Member Article

Boutique British Gin Brand Rides the Wave of Gin’s Moment in the Spotlight

UK exports of gin have this year hit £530 million (Wine and Spirit Trade Association), with Britain now sending more gin around the world than beef – a stat that shows the global love affair with British Gin is far from over.

Alex Robson, an entrepreneur who is making waves in the gin world, is the only female to have launched a successful gin brand in the UK and globally with her King of Soho Gin showing the big boys that boutique can pack just as big a punch.

Alex Robson launched The King of Soho Gin in 2013 with business partner Howard Raymond, the son of renowned publisher, club owner, and property developer, Paul Raymond. Following Paul’s death, Alex and Howard thought it would be fitting to celebrate his life and immortalise his legacy by creating a drinks brand in the name of the London district he revolutionised. For Alex and Howard it was important that the gin embodied the soul and spirit of vibrant Soho, with the bottles adorned with a velvet laden Fox to reflect Soho’s flamboyant and hedonistic spirit.

The authentic, quadruple distilled London Dry Gin from King of Soho was initially stocked in 14 bars in Central London and one retail outlet, Gerry’s Wine & Spirits, in Soho. Fast forward 4 years and The King of Soho is now a national brand. In the past 12 months, Alex’s gin has gone into over 500 multinational retailer outlets and premium bars across the country, and has also been snapped up by stockists including Asda, Morrisons, Ocado, Oddbins, Costco, Fortnum & Mason and Harrods.

King of Soho is experiencing a yearly growth of 121.4%, which when compared with established brand Tanqueray 10 (growth rate of 39.2%) (Neilsen) demonstrates how the category is evolving and how consumers are looking for a unique taste and story from their preferred Gin brands.

The King of Soho is authentically crafted in small batches in the heart of London – unlike many other brands who claim to be a London Dry Gin – and Alex’s focus on the authenticity of the product and the brand is unwavering. Extraordinarily for a trading company, Alex achieved profit in Year 3. The average time for a trading company do this is in Years 5 - 7. In the UK, every channel has seen growth year on year since the launch with sales having doubled year on year with that trend continuing in 2018 with the brand’s annual growth at 150%. Online sales have doubled compared to last year and this has been driven predominately by Amazon.

Alex explains: “We haven’t simply thrown money at the business. We run a lean, mean, fighting machine. Our business model is small. We don’t spend more than what we have.” With sales figures growing at an exceptionally rapid rate, Alex is now turning her attention to the global export market. King of Soho is currently distributed in Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic and Japan, and at the end of 2017, launched in 89 stores across Russia.

The future looks bright for this very British Gin brand, with the UK and global market falling for the charms of the King of Soho.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sandra Griffiths .