I was in Asda this morning (I never normally go to Asda) and noticed that they've got a few Stormhoek wines included in their 3 for £10 offer. I've not heard much about Stormhoek recently, but their story is an interesting one (and I've always liked their strapline. I'm a sucker for the plain and simple. Ronseal anyone?)
It's a South African wine company that went from selling very little to shifting big volumes back in 2005/6 ish driven predominantly by whats a really unusual approach for the wine trade - blogging and social networking. They've had a pretty hard time since, their UK distribution arm, Orbital, went under at the beginning of last year. Anyway it prompted me to look them up and see what's going on, as they seem to have adopted a new packaging design - which I'm not much of a fan of. The back label's still pretty good, but that aside I don't think the new bottle style says much about the personality of the brand. And personality is the main thing Stormhoek has going for it.
The current Stormhoek website contains some interesting links but it doesn't really tell you much. I really liked the quirkiness and irreverance of Stormhoek when it first appeared, there aren't many (any?) wine brands around that have been able to create that kind of personality in a way that appears genuine - without being naff. And I think it's a personality that can really appeal to a certain sort of consumer - especially the younger/less experienced/less involved drinkers that are voiced as a key target for so many wine businesses. It's a shame that Stormhoek's personality seems to have been diluted...........
Stormhoek
Stormhoek South Africa
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