JW Filshill acquires Eldorado Tonic Wine

Glasgow-based wholesaler JW Filshill has announced the acquisition of Eldorado Tonic Wine brand as part of its purchase of KB Agencies for an undisclosed sum.

KB Agencies has previously shared joint ownership of Eldorado with Halewood Artisanal Spirits, but secured full ownership of the brand prior to the subsequent acquisition by JW Filshill.

As part of its move to further diversify business, Filshill will use a subsidiary company, Differentiator Brands Ltd, to sell and market Eldorado.

“This represents a new approach for us and a different route to market which will allow us to engage with wholesalers and convenience stores with our current wholesale business structure,” Simon Hannah, chief executive officer of JW Filshill, said.

“We have first-hand experience of what wholesalers and retailers need from a brand and we now have a chance to put some of that in place.”

Eldorado, a full-bodied tonic wine, is particularly well known in Scotland where it has a loyal consumer following.

Filshill, which owns the KeyStore and KeyStore More convenience retail brands, plans to accelerate visibility of Eldorado as a brand in the Scottish market in order to grow the category but also expand its reach south of the border, targeting cities such as Newcastle, Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham.

Hannah said the deal “sets the scene for future brand acquisitions by Filshill”.

“This gives us ownership of an established brand for the first time in over 40 years and underpins our ambitions to diversify the business as well as attract new customers and grow a category of the UK alcoholic drinks market,” he said.

“We are excited about the opportunity to be able to put in place and trial some innovative marketing initiatives to drive category growth, expand geographical distribution and generate sales across the wholesale and retail channels.”

Kenny Brown, former sales manager at Halewood who has worked closely with the Eldorado brand over many years, will join Differentiator Brands as customer development manager.

“We’re delighted to welcome Eldorado into the Filshill family and I am particularly pleased that Kenny is joining us in this key role that will be crucial to the future growth and success of the brand,” Hannah added.