Lark Distilling Co has appointed Spirits Platform as its exclusive domestic market distributor. The deal is part of Lark’s growth strategy for its eponymous Single Malt and Blended Whisky and its gin brand, Forty Spotted Gin.
Lark was founded by Bill and Lyn Lark in 1992 and has grown a reputation for quality and innovation. It has received numerous awards over the years, at the World Whiskies Awards in March, Lark was crowned Australia’s Best Single Malt for its Fresh IPA Cask and Australia’s Best Blended Malt with Symphony No.1 for the third consecutive year.
Lark Distilling Co CEO, Satya Sharma, said strengthening its domestic position was a “key strategic priority”.
“We believe the investment into this partnership with Spirits Platform, and their experience in building luxury brands, aligns with our business goals, improves efficiencies and enables us to capitalise on new opportunities. An exciting new chapter for our brands, business and people,” Sharma said.
For Spirits Platform, Lark will be the first Australian brand in its portfolio. The group represents a range of spirits and liqueurs, including Remy Cointreau and Edrington brands Remi Martin (including Louis XIII), The Macallan, Highland Park, and Bruichladdich.
Spirits Platform CEO, Ian Atherton, said there was an overlap with Lark and its existing customers that would develop “significant portfolio strength. The long-term strategy is to position Lark and Forty Spotted as core brands and the only Australian brands it distributes.
According to Atherton, Spirits Platform is a market leader in ultra-premium and above Single Malt Whisky, with the partnership set to unlock increased domestic sales volume and revenue through strong brand building capability and access to its significantly larger sales force.
“The opportunity is particularly prevalent within the wholesale and independent channels, where Spirits Platform has a sales force of 28, more than five times larger than Lark’s,” Atherton said.
“As the leading independent spirits distributor in Australia, we are scaling up our business to achieve our five-year vision of doubling revenue.
“We expect 50 per cent of growth to come from continuing to build our existing brand portfolio and 50 per cent to come from building new brands including Lark.
“We are expanding our head count by 17 per cent to 81 this year to align with these growth plans, providing the opportunity to increase our coverage and service our customers more effectively and efficiently,” he added.
The deal comes into effect on 1 August.
