Working to purvey the perfect pint
Jason Cox, on-trade director of Heineken Ireland
Jason Cox is unique in that he enjoys working over the Christmas period. Since moving to Ireland from his native South Africa three years ago, he says he really loves Christmas in Ireland and enjoys the magical buzz of the pubs during this time.
He views this move to the Emerald Isle as a “fantastic personal development”. Having previously worked in Heineken South Africa for 10 years, and prior to that with South African Breweries he came armed with plenty of experience. He sees the opportunity to move to the home of his great grandfather as a dream come true.
Irish on-trade
Describing the current state of the Irish on-trade sector he uses the words “iconic” but “challenging”.
“It’s quite a challenging environment as you know and this is well documented especially by the numbers of pub closures in the last two decades, specifically in rural Ireland. However, I saw some research recently where consumer visits to the pub have remained top priority. From a discretionary spend perspective, consumers would forgo other luxuries instead of foregoing a visit to the pub. So the pub remains a priority. And you can understand why as it’s a special place and where people go to unwind, meet their friends and socialise. In the digital age, you are digitally connected but you are not personally connected and the pub allows that. It’s an important part of our culture.”
He alludes to the fact that many pubs are offering quiz nights, board games and live music to create an experience and entice younger consumers in, who have been less enthusiastic than previous generations about spending all of their free time socialising and placing more emphasis on health and wellbeing. However he feels like the tide is turning again. “There is a trend of the younger consumer coming back to the pub. In our experience, the publican has to work harder and the pub trade is becoming more occasion based. You can see on Halloween, pubs were buzzing. The consumer is looking for something different and I think the publicans have been very progressive in delivering that.”He admits that consumers are going out less but when they go out they are willing to spend on what they want. “That’s how premiumisation is enabled. The challenge is having the right products on the bar to facilitate this,” he says.
Heineken Ahhh’cademy
Pictured at the Heineken Brewery Ireland, Cork at the launch of year two of the Heineken Ahhh-cademy for the on-trade were Jonathan Barry, regional sales manager, Heineken Ireland; Jason Cox, on-trade director, Heineken Ireland; Michael O’Donovan, president VFI; Aisling O’Brien, on-trade channel manager, Heineken Ireland and Brian Foley, communications and public affairs manager, VFI
As things get tougher in the market, publicans naturally turn to big brands they trust. Jason says there are a number of current activations in place to support publicans. One of the stand-out pieces is the Heineken Ahhh’cademy, now in its second year.
Jason explains what staff can expect. “We have trained a couple of thousand bar staff in everything from how to change a keg, look after glassware and engage with the customer and ensure that the experience is top notch in the pub. We’ve had great feedback on the programme and we are now in year two of a three year campaign. We aim to get to 10,000 by the end of the three years and we are well on track for that now.”
Staff can apply for a place on the Heineken Ahhh’cademy through Heineken sales reps or through the Heineken ordering platform called Eazle. “We‘ve had it in venues from Dublin to Galway. We added Dundalk this year, and we’ve done Cork and Limerick. It’s a one day course but it’s supported by our bar staff community so they will have online access to all the information they were trained on. They have an update on trends and reminding them what is happening from a quality perspective and we also offer them some promotions in the community so it creates a bit of fun,” says Jason.
What does the brand get back from a programme like that I wondered? “We highlight Heineken’s quality as a leading brand and we get great feedback from the staff and publicans. The care of the glasses is improving. If the glass is washed properly and looked after, we can ensure that the pint that the consumer is receiving is at the standard the consumer deserves. We have had feedback from the publicans that the ability of the staff to change kegs and manage stock has really improved which has a knock-on effect for the publicans. If managed properly there can be less wastage in the bar. The staff that come on the programme become promotors of the programme. We are seeing that a rising tide lifts all boats type of effect.”
Glassware
The Heineken Star glass was launched this year to promote correct glass usage
Speaking of glassware, Jason explains just how important they view the care and usage of branded glasses. “We promote using a Heineken glass with a Heineken product. That would be a core fundamental. We have even gone so far as to measure that in the market so our staff will go out and are trained to promote using the right glass. We launched the Heineken 0.0 star glass a couple of months ago and wanted to make sure usage was right and we’ve even designed the glass to make it as easy as possible for the bar staff to handle.”
Zero zero movement
It’s impossible to ignore the rise of zero zero drinks on the market and Heineken 0.0 is surely one of the most prolific drinks in the category and Jason says its success can be attributed to considerable investment to bring it to where it is today.
“We launched Heineken 0.0 in 2018 in Ireland and we were one of the first players on the market. We have since invested substantially in Heineken 0.0 on tap and it was the first zero zeroon the counter. That investment shows the importance of the zero category and investing ahead of the curve so Heineken did see the opportunity and still sees the opportunities ahead. If you think of the investment behind the quality of our draught systems and how we are pouring and innovation to make sure you are getting the top quality.”
Zero zero beer accounts for more than 2.5% of the overall beer market, but it is in double digit growth over the last few years and it’s accelerating as it becomes more available. The company has had a big drive over the last two years to ensure that there is Heineken 0.0 on the taps in many more pubs and it is available in over 3,300 pubs around the country now.
Jason has observed the growing trend recently in a bar in Mullingar. “The pub is down the road from the GAA pitch and the publican said that zero zero has actually grown his business” he explains. “He said the GAA players and spectators come in more often and zero drinks allows them to stay in the venue for longer. With a big group, they will sit and have a few zero zeros rather than just one soft drink and head off.”
Jason’s observation, having worked in different global markets, is the publican in Ireland has been the most progressive on the zero zero category. “They’ve embraced the category and it’s constantly a topic on the agenda for publicans from some of the really big pubs,” he confirms.
“We have since invested a lot in Heineken 0.0 on tap and it was the first zero zero on the counter. That investment shows the importance of the zero category and investing ahead of the curve so Heineken did see the opportunity and still sees the opportunities ahead,” says Jason.
Upcoming and successful campaigns
Heineken is currently promoting partnerships in rugby and in the Champions League where they are inviting consumers to attend games across Europe and of course, local games in Ireland.
However a campaign that really stood out for Jason was the pub succession campaign which happened a few months ago and was received very well globally. He explains the background to it. “The principal behind it is that Irish pubs are more than just businesses, they are cultural hubs. They are part of the community. There is a bar out on the Aran Islands called McLoughlin’s and it faced the risk of closure after three generations. We wanted somebody with the surname McLoughin to take over. We put billboards up from New York to Sydney and there were digital campaigns going around and we tried to get the conversation going on the pubs and the succession around the pub. We had a couple of thousand applications to take over that pub and created a lot of talkability around the importance of Irish pubs and the special place it holds in not only Irish hearts but anyone who has walked into a traditional Irish pub around the world. That reflects our commitment on supporting the on-trade in Ireland. It’s a social arc between generations.”
Living with his wife Kerry and two boys Cooper, 15 and Dillon 12 in the South Dublin suburb of Rathmines, Jason is enjoying his Irish experience and says there was no contest between staying in Ireland or returning to South Africa for the holidays.
“Christmas is too special here in Ireland to leave. The pubs go to town decorating and offering a great service. I’ll balance work and enjoying an Irish Christmas this year!”
