CANADA: Travel retail and web will heat up ice wine market

By Elliot Lane | 14 November 2000

One thing the recent TFWE in Cannes showed was that international travellers' tastes are changing. Spirits have always dominated the duty-free/travel retail market because the returns are greater but premium wine is beginning to capture the consumer's fascination."Scotch whisky was always the king of duty-free because it delivers high margin. But now premium wine companies such as Boisset and Jaboulet are pushing into the market and seeing good growth," said Donald Ziraldo, president and founder of Canadian-based Inniskillin Wines.His presence in Cannes was for the same reason. Inniskillin VQA Icewine is being launched into the travel retail sector, priced as a luxury item to attract the lucrative Asia-Pacific market. "Through our successful partnership with DFS two years ago, we have penetrated the Japanese market. Icewine has become the number one winter gift for the Japanese business traveller," he said.There is now a recognition among wine producers that sales in the "high end" of the market are increasing. Targetting the hotels and venues where potential consumers frequent (a ploy used by the spirits industry for years) is now the issue. Inniskillin has secured deals with the Four Seasons chain and Ziraldo intimated he is in discussion with some hoteliers in Dubai. Delta Airlines has also signed an exclusive deal to supply its business passengers with Inniskillin's Icewine