Football legend David Beckham arrived at the TFWA World Exhibition yesterday to support Diageo Global Travel & Middle East’s (GTME) launch of single grain Scotch whisky Haig Club.
As reported, the brand was created in partnership with Beckham and British entrepreneur Simon Fuller, both of whom have played a fundamental role in its development. Haig Club was first launched in travel retail in September with an immersive activation in partnership with DFS Singapore at Changi Airport which David Beckham visited two weeks later.
Yesterday in Cannes Beckham joined Diageo GTME executives in discussions with customers and media to talk about Haig Club’s potential and positioning in travel retail
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Going for goal: David Beckham delivered an outstanding set-play performance during a press conference in Cannes yesterday |
Beckham enjoys an outstanding reputation for his professionalism, friendliness and accessibility and those qualities were on show yesterday as he charmed media and Diageo’s retail partners.
During an impressive press conference, The Moodie Report* asked Beckham what he thought were the factors that made a select band of sportsmen, such as him and boxer Muhammad Ali, transcend their sport even into retirement. Beckham replied modestly that he would never himself make such a claim, adding: “But to be associated with someone like Muhammad Ali is anyone’s dream. Muhammad Ali stands for many things. He was just so passionate about his sport and just so passionate about life in general as well. He’s always shown not only a great commitment to the sport but also been a role model to so many people around the world, not just for boxing but for life and for what he believed in.
“Throughout my career I’ve always had a belief that if you work hard then you can achieve things. I’ve always tried to be a role model, whether it be to older or younger kids. It’s one of the things I try to represent to my own children – I want to be a role model to them as well. I want them to say “˜Well our Dad might have retired [from football] but he still works hard’. I have always attempted to be that role model for kids and I think if you do that then you can continue to give back. And that can then continue over generations.”
Diageo GTME Managing Director Doug Bagley said: “It is wonderful to have our Haig Club partner David Beckham at this year’s TFWA World Exhibition. Haig Club began to roll out in travel retail earlier this month and we are delighted that David is so heavily involved in positioning the brand in the channel.
“Haig Club underlines Diageo’s commitment to innovation and to premiumisation in travel retail. Whisky is the most vibrant spirits category in the channel and we are working with our travel retail partners to deliver ground-breaking activations that will support our vision for Haig Club as an accelerator of the whole whisky category.
“We have big ambitions for travel retail this year – it represents one of the fastest-growing and most profitable opportunities for Diageo. As the market leader in liquor, we are investing in continuous innovation, in premiumisation and in creating luxury retail experiences for travellers. Haig Club represents a dynamic and iconic partnership and we believe it will have global appeal to whisky and non-whisky drinkers alike.”
Haig Club began rolling out in duty free outlets across the globe from October with a recommended retail price of £40 /US$62.50 for a 70cl bottle.
*NOTE: Look out for an extensive interview with David Beckham and Doug Bagley in a forthcoming edition of The Moodie e-Zine.
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David Beckham kicked off the global launch of Haig Club at Singapore Changi Airport in September |
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Haig Club’s distinctive bottle and striking store presence with DFS at Changi | |
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David Beckham’s Haig Club advertising campaign was unveiled at Changi Airport last month | |
