Seagram Displays New Single Malt Scotches

Four new malt whiskies from the largest scotch producing area of Scotland -- the Speyside region of the Scottish Highlands -- are being marketed as the Heritage Selection by Seagram Americas, New York. Each of the four single-malt whiskies is a unique product of only one distillery."Boutique malts are hot in the U.S. consumer market," says Bob Dubin, scotch category marketing manager for Seagram. "In mass merchandising the battle is to get end aisle and floor display placement, but boutique whiskies sell from the shelf. Our goal is to get a presence on that shelf, which is the single most important area for whiskies."To gain shelf presence, and to present the four malt whisky varieties in the Heritage Selection, Seagram has introduced a solid oak laser-engraved display unit for back bars, and a solid oak unit with a vacuum-formed base, silkscreened brass nameplates and laser engraving for display on liquor store shelves.The back-bar display measures 17 inches wide by 2 inches high by 5 inches deep. With product, the unit measures 13 inches high. The names of each malt -- Glen Keith, Benriach, Strathisla and Longmorn -- are laser engraved on the front face of the unit. The quality of wood graining supports engraving of the entire face panel and the lacquered red oak wood complements the whiskies' color and labels, Dubin explains. The footprint of each brand's bottle is routed in the top of the display to keep the bottles in place. A pocket cut in the top holds tasting note cards for bartenders to distribute to customers.On liquor store shelves, the four-facing, three-deep merchandiser helps claim and hold an appropriate portion of the shelf for the Heritage Selection. This unit measures 17 inches wide by 2 inches high by 12 inches deep. With product, the unit measures 12 inches high. The face panel of laser-engraved oak holds the brass nameplates for each brand. The names and brief descriptions of each whisky character are silkscreened to ensure readability. The relative shortness of the Glen Keith bottle allows a pocket for consumer brochures to be built into the platform. The vacuum-formed base has tracks to keep the bottles and boxed products neatly merchandised, and creates a base for the brochure pocket."Grouping the four malts together on these displays allows the products to stand out from the rest of the crowd. The displays also provide a vehicle for us to explain the selection and relate our positioning to the consumer," says Dubin.Rich Gausselin, vice president of sales for Visual Marketing Inc., which designed and manufactured the two units, says that oak was chosen for the displays because it's the wood in which most scotch is matured. "Oak is also a rich-looking material that adds an element of class to the display," he says. "The Heritage Selection is a high-end product; to get placement we had to go with a quality piece."Seagram Americas' merchandising strategy also includes a sampling program, complete with a paper placemat featuring tasting notes for each brand. Bartenders offer consumers a "flight," which is 1/4 ounce of each of the four brands served on the mat. Bartenders nationwide are prepped by Seagram distributors on the heritage of the products, and are asked to relate these details to the tasters.

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