John Distilleries Pvt Ltd, maker of India’s fifth largest whiskey brand Original Choice, is joining United Spirits Ltd (USL) and others in making a strong push towards selling higher-priced liquor as growth in demand for cheap spirits drops sharply.
The firm has toned down its sales expectation this year as rising liquor taxes in some states and high inflation hurt demand for Original Choice, which generates more than 90 per cent of its revenue. It expects sales to rise just 3 per cent this year to over Rs 500 crore,
according to a Live Mint report by Mihir Dalal.
“At the beginning of the year, we were thinking of 13 million cases. But, considering the weak demand in the mass segment and some packaging issues on our end, we now expect to do 12 million cases,” said Sridhar Pongur, Joint Managing Director. “The mass segment (which includes Original Choice) is growing at five to seven per cent, whereas the semi-premium and premium category is growing at 15-16 per cent.”
The growth in cheap liquor has slowed over the past two years. To combat the slowdown, John Distilleries launched products such as Mont Castle brandy, which are priced 60-200 per cent more than Original Choice. A 750 ml bottle of Original Choice costs Rs 156 in Karnataka. The firm will also launch grape-based brandy Roulette, priced around Rs 1,000, in February in Tamil Nadu, Pongur said.