Diageo NA Upping Ante In Vodka With New Products

Peter Zwiebach
Posted: February 26, 2010

Diageo NA, by far the leading vodka marketer in the U.S., is ramping
up its activities in the category, with plans for several new flavor
extensions—and at least one new brand—in the coming months.
"Obviously, vodka is where much of the action is occurring, and we're
very focused on expanding our presence there," said Peter McDonough,
Diageo NA's Chief Marketing and Innovation Officer. "Along with new
propositions for Smirnoff, Ketel One, Cîroc and Popov, we're also
introducing some entirely new trademarks over the next six months."

While McDonough didn't elaborate on the company's new brand plans, he
did say that Diageo NA is in the process of rolling out Coconut and
Red Berry editions of Cîroc, as well as Espresso and Root Beer
extensions for Smirnoff. Targeting a larger male demographic than
Diageo NA has done with previous Smirnoff flavors, the company has
chosen to package the brand's new extensions in a bottle that closely
resembles the core Smirnoff bottle, rather than the corkscrew shape
favored by Smirnoff's Twist flavored range.

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