Berry liqueur innovator enjoys internet sales boost
RubyBlue award winning berry and Irish grain spirit liqueurs are experiencing a substantial boost in sales following their recent listings by major internet retailers Ocado and Amazon.
The distinctively flavoured liqueurs, developed by Hughes Craft Distillery in Lisburn, County Antrim, are now also available in Luxembourg as a result of an agreement with a leading distribution business.
The new customers are now selling the company's four-strong range of bottle-aged in Ireland - Wild Cranberry, Wild Blueberry, Wild Blackcurrant and Chilli Pepper.
The super-premium liqueurs, winner of a series of Spirit Masters and UK Great Taste Awards and a popular choice with mixologists, are produced in small batches from natural whole fruits, grain spirit and Irish spring water by the family owned Craft Distillery.
Barbara Hughes, commercial director, commenting on the new business, says: "Winning business from such important internet retailers as Ocado and Amazon gives us a very strong platform for faster growth especially in Britain, our most important market and one we have targeted over many years.
"They also give us access to a potentially huge customer base of people who regularly shop on the internet. The listings are the outcome of extensive taste tests and are marvellous endorsements of the quality and, above all, the unique flavours of our products.
"We have been seeking to strengthen our retail sales in Britain, where we have good business with mixologists in cocktail bars particularly in the strategically important greater London area.
"Luxembourg is another export market for us, a significant to our existing outlets in the Republic of Ireland, Lebanon and Australia."
RubyBlue products are the first naturally bottle-aged liqueurs on the market. Among other endorsements gained by the small company is an award from the influential Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America. The liqueurs can be used as an aperitif, an after dinner drink or in cocktails.