Scotch Malt Whisky Society owner seals Indian deal offering ‘exciting potential’

The Edinburgh-based group, which also owns Single Cask Nation and JG Thomson, said that following a “rigorous review of options in the market” an India franchise had now been signed with PNM Tech Beverages. Subject to label registration being completed over the coming months, Artisanal expects to dispatch its first shipment of product to India in the coming months.

The move follows the recent sealing of a free trade agreement between the UK and India - seen as a major boost to the Scotch whisky industry.

Artisanal described its Indian deal as “another milestone in the group’s strategic expansion in Asia”, complementing the 2023 franchise launches in Korea and subsidiary in Taiwan, alongside its longer established China and Japan subsidiaries. India is the largest global Scotch whisky market by volume.

Across the broader group, Single Cask Nation (SCN) is successfully expanding into new markets, commencing exports to Brazil for the first time during the third quarter. Brazil is the world’s 15th largest market for “ultra-premium” whisky and is demonstrating a growing appeal, Artisanal noted.

Andrew Dane, chief executive of Artisanal Spirits Company, said: “We are continuing to build the Scotch Malt Whisky Society [SMWS] business for the medium to longer term, growing our global presence with entry into exciting new markets such as India, as well as developing new opportunities for SCN, as we expand our whisky fan club globally.

“The Indian market, in particular, presents exciting potential for the group over the medium to longer term and we are delighted to welcome our new franchise partners, PNM Tech Beverages, to the wider SMWS family. We remain confident that the actions we are taking stand us in good stead to continue to deliver future growth.”

The update comes a month after Artisanal flagged a “respectable and resilient” first-half performance as it battles tariff uncertainty.

The group said its underlying result for the period was “broadly in line” with the prior year loss of £1 million, despite ongoing tough global trading conditions. In a trading update to investors, it noted that revenue had marginally decreased while it implemented a tariff mitigation plan.

Membership retention at the Scotch Malt Whisky Society was said to have remained positive, at around 70 per cent, although there was a marginal decline in overall membership compared with the end of December.

The group, which listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2021, said it continued to make good progress with cask sales, with an incremental £1m or so of revenue in the first half supported by the “exciting opportunity” in the coming months from the recent launch of Artisan Cask - a luxury private cask programme.

Dane said at the time: “The group has once again produced a respectable and resilient performance and we continue to make good progress, despite the persistence of volatile global trading conditions. ASC continues to benefit from an excellent and valuable asset base.”