TAKING ABSOLUT TO THE NEXT LIFE STAGE

Background 

Since its launch in 1979, ABSOLUT has been an international success story. Today more than 120 million bottles are sold annually on more than 125 different markets. Vin & Sprit, owners of ABSOLUT Vodka, has set the ambitious vision to make the iconic spirit one of the world’s ten most influential brands. Years of strong growth within the vodka category, combined with low entry barriers, has attracted a large number of companies to launch new vodka brands. At the same time, consolidation throughout the industry has led to fewer but larger suppliers and customers. The result is a highly competitive and demanding market with powerful customers.

ABSOLUT's challenge 

ABSOLUT had for years had a very successful journey throughout the world’s vodka markets. It had for long been the dominating player, often defining what vodka was all about. However, in the late 90s a new segment within the vodka market emerged, creating an entirely different landscape for ABSOLUT to act within. The luxury vodka category (super premium) was born. ABSOLUT, the previous king of the throne, had been challenged.

Instead of resigning to the fierce competition, ABSOLUT decided to stay in the driver’s seat. ABSOLUT wanted to keep its challenger’s mindset while still being a global top-selling brand, taking the historically successful brand to the next level. In order to both drive volume growth and keeping its strong brand equity, the ABSOLUT organization invited LynxEye to join the team. Together we recognized the need for a new global strategy for ABSOLUT Vodka, to provide strategic focus for the next life stage and stay as fresh, relevant and exciting as ever before.  

Segmentation and brand strategy. After carrying out a global market segmentation, LynxEye developed a Brand Strategy to provide strategic focus for ABSOLUT’s next life stage. The segmentation provided unique insights about the consumers’ rational and emotional needs. Based on these insights, relevant and profitable target groups were identified. The Brand Strategy (Brand Navigator) was defined based on our knowledge of the prioritized target groups.

Portfolio strategy. A Portfolio Strategy was defined to coordinate all brands in the spirits portfolio, and to optimize their contribution to the strategy. Strategic market positions were defined for different variants of ABSOLUT Vodka (e.g. Flavors), and the interrelation between the brands was clarified. Guidelines were developed explaining each brand’s contribution to the Brand Strategy.

Gap analysis. To set the direction for the strategy implementation LynxEye delivered a Gap analysis, which provided the basis for a Communication Strategy. A review of ABSOLUT’s current market position highlighted Gaps vs. the Brand Strategy as well as the brand’s maturity on different markets. Communication messages could then be tailored to specific needs on different markets.

Results

• 2007 was a record-breaking year for ABSOLUT Vodka, resulting in a volume increase of 9%. ABSOLUT’s strong growth was the main contributing factor behind a 2% increase of Vin & Sprit’s operating profit*. 
• LynxEye’s insights have helped the ABSOLUT organization to prioritize between different strategic initiatives, bringing focus to fewer but larger projects with more impact.
• Following the successful outcomes of the ABSOLUT projects, LynxEye has also been assigned to develop Brand Strategies for other global Vin & Sprit brands such as Level, Cruzan and Plymouth.