When US president Donald Trump unveiled his tariff plans on the world two months ago, those in the Irish whiskey industry quickly said they would target new market opportunities in Asia and Africa.
Yet one emerging whiskey brand has already beaten them to one of Africa’s biggest markets.
Fionn Cox (27) set up Wexford’s Element Irish Whiskey with a different strategy to most domestic-focused brands, aiming to take advantage of the growing demand for premium whiskey in Nigeria.
The Waterford native gained experience of the region with Pernod Ricard as a Jameson brand ambassador in west Africa.
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“When I got out there ... I could not believe the love for Irish whiskey or how much was being consumed,” he said.
“You could run an event and sell 200 bottles of whiskey, which is something we wouldn’t be able to do in Temple Bar in a month.”
Nigeria, which has a large young professional population, accounts for 65 per cent of the company’s sales, due, in no small part, to a €3.9 million, five-year distribution deal the company signed in 2023.
“Our commercial strategy was built around targeting emerging markets in Africa,” he said.
The brand is trying to appeal to younger demographics in the growing middle class in “overlooked” west African countries, initially Nigeria, and is laying the foundations to expand into further “interesting” markets in the surrounding nations.
Unlike previous generations, Mr Cox said, younger demographics were less interested in brands built on “history, heritage and tradition”.
Instead they are seeking “more contemporary brands”, which emphasise “transparency and authenticity”.
The brand name Element was chosen to appeal to African consumers as a “name they can pronounce”, distinct from traditional Irish whiskey names with “a cúpla focal thrown in”.
The appearance of Element’s bottles is another choice, aiming for a “premium look and feel”, which is suited to the “status-oriented” consumers it is attracting in nightclubs where bottle service is common.
“Element works very well in that setting, it lights up very well. It really turns heads,” he said.
These choices have been working for Element, with the brand expecting year-on-year growth of more than 40 per cent, from €350,000 in its previous financial year to €500,000 to the year ending in June.
“We are the fastest-growing Irish whiskey in Africa,” he said.
Mr Cox has received support from the veteran former Beamish boss Alf Smiddy, an investor in Element and a director on the company’s board.
“He loved our focus on emerging markets, and he has been very helpful in connecting us to the right people in the industry,” Mr Cox said.
Element’s whiskey is produced on a private-label basis by Great Northern Distillery, owned by John Teeling, something Element is happy to be transparent about.
When Element was founded, the original plan was to open a distillery, but the “massive capital investment” involved in setting up its own distillery was prohibitive, Mr Cox said.
“In the next 10 years, we will see a lot more companies adopting this model of independent blending and bottling, which will be great for the industry as it will encourage innovation and new flavour profiles.”
In recent months, as distilleries grew wary of US import tariffs, there has been a growing interest in expanding into African markets with “several new entrants into Nigeria”.
“There are tonnes of challenges in west Africa,” Mr Cox said, noting that registering brands in the region could be difficult and that the collapse in value of Nigeria’s currency had added to the challenge of working in the market.
Despite the challenges, Mr Cox is “excited” for the future and is now seeking further investment to fuel export links as far apart as Kenya, Angola and Mozambique.
