Extreme Success Blavod Extreme Spirits is One Colorful Corporation
By Taylor Rau
It's fitting in a world awash in new spirits brands, Blavod Extreme
Spirits (BES) is one of the most unique and up-and-coming contenders in
all of the beverage supply market. And the approching Halloween season
in particular represents one of the company’s spirit’s prime times to
shine — Blavod Black and Orange, anyone?
And for those who think black vodka floating over an energy drink — or
black vodka itself — is unique, wait until they gain insight into the
other workings of this Franklin, Tenn.-based supplier.
One Interesting Beginning
Blavod, founded about five years ago, was an entity publicly traded on
the London Stock Exchange until two years ago, when — again, in an
interesting twist — Extreme Beverages, a private company, executed a
reverse merger with it.
Despite the mountain of red tape involved — not only for a reverse
merger, but from the United States to the United Kingdom — the end
result, Blavod Extreme Spirits CEO Jeff Hopmayer says, was quite
rewarding. “The learning curve was a big one,” Hopmayer says.
The advantage Extreme Spirits did have, though, after its formation,
was intense entrepreneurial spirit — a push from the organization for
its employees to be empowered to make decisions. This translated into
quick movements and extra-personable action on the part of the
company’s sales teams, and it positioned Blavod well to relate and
react to on-premise market trends. Also, although not perhaps atypical
of entrepreneurs, Blavod heartily embraced technology, utilizing the
latest in communications.
“Technology allows us to keep in constant contact with our offices in
the UK and here,” Hopmayer says. Additionally, he travels to the UK
office once every few weeks, as does Blavod Extreme Spirits’ CFO, Fred
Read.
While Hopmayer says BES made initial mistakes, mostly with marketing
efforts, the zest for excelling and fresh-blooded enthusiasm for
success allowed them to resiliently rebound and continue on course.
Today, Blavod Extreme Spirits is reaping the rewards of that
resiliency. The company recently announced that for the last fiscal
quarter, as compared to the same quarter one year ago, growth is up 40
percent in the United Kingdom and a phenomenal 206 percent in the
United States.
While Hopmayer is understandably ecstatic about these figures, he
modestly says they are more motivation. “What’s really helped us is our
commitment and our sales team ... We try hard not to be just another
page in a catalog.”
Flavorful Portfolio
The earnest efforts to become not just another page in a catalog
have come to fruition, too, as Blavod Extreme Spirits’ distribution and
portfolio increase. Especially after such deals as Southern Wine &
Spirits of New York — the largest distributor in the United States —
picking up BES’ Players Extreme line, or this past summer’s company
expanded presence in the Florida market after ABC Fine Wine &
Spirits — the country’s largest privately owned fine wine and spirits
merchant with 150 stores throughout Florida — began selling Blavod
Black Vodka. “We are very excited about the recent deals created by our
distributor in the Florida market,” Hopmayer says. “ABC has impressive
consumer reach on its own, but combining this deal with the others just
completed in Florida at virtually the same time (expanded) our consumer
exposure extensively almost overnight.”
This is only indicative of other portfolio growth, however. BES
maintains variety, although perhaps Blavod Black is the flagship in the
nightclub and bar scene. In addition to the award-winning Players
Extreme line, which includes Five Times Distilled Vodka (stand-out for
its price range, Hopmayer says, and vodka flavors of Green Apple,
Cherry, Lemon, Mandtango (mandarin/tangerine) and Caramel. Players
Extreme also offers flavor-infused rums in Banana, Coconut and Mango.
“Our flavors are different in that they literally scream the flavor of
whichever one you are drinking,” Hopmayer says. “They are absolutely
great as complements to cocktails, or you can pour it up cold and enjoy
it that way, which many people do. That’s our real point of
differentiation ... we sell all of our spirits as flavor-infused, and
it can save bartenders steps.” An interesting note Hopmayer shares is
that Sean “P. Diddy” Combs’ restaurant/bar, Justin’s, offers guests
Players Punch, a combination of all of the Players Extreme flavors —
and they are loving it.
A new tequila also may be in the works for the company, and BES’ Bruno
Rocca’s 1999 Rabajà (Barbaresco) was named one of Wine Enthusiast’s Top
100 Wines of 2004. BES also represents a wine portfolio including
Italian estates — Baroncini and Bruno Rocca included — among others.
Of course, the Blavod Black Vodka launched in 1998 still remains the
thoroughbred in the stable of this Franklin, Tenn., dynamo. Of note, it
is the No. 1-selling vodka in airports — in Russia. It also is widely
embraced in the fashion industry, Hopmayer says.
Beyond the festive, Halloweenesque Black and Orange, the spirit lends
itself to many other creative, classy cocktails including the Black
Cosmo, the Black Martini and the Black Widow (cranberry juice and
Blavod Black, pictured above, center). Not only has the vodka’s
darkness piqued patron curiosity, but it has caught operators’
attention for its promotability, fun factor — and ultimately — strong
sales. Hopmayer says the dedicated and driven sales team at BES has
been very effective at encouraging bartenders to have fun with the
product. “We act very entrepreneurial,” he says. “Most of our people
are on the street all day.”
Listening, Reacting and Reaching Out
The philosophy of pavement pounding intact and in practice, BES
today excels at raising awareness of its products, shaking hands with
the industry and making friends and believers with on-premise accounts.
Its core group of 33 personnel, eight in the UK and the rest here, are
on the same service/profit-centered page.
“We’re not a focus-group-based company,” Hopmayer says. “Out in the
field, we relate with what’s going on in front of and behind the bar.
We hear horror stories, and we make decisions.”
At the end of the day, having the world’s only black vodka (trademarked
in roughly 43 countries) isn’t enough, Hopmayer says. Treating each
work morning as if it’s the first, in terms of enthusiasm of passion,
is what’s taking BES to new levels in the hospitality industry. NCB
It's fitting in a world awash in new spirits brands, Blavod Extreme
Spirits (BES) is one of the most unique and up-and-coming contenders in
all of the beverage supply market. And the approching Halloween season
in particular represents one of the company’s spirit’s prime times to
shine — Blavod Black and Orange, anyone?
