A COCKTAIL company based on the Springfield Road has signed a £500,000 deal with a leading drinks distributor, creating nine jobs in the local area.

Cocktail Keg Company, an award winning cocktail company located at the Innovation Factory in West Belfast, signed the new deal with food and drink distribution giant Musgrave NI, who retail in SuperValu, Centra and Mace as well as with drinks company, Drinks Inc.

Mixologists Paul Burns and Anthony Farrell, who own Cocktail Keg Company said the deal meant that up to 100 retail outlets would now be stocking their pre-mixed cocktails by the end of the month.

Paul Burns said: “We are very excited to be in partnership with Musgrave, which will substantially increase our off-trade business. Musgrave is Ireland’s leading food retail, wholesale and food service company, and this partnership demonstrates how our business is going from strength to strength.”

Musgrave NI Trading Director Julie Cherry added: “Musgrave spends £160 million on local food and drink each year and works in partnership with 150 local suppliers. This latest partnership is a further example of our commitment to supporting local and we are looking forward to offering this premium brand to our customers.”  

The good news comes due to the company having to change its business model, which they were forced to adapt with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. The loss of trade with hospitality businesses, who were the bulk of their clients demanded a re-think as the lockdowns meant they lost their core clients almost overnight. 

Anthony Farrell said: “We had to look at other options and this enabled us to focus on distributing to off sales. There was significant demand for established cocktails such as Espresso Martini, Bramble and Strawberry Daiquiri, so we began selling through shops and online deliveries.” 

Sales to supermarkets, off-licences and online home deliveries took off quickly and the company were crowned regional Best New Regional Start Up at the Intertrade Ireland’s Seedcorn Awards last November.

The company produces its cocktail mixes at Bankmore Square in the south of Belfast city centre, but sales and development staff are based at the Innovation Factory off the Springfield Road. 

Speaking about the West Belfast facility Paul Burns explained: “Innovation Factory is perfect for our needs. It offers excellent meeting space for our team with strong WiFi and on-site parking. It also offers us the space as the company continues to grow.”

Majella Barkley, Centre Director at Innovation Factory said: “Cocktail Keg Company is an innovative business that has used the challenges of the pandemic to explore fresh ideas and techniques to meet a rapidly changing business environment. It is now one of the most dynamic independent cocktail makers in the UK and Ireland and a company that shows Northern Ireland businesses can compete with anyone in inventiveness.”