Scotch whisky has long been one the country’s biggest exports, but the reach of its global appeal has arguably never been so important.
While the UK has endured a cost of living crisis that has put disposable incomes under intense pressure on these shores in the last 18 months, Scotland’s national drink has been sustained by its ability to sell into multiple global markets.
The importance of such international breadth was emphasised today by Caspar MacRae, the new chief executive and president of The Glenmorangie Company, in an exclusive interview with The Herald.
READ MORE: Job fears at Scottish gold miner as administration looms
Mr MacRae, the distiller’s former marketing boss who succeeded Thomas Moradpour in the top job in July, was certainly not dismissing the effects of the UK’s inflation crisis, which has been compounded by the rapid rise of interest rates in recent months. And he emphasised the importance of the distiller being “sensitive to changing consumer demands” in the current circumstances.
But while consumers in the UK are feeling the pressure, he said the breadth of Scotch whisky’s presence around the world effectively means there have been plenty of other markets to pick up the slack. Not only that, but in many parts of the world the demand for whisky is very much on the up.
“I think everyone is feeling the pinch at little bit," Mr MacRae said. “Of course, it varies in markets around the world. The economy in Asia, for example, is still very vibrant. The economy in India is still very vibrant. It is impacting in different parts of the world to different degrees.”
He added: "When you work in single malt Scotch whisky it is one of the most widely diversified categories in the world in terms of markets where it is sold."
READ MORE: Glasgow development hailed as 'world class' by office leader
Of course, Glenmorangie is not the only major Scotch whisky player to be benefiting from this global reach. It is clear, too, from the results of giants such as Diageo and Pernod Ricard and the likes of the Artisanal Spirits Company, which has been opening subsidiaries for The Scotch Malt Whisky Society in markets such as Taiwan. The Society is also continuing to add new members around the world.
These may not be great times for the UK consumer, but there are plenty of whisky drinkers in other countries who have the wherewithal to continue buying the best “water of life” Scotland has to offer.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here