Aston Manor Cider seeks Asian expansion for premium products
Comprising 25 per cent of the global alcoholic drinks market, the Asia-Pacific presents vast potential for producers such as Aston Manor Cider. As the largest independent cider maker in Britain, Aston Manor is well-positioned to bring its premium brands to the region.
Comprising 25 per cent of the global alcoholic drinks market, the Asia-Pacific presents vast potential for producers such as Aston Manor Cider. As the largest independent cider maker in Britain, Aston Manor is well-positioned to bring its premium brands to the region.
"China represents a tremendous prospect, as the top growth alcoholic beverage markets are in Asia," says Gordon Johncox, managing director. "We develop opportunities by leveraging our domestic expertise. We are flexible in our partnerships with retailers - backed by unrivalled production capacity and capability."
A family-owned business, Aston Manor nurtures orchards across Worcestershire and Herefordshire. Headquartered in Birmingham, the company has 20 different cider brands packed in various sizes of glass, plastic bottles and cans. With attention to detail and a passion for excellence, Aston Manor maintains product quality and consistency from orchard to glass.
Its distinctive products include Kingstone Press, a proper cider with the crisp, fruity aroma of a traditional English cider. A mainstream favourite, Frosty Jack's is a light-tasting cider and Britain's second best-selling brand in the take-home market.
Aston Manor also creates own-label ciders for Britain's major retailers. A supplier of choice, it won the prestigious Grocer Gold Awards for the own-label alcohol category last year.
To support growth, the company invested significantly to enhance the capacity of its Tiverton production facility. It also built a multimillion-pound fruit processing plant at Stourport-on-Severn last year.
A participant in the British trade mission to China last year, the company seeks long-term partners with implicit knowledge of the drinks industry to put cider in front of Chinese consumers. Besides its premium brands, it plans to introduce its other variants, Crumpton Oaks and Golden Valley, to China and soon to the rest of Asia.
"When we conducted a taste test with potential Chinese customers, the feedback was incredibly positive," Johncox says. "Those looking for alternative alcoholic beverages find the refreshment, fruitiness and lack of bitterness of our ciders as very positive attributes."
http://www.astonmanor.co.uk/
