Building a business in lockdown: CocktailDelivery.co.uk

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Launched during the beginning of lockdown last year, CocktailDelivery.co.uk sells premium pre-mixed craft cocktails delivered to your door.

CityX spoke to Co-owner Jim Claffey to learn a bit about CocktailDelivery.co.uk, how it came about and how the past year has been for the business:

Tell us about the business?
“CocktailDelivery.co.uk is a premium pre-mixed cocktail business which effectively ensures that customers can have bar-quality cocktails in their own home.”

When and how did the business come about during lockdown last year?
“The idea came about when my colleague Mat Graham and I were supposed to meet up on the night of the first day of lockdown last year. Instead we decided to skype, and the evening ended with us buying the domain name CocktailDelivery.co.uk.

“We all thought that lockdown was only going to last for six weeks, but we decided that we wanted to have fun anyway and start a new business together. Mat has had experience in spirit distribution, and I have worked in hospitality for the majority of my career. Therefore, between both of our skill sets, it was actually very easy to get started.

“It took us ten days from the initial concept to the official launch.”

Tell us a bit about how the past year has been for the business? How did the pandemic affect it?
“The pandemic was actually the ideal springboard for the business.

“People were connecting with others in a way they never had before. We thought customers would be buying our cocktails for themselves, but about 80% of deliveries we sent out were sent as gifts for people across the UK.

“The first ‘good day’ we had as a business was only two days in. Someone had ordered a batch of cocktails from Cornwall to a friend in Glasgow. People were wanting to send each other gifts to help them get through lockdown.

“As the lockdown eased in summer last year, we found we still wanted to carry it on, so we diversified our sales channels and began supplying our cocktails to restaurants and hotels. Serving our drinks in hospitality is quick, consistent and wastage free, not to mention a higher quality than usual bar drinks.

“In the summertime last year, we really doubled down on the gifting side of the business, and we worked to improve the personalised labels on our cocktails.

“All in all, the pandemic really helped us.”

How does the business look now compared to a year ago?
“This time last year we’d only just started the business. Now, we’ve got a loyal customer base and great reviews which speak for themselves. We’ve also built up more corporate affiliations, gaining big-name customers such as certain football clubs, Sony and Xbox.

“In the last year, we changed our industrial units twice, and have hired a group of new people, including a remote worker from London.”

What challenges have you faced and overcome?
“Meeting the demand of our customers is a challenge in itself, maintaining our nationwide delivery mechanisms and making sure our cocktails remain at a quality premium level. It’s very easy to cut corners when creating and delivering a product at volume like we do, however, we want to make sure that every cocktail is of high quality and tastes just as good when it’s at home.

“We’re glad we didn’t cut corners, we put a lot of effort into each and every delivery we send out.”

What are your future goals for the business?
“We want to continue to grow the brand and customer base, and increase our business to business portfolio within the hospitality industry.

“In the near future, we’re hoping to launch a mobile event company, a mobile bar which sells our cocktails. The service could be used at parties, weddings or corporate events, and will offer a fast service selling high quality cocktails and will provide no wastage. We can customise labels to make any occasion special.”

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