Interview, Part 2: Campari America Managing Director Melanie Batchelor

In the second part of our interview, Campari America managing director Melanie Batchelor discusses the company’s high-end Rare portfolio, growth in whiskey with Russell’s Reserve, innovation in vodka with Skyy, and its new presence in rosé wine with Chateau Miraval.

SND: How is the outlook for the brands within Campari’s upscale Rare portfolio?

Batchelor: Last year we launched Rare in New York, obviously a very important market globally when it comes to luxury. We’re continuing to make more investments in the Rare portfolio in terms of brands and headcount. We also launched Tequila Mayenda, which has a very unique production process, is a wonderful liquid, and is at a very premium price point. That’s one of brands the team is really focused on hand-selling.

Champagne Lallier is growing in the U.S. and we’re very excited to enter that category. We have Dominique Demarville (formerly of Veuve Clicquot, Mumm, and Laurent-Perrier) as general manager and cellar master, and Lallier is gaining accounts and menu placements in the U.S. That’s going to help us drive awareness of the brand quite quickly.

Rare is a big focus, and it has a halo effect on the whole portfolio, accentuating our skill in marketing and selling luxury products. If you look at what we’ve done with the cuvees for Grand Marnier, the high-end expressions of Wild Turkey, Russell’s Reserve, and Glen Grant, the Rare division will continue to be super important for us.

SND: The Russell’s Reserve whiskey brand has seen double-digit growth lately. What’s driving it?

Batchelor: Russell’s Reserve has been in our portfolio for well over a decade, but it’s really in the last few years that Americans have discovered this brand. It’s got a real cult following. It comes from a legendary family, with three generations of Russells working at Wild Turkey and Russell’s Reserve. We’ve been able to sell everything we can make as it has accelerated, but we’ve also looked to opportunities to premiumize with expressions like the Rickhouse series and the 13-year-old.

SND: Skyy is obviously operating in a tough category. How do you plan to stoke momentum?

Batchelor: The vodka category has been quite challenged for everyone except for one brand, but we were able to stabilize sales last year, which was really positive for us. We also launched quite a few nice innovations. The Espresso flavor is doing really well because there’s a great trend around the Espresso Martini in the U.S. right now. It makes a wonderful Martini, even better when you add some Frangelico. We also launched an Agave Lime flavor, and more recently a couple of Vodka & Soda RTDs. We’re still very bullish on Skyy, it’s still one of the biggest brands in our portfolio, and it’s still a very big category in the U.S., so we’ll be continuing to invest in that brand.

SND: Are there any categories where you’re not a major player now but see opportunity for the future?

Batchelor: One category we’ve just entered recently is rosé, acquiring the distribution rights in the U.S. to Miraval (the brand from Brad Pitt and the Perrin family). It’s a beautiful brand that has a lot of potential, and I think with our dominance in the aperitivo occasion there will be a lot of opportunities to integrate and evolve there, and make Miraval a brand that really stands out in the rosé category.

Tagged : Campari, Champagne Lallier, Glen Grant, Mirval, Russell's Reserve, Skyy, Wild Turkey

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