“The shopper is the star of the show”: Bacardi unveils personalised bottle service in global travel retail locations

Bacardi is rolling out a personalised bottle service in global travel retail locations in its latest shopper engagement campaign.

The service was offered first in Heinemann’s stores at Frankfurt Airport, and features the tagline #MyBacardi.

The brand said the service tapped into the trend of personalisation as a key purchase motivator among Millennial consumers. Customers can choose to add a name and their own message to the label on the Bacardi Carta Blanca bottle.

The personalisation service launched at Heinemann’s stores at Frankfurt Airport (above), and gives travellers the chance to add their name and a message to the bottle label (below).

The personalisation will be activated as a central feature within a dedicated in-store Bacardi promotional area, the brand said. Bacardi’s rum portfolio will also be showcased with cocktail-making demonstrations and sampling.

The campaign reflects the brand’s desire to lead the premiumisation of the rum category, according to Bacardi Global Travel Retail Marketing Director Julie Witherden. She said: “There’s a huge global trend for consumer personalisation of their favourite brands and this is a key strategy in how we recruit and engage the next generation of consumers right to the heart of the Bacardi brand.

Bacardi’s rum portfolio is being showcased in a series of airport activations, with cocktail-making demonstrations and sampling.

“For us this campaign is a perfect combination that allows shoppers to celebrate their Bacardi purchase in a unique way, seamlessly integrating with the significant purchase motivation in global travel retail for home cocktail making.

“The breadth of range in the Bacardi portfolio caters for all rum cocktail and sipping occasions, but the shopper is always the star of the show and that’s our core message in this campaign.”

A close-up look at the machine which enables Bacardi bottle labels to be personalised.

Mobile approach

Bacardi Global Travel Retail has partnered with Lagardère Travel Retail for a digital campaign targeting Millennials at London Luton and London City airports.

The campaign celebrates the launch of premium rum Bacardi Añejo Cuatro, and will run from 20 August until the end of September.

One of the invitations that will be sent to travellers’ mobile devices to celebrate the launch of Bacardi Añejo Cuatro.

Legal-age travellers will be sent an invitation direct to their mobile devices with incentives to explore the new launch in-store, Bacardi said. They can download a barcode and present it in-store to receive a complimentary sample bottle of Bacardi Añejo Cuatro.

The brand said two mechanics would be tested, to provide learnings of passenger behaviour and redemption rates for future campaigns. Some passengers will receive an invitation to receive a complimentary sample of Bacardi Añejo Cuatro, while others will be invited to purchase a Bacardi product in order to receive a complimentary sample. “Throughout the campaign real-time learnings will actively direct the ratio of the two different mechanics, to maximise the effectiveness of the campaign,” Bacardi said.

Additionally, travellers using London City Airport’s free Wi-Fi during September will see a message on the landing page inviting them to download a code and present it in the Aelia Duty Free store to receive a sample bottle of Bacardi Añejo Cuatro.

London City travellers using the airport’s free Wi-Fi will see a message on the landing page inviting them to download a code to get a free sample of Bacardi Añejo Cuatro.

Witherden said digital campaigns were “especially powerful in helping us engage shoppers with new launches and contemporary premium brands like Bacardi Añejo Cuatro. Connecting with travellers at key points along their journey, to and through the airport, is a sweet-spot for timely engagement which can unlock incremental sales.

“We know that Millennials will choose to enter a store when there’s the right kind of disruptive, engaging experience, preferably one integrating digital and physical worlds. This is a key strategy for Bacardi Global Travel Retail and, where we have the right space and shared partnership approach with retailers such as Lagardère, the results are proven to drive conversion and incremental sales.”

Lagardère Travel Retail UK & Ireland Managing Director Amaury Dehen commented: “Lagardère Travel Retail has always been committed to delivering the ultimate customer experience in our retail stores. We’re excited to enhance the customer experience at London City and London Luton airports and to have worked with our partner Bacardi to bring some excitement to the passengers via the use of technology to redeem free samples of Bacardi Añejo Cuatro in our stores.”

Cocktail campaign

Bacardi has also joined forces with Virgin Atlantic to offer the airline’s Upper Class travellers flying from London Heathrow a curated selection of cocktails during August.

To mark International Rum Day on 16 August, the pair partnered to offer Virgin Upper Class customers on flight VS5 from Heathrow to Miami their choice of Bacardi rum cocktails from a specially created menu. The cocktails were handcrafted in-flight by Cyril Francoise of Soho House.

A specially-created cocktail menu is being offered to Virgin Atlantic’s Upper Class travellers.

Some 1,600 Virgin customers flying to San Francisco, Miami, Barbados and Antigua were presented with a complimentary Bacardi High Ball gift bag containing 5cl Bacardi Cuatro and Fever Tree Ginger Ale bottles.

“Building on our long-standing partnership with Virgin Atlantic, we have created a campaign that matches the profile spectrum of their Clubhouse customers with the versatility of our rum portfolio,” said Bacardi Global Travel Retail Director Europe & Global Advocacy David Hughes. “[It enables] discerning consumers to get a closer appreciation of what makes Bacardi rums so special.”

Cyril Francoise of Soho House is mixing cocktails for Upper Class customers on a flight to Miami today (16 August).
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