the recipe of Diageo to conquer Mexico

Actions carried out by Diageo in the last five years They took this global alcohol company to a leading position. "Our vision is to transform the market in which we participate," says Erik Seiersen, CEO of Diageo in Mexico and Cuba.

Diageo started investing in whiskey in our country ten years ago. Then they identified a gap in their portfolio. There was nothing that was related to the taste of agave, tequila or mezcal. That's why they decided to sell tequila in Mexico while six players held less than 20% of the market.

"It was a pivot, a change of direction that pushed us to move to another level," said the CEO. Although Don Julio is already distributed in different countries.

This allowed them, first of all, to satisfy the needs of consumers in premium tequilas, as there were few options in the country; and, secondly, to give customers, distributors, wholesalers and outlets not only whiskey, but also tequila. This led to another market, the mezcal, with the acquisition of Pierce Almas. They have also forged a long-term partnership with Mezcal Union.

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Market whiskey, tequila and mezcal This gave them the opportunity to become leaders in participating in the Mexican market, with more than 32 points. Today, Don Julio is the number one tequila in value.

"But the most important thing is that we have come to show that a company can not only be good at whiskey or tequila, but also offer consumers a repertoire of big brands in different categories, for all tastes. and at different prices, which led us to compete very well. "

The above summarizes what happened in Diageo, Mexico over the past five years, about 1,500 days. "When you launch challenges as big as Diageo's, we do not know what's going to happen, and five years later you see and you can not believe everything that's happened in a short time of time. "

As part of this process, the company announced in 2015 an investment of $ 400 million over five years. Few companies make these bets and Seiersen knows it because he worked in transnational corporations. Recognize that one of the biggest mistakes is to think about investments and the success of elections or the resolution of NAFTA.

"If you do not do it, do not put yourself in front of it, if we want to start selling tequila now, imagine what it would cost us, for example, three years ago. we did not receive a single drop of mezcal. "

And what is the strategy? There are three pillars: The most important thing is to know and understand the consumer. The second pillar is to seek innovation because people want new things. "When we brought Captain Morgan rum or Baileys liquor, we anticipated trends, and we are also innovating with Tamarind Smirnoff."

A third pillar is to strengthen the relationship with customers. "I know all my clients, I see them at least once a month and I have very close relationships."

Because the customer sends clearly, but what helps you succeed, is your customer's stress. That's why, every year, Diageo organizes "Customer's Day" to talk to them about the strategy.

"We agree to ensure that they support us in providing our products to the consumer." The "Customers" initiative was born in Mexico. "Now, the best compliment is that they are copying us in other countries where Diageo is located."

If Seiersen has defined Diageo in a few words, it comes to mind: "We are a company that aspires not only to be the most powerful but also the most respected". And in an industry that demands to act responsibly, "the firm always strives to achieve the best results, being the most admired to always have done the right thing." With a real desire for moderation, avoid driving while intoxicated and do not sell alcohol to minors and pregnant women. "

Passion for teams

What he likes most is to create teams of strong collaboration, to help people develop their full potential for individual performance; then collectively.

Do it with utmost dedication for the people you work with. He is passionate about teams and talent development.

"My people will tell you, I'm obsessed with the topic of performance at the highest level, and we've done extremely well, we've had five really strong years."