'Giving back is in Diageo's DNA'

Nick Blazquez, president of Diageo Africa and Asia-Pacific, speaks during an interview at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in southern Seoul, Monday. / Courtesy of Diageo Korea

By Lee Hyo-sik

Diageo, the world’s largest premium whisky producer, has built its reputation as a responsible corporate citizen over the years, implementing a wide range of community programs around the globe.

Diageo Korea, the Korean unit of the Britain-based alcoholic beverage company, is no exception to its mother firm’s worldwide “giving back” campaign, devoting substantial resources to empowering the underprivileged and promoting responsible drinking among young adults.

In an interview with The Korea Times, Nick Blazquez, president of Diageo Africa and Asia-Pacific, said Diageo will continue to fulfill its corporate social responsibilities in Asia’s fourth-largest economy and look for additional opportunities to do more.

“We would like to grow our brands and expand sales here,” Blazquez said. “We will then give back to communities. This is in our DNA. We can contribute to economic and social development in Korea. Diageo’s purpose is to celebrate lives here and elsewhere.”

The maker of Windsor, Johnnie Walker, Guinness and many other popular alcohol brands has been involved in a host of social contribution programs. Since 2004, Diageo Korea has been sponsoring the nationwide campaign to promote responsible drinking.

“We operate in the alcohol business, so our first responsibility is to promote responsible alcohol consumption,” he said.

“Consuming alcohol moderately is good. But, unfortunately, this is not often the case. In addition, we are working hard to preserve clean drinking water in many parts of the world. We use water to make our products. So we try to use less water, recycle it and then give it back to communities,” the president said.

He stressed the importance of empowering young adults and women, saying that Diageo has been providing necessary skills to the disadvantaged around the world.

“Under our global social contribution project, Plan W, we will spend $10 million in 17 countries through 2017 to train women from low-income families so that they can find jobs and improve their lives,” Blazquez said. “In Korea, we set up a charity foundation in 2013 in partnership with the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, donating $1 million each year to help women and improve living conditions for women-headed families.”

Korea key market for Diageo

Blazquez said Korea is an important market for Diageo, accounting for 8 percent of the company’s Asia-Pacific revenue. “The Korean market, which generates good margins, is a meaningful contributor,” he said. “The country is also an export base to the Japanese market.”

The company operates a plant in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, producing ready-to-drink (RTD) alcoholic beverages. Most of the products are shipped to Japan.

“The plant exported products worth $30 million last year,” Blazquez said. “We will invest to expand its capacity if the RTD sales continue to grow in Japan. We are also considering shipping RTDs to China from the Icheon plant.”

The Korean market is a trendsetter, Blazquez said, adding that Diageo will first launch a series of innovative products here to test their potential before bringing them to other markets.

“Even though the sales of traditional liquor brands have declined in line with changing consumer tastes for mild alcohol, we still find big opportunities to expand into other product categories,” Blazquez said. “While maintaining our traditional portfolios, we will promote low-alcohol spirit drinks and strengthen our partnership with retailers to target people drinking at home.”

Diageo will make more efforts to capitalize on the increasing “fine-drinking” culture here, Blazquez said, stressing that the company will focus on Haig Club, Windsor W Ice and Vodka Smirnoff. The company has also seen the sales of its Guinness beer increase sharply over the past year.

“People drink less alcohol and when they do, they drink spirits and mix liquor with something else,” the president said. “The sales of W Ice, which has a lower alcohol content of 35 percent, have been increasing rapidly since its launch in April. Haig Club has also been well received by Korean consumers and goes very well with a variety of dishes.”

Sales of Smirnoff have been growing rapidly, he said. “We would like to offer a whole range of product portfolios that fit all the different types of occasions and formats. We are actively responding to changing consumer needs.”

Korean consumers prefer to drink premium alcohol while socializing with friends and families, Blazquez said.

“Koreans are interested in what they drink and the quality of the products,” he said. “They also want a special experience. This is why we have the Johnnie Walker House in southern Seoul serving fine-dining menus that go well with our alcohol beverages. We will continue to offer wonderful experiences for our Korean customers.”