Brown-Forman Corp. has licensed billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson’s famous Virgin brand for a screw-topped wine aimed at luring young consumers away from beer and flavored vodkas.
With the slogan “Unscrew it, let’s do it” the new Virgin Vines shiraz and chardonnay from Brown-Forman’s California vineyards poke fun at the swish-sniff-slurp-and-spit wine culture.
Script on the painted shiraz bottle urges consumers to “enjoy this wine without dashes of pretentiousness or hints of snootiness.” The chardonnay bottle suggests that buyers “simply drink this cool, crisp white with something or someone you find delicious.”
“We really believe there is a great opportunity to target the 21- to 29-year-old age group who really are confused and intimidated about wine,” said Andrew Varga, managing director of wine
marketing for Brown-Forman. “Virgin is a brand name that already has a built-in equity with that young-adult population.”
The Virgin brand is widespread — on an airline, mobile phones, a music company and more. In May Branson closed a deal with Humana to sell health insurance with the Virgin brand in U.S.
health clubs.
Brown-Forman has a straight licensing agreement with Virgin, Varga said, and will produce, bottle and promote the brand.
Virgin Vines has started reaching distributors and will show up in stores soon, Varga said. “This has really been targeted to get out in front of the holiday selling season.”
The company hopes the drink-sized plastic bottles will open up new sales opportunities at concerts and stadiums.
More twenty-somethings are graduating from college – the No. 1 demographic attribute associated with wine drinking.
Virgin Vines is part of a broader Brown-Forman strategy to introduce new labels into niche markets rather than fight price wars with its established brands.