Laura Noguera Presas – Global Consumer Director at Puerto de Indias

Puerto de Indias is an original idea with the soul of Seville which spreads its character around the world.

The brand represents the bottled soul of Seville, with the Torre del Oro as an emblem and as a homage to the Spanish Golden Age in which Seville was the heart of activity with the New World.

Puerto de Indias drinks from the essence of the south: it is open, bold, charismatic and likes to enjoy life.

Laura Noguera Presas, Global Consumer Director at Puerto de Indias, tells Grocery Trader how the brand is close to its consumers: from the beginning the brand was established spontaneously by a community of consumers who, first in Andalusia and then in Spain, tried the product and shared it in their physical and digital environment, generating a great organic impact without the need for investment in advertising.

How was Puerto de Indias able to find a place in such a highly competitive sector?

Puerto de Indias democratised the consumption of gin and tonic, with a more accessible, sweeter flavour. In recent years, we have seen a new way of consuming it: now the consumer seeks more personalised flavours. In this context, Puerto de Indias has been able to offer its own original, different recipe, opening up a universe of new flavours which were until now unimaginable in the world of gin. We have revolutionised the sector because we have reinvented classic gin to bring it to new consumers.

Has Puerto de Indias dared to be different?

Puerto de Indias broke the rules. It was created to make a difference without realising it. Not only did we create a new product for which there was huge demand on the national and international market, but “being different” established the style of doing things, and exported our free, joyful Andalusian character to the world.

What is the personality of Puerto de Indias?

It is Premium, but close to its people.

It is feminine, like the strawberry, like passionate red lips.

It is natural, like its essence, like its flavour.

It is original, as it is a unique product, which dares to break the rules and go against the flow.

What role has pink played in the success of Puerto de Indias?

We are the first fresh strawberry gin, and pink is our emblem, the element with which we have broken the colour codes of gin, and with which we have created a new category. Of the hundreds of existing brands, none were ever pink, and that is a symbol which has fascinated the consumer and conquered their Instagram profiles.

What are the ingredients of the Puerto de Indias recipe?

Puerto de Indias bottles the soul of Seville, a unique Made in Andalusia flavour. The natural ingredients of Andalusian raw materials include strawberries from the region and water from the spring of the Roman baths of the distillery. The result is the bottled Andalusian flavour and character.

What is the profile of the target consumer of Puerto de Indias?

The profile of the Puerto de Indias consumer is largely that of a woman who has waited to try what they have always enjoyed in a different way. They seek a gin which is sweet, smooth and natural. They key to selecting Puerto de Indias is found in its flavour. The brand is integrated in their lifestyle and they value the moments when they enjoy their drink in good company.

What is the importance to the brand of the consumer as an opinion leader?

From the beginning, the brand was built spontaneously by a community of consumers who, first in Andalusia and then in Spain, tried the product and shared it in their physical and digital environment, generating a greatorganic and natural impact without the need for investment in advertising. The phenomenon has now reached other countries.

Why does the brand say that it represents the Andalusian character bottled?

Puerto de Indias represents the natural flavour of local ingredients, a way of distilling and a genuine Made in Seville creation, an innovative designation of origin which places Seville on the map of flavour and international commerce.

Puerto de Indias symbolises the Andalusian lifestyle and its open, joyful, bright character, tasted in each glass or in the trend of going out for the evening as a consumption experience.

Don’t you think the name of the brand is very visionary?

It occurred to the son of one of the founders to name the new strawberry gin with the traditional name for the Andalusian capital during colonial times: Puerto de Indias. It had this name as Seville was the point of entry for trade from the Americas, with the Guadalquivir and the Torre del Oro as protagonists.

Five centuries later, and without having planned it, this gin has become an international gastronomic product, and which is an in the export of drinks, representing the commercial spirit implied by its name.

From Seville to the world – what are the internationalisation plans of the brand?

The international plan of making Puerto de Indias the first globally successful Spanish gin is progressing at a good pace, with presence in over 60 countries, of which 40 were added in 2019, reaching distribution agreements with operators with global capillarity in each market.

In 2018 it was the 9th most sold gin in the world, according to a report by International Wines and Spirits Record (IWSR), and in 2019 the sales tripled compared with the previous year, with a notable geographic expansion, where the United Kingdom represented 30% of the total, the United States 10%, Europe 15%, and Mexico and Latin America 20%.

Why does each sip taste of Seville?

Local raw materials of the highest quality, an artisanal process in the oldest and most traditional distillery in Andalusia, and a local team who proudly represent the creation of employment in the region. These are the hallmarks of Puerto de Indias.

What are the keys to the success of Puerto de Indias?

The keys to the success of Puerto de Indias can be summarised as: natural flavour thanks to its Andalusian raw materials and artisanal production process; being faithful to its history based on the local origin, tradition and personality; and arising as an original idea which captures the soul of Seville in each bottle.

Why is the brand growing at this exponential rate?

Public demand has been key, and the true driver of the dizzying growth of Puerto de Indias. This momentum was spontaneous because the public was attracted by its natural, smooth, genuine flavour, and began to order it insistently, first in Seville, then throughout the Spanish territory, and then in other countries, from the home of gin in the United Kingdom to Asia and the United States.