian Whisky is outselling Starward Two Fold bottles in Coles Liquor outlets, ASX-listed distiller Top Shelf International has declared.
NED Whisky secured Coles Liquor ranging in February, building on its distribution through Independent Brands Australia, including IGA Liquor, The Bottle-O and Cellarbrations bottleshops.
Its rate of sale in the Coles Liquor stores doubled in the four weeks to July 3, according to a recent brand performance presentation by Top Shelf.
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The company claims NED is now outselling Starward Two Fold by a factor of 1.04 units per store per week.
In RTDs, it says NED is outselling Woodstock Bourbon & Cola by a factor of 1.05 units.
Current online pricing has NED Whisky bottles at $60 in Coles’ First Choice Liquor outlets, versus $69 for Starward Two Fold.
Top Shelf brands are not currently ranged in Endeavour Group outlets, being BWS and Dan Murphy’s.
Starward Whisky founder David Vitale recently told the Drinks Adventures podcast that Starward Two Fold is the top selling Australian whisky domestically.
NED Whisky distillery improving quality
Designed to compete with bourbon, NED is billed as “an American-style whisky that is Australian in origin”.
Made at Top Shelf’s distillery in Campbellfield, Victoria, it is distilled from a corn-based sour mash and aged in American oak.
Top Shelf managing director Drew Fairchild told Drinks Adventures the quality of the flagship NED Whisky has been elevated by investment “in distilling, oak and expertise”.
“A big part of that continued development is fuelled by our ongoing R&D program and limited release products, which provide the opportunity to experiment and test the limits.
“Our distilling team has an appetite for rule breaking and setting aside some of the tired category conventions to create unique Australian whiskies that take on the global category leaders head on.”
NED Whisky focused on biggest market segment
Top Shelf said it remains focused on the largest retail whisky segment in Australia, the $50-$100 per litre price bracket, which represents about 70 per cent of the entire whisky category.
But the company has a premiumisation strategy that will capitalise on the improving grade of NED’s whisky inventory, with super premium and ultra premium whiskies scheduled for release FY23 and FY24.
“The Wanted Series and the more recent Single Barrel Series releases were a precursor to the permanent addition of super and ultra premium products to the NED brand portfolio,” Fairchild told Drinks Adventures.
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“These limited releases allowed us to experiment with different techniques to arrive at the profile and style of whisky we wanted for these elevated tiers.”
NED Whisky advertising campaign
The brand presentation said more than 2.7 million people have been reached by NED Whisky’s recent advertising campaigns.
“We’re being very specific in targeting in our campaigns, reaching consumers in moments which they are socialising (AFL and NRL broadcasts) and in regional and outer suburban areas that have strong dark spirit uptake,” said Fairchild.
“The TVC and OOH strategies align with our national distribution footprint through Coles and independents, the latter headlined by IGA Liquor, Cellarbrations and The Bottle-O.”
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