A star performer and market leader, Namaqua has transformed the bag in box category and is now a multimillion-pound brand, distributed widely throughout the UK. It is the second biggest South African brand and the UK’s biggest selling South African SKU and the single biggest selling 3L boxed wine. The story of the creation of Namaqua is a textbook case study in successful wine brand building
Forming the Plan
From its inception, Raisin Social have led and driven the project to build a massive high volume bag box brand in the UK
Raisin Social always begins a project by looking at the customer and the market. In this case, analysis revealed increasing demand for bag in box, but the category was fragmented and there was no recognised brand from South Africa. Raisin Social identified a gap for a new South African Bag in Box brand
The next stage was to find the right partner. Westcorp had been working with Raisin Social for many years and they have a strong relationship based on mutual respect. Critically, Westcorp are the biggest winery in South Africa and so consistency of quality and supply is achievable over large volumes. Knowledge of the source of the wine and control over quality are critical elements to the success of Raisin Social brands
Raisin Social worked closely with the winemakers to produce a blend that was tuned to the tastes of the modern UK wine drinker, and that could be replicated over large volumes. They came up with a fresh and approachable red and white brimming with fruit.
Building the Brand
Raisin Social drew on their strong knowledge of the UK market and brought together a team to build the brand in the UK, with a clear brief and strong support. They led the project that involved market research including focus groups, strong design, all tailor made for the UK market.
Westcorp and Raisin Social invested in strategic marketing with a strong PR campaign, targeted press advertising and well placed billboards.
The results speak for themselves. Well supported by Raisin Social with their excellent links within the wine trade, Namaqua is now a multimillion-pound brand and a market leader. The range has developed from boxes into bottles and the brand continues to grow and develop strongly
Find out more about Namaqua wines and Westcorp here