After Latin Spirits, Japanese Spirits!Challenge of NY importer, "HIGH ROAD SPIRITS".- Part I -.

Let us introduce the challenge of Yuno Hayashi and Eric Swanson, owners of HIGH ROAD SPIRITS, pioneers in introducing Japanese whiskey to the United States.

writer：Ryoko Kuraishi

Yuno (far left) and Eric (second from left) during a visit to the Asahi Shuzo brewery of "Otters.

HIGH ROAD SPIRITS is an importer of whiskeys and spirits from Japan and seven other countries.

It can be said that HIGH ROAD SPIRITS is a pioneer in introducing Japanese whiskey to the United States.

Currently, they carry Akashi (Eigashima distillery), Kanosuke distillery, Chichibu distillery, Mars Whiskey, Atsugishi distillery, Ki no Bi, gin by Komasa Brewing, bitters by THE JAPANESE BITTERS, and Daiyame shochu, among others.

The company is owned by Yuno Hayashi and Eric Swanson.The two began handling sake in the early 2000s and later became involved in consulting for Japanese restaurants. ...... how did they come to handle Japanese spirits?

Private bottle of Ichiro's Malt.The label depicts Scooby the Great Dane, the couple's beloved dog and unofficial character of HIGH ROAD.

”Sake did not receive any response at first, but with the Japanese food boom, it gradually gained recognition, and I began to feel the interest in introducing Japanese products to the overseas market.

When the sake business was over, I started looking for my next product, which I think was around 2008," says Yuno.

Eric, on the other hand, visited an authentic bar in Tokyo for the first time 30 years ago and became a big fan of Japanese bar style and service.

"I remember the authentic bar with a bartender in his 5's or 60's standing at the counter and a huge selection of single malt whiskeys on the back bar.

The stories he told as he served me various drinks were interesting, and the cocktails he quickly made were wonderful.

I wondered what I could do to help spread this unique Japanese culture to the rest of the world."

They exhibited a booth for "Brooklyn Bar Convention (BCB)" this year.

Japanese whiskey that caught our attention early.

With such a background, Eric found a product that has potential next to sake: whiskey.

In Japan, Suntory was just starting to promote the Kaku highball, which means it was the dawn of the highball boom.

"I think it was a time when whiskey was beginning to attract attention in Japan, but I had no idea what it was, and I was skeptical.

But Eric insisted on going, so we visited the Chichibu distillery."(Yuno)

At the time, the Chichibu distillery had just obtained a manufacturing license.

When they tasted the new make, they were surprised at how delicious it was.

The two felt that this was a product they should definitely handle, so they invited Mr. Ichiro Hido to the U.S. and began building a relationship by having him visit the U.S. market.

The two of us had no experience in the spirits world, so they thought it was important to build a relationship with the Japanese makers in order to start doing business with them.

This is another product developed to American specifications.Akashi RTD highball.

"Ichiro's Malt opened our eyes to Japanese whiskey, and after that we began to visit some distilleries that interested us.

Since we were a combination of a woman and a foreigner, we were often turned away from many distilleries.

Even if we were lucky enough to get a meeting, it was difficult to get them to trust us.

I went back and forth with them to show them how serious we were."(Yuno)

One day they had an unforgettable experience at Eigashima Sake Brewery.

"We asked them to do business with us, but at that time they had a large prior contract and there was no whiskey available, so they said, 'Come back in a year or two.

I thought it was just a lip service, but during that one or two years, there was an inquiry from another company in the U.S., but they turned it down in favor of our promise.

I was extremely impressed by their sincere business attitude."(Yuno)

Seven Grand, LA's famous whisky bar, hosted a study session on Ichiro's Malt.

Private bottles to be developed for the U.S. market.

For the Japanese spirits business, which began in such a groping manner, it is essential to analyze trends in Japan, which is the "trend-setting base of Asia.

They must catch the latest Japanese trends as soon as possible and feed them back to the United States.

Since Japanese trends will not be accepted in the U.S. market even if they are brought directly to the U.S., they introduce the appeal and uniqueness of each product in a way that captures the hearts and minds of U.S. consumers and tells a story.

Private bottles developed for the U.S. market will be labeled in accordance with U.S. marketing strategies.

In the case of vodka and gin, they may ask them to adjust the flavors to suit the American consumer.

Keep the price a little lower, too.

The entry-level model is a private bottle in a package that American consumers like and at a price they can easily afford, so that they can get to know the winemaker and become a fan.

From there, they will be interested in the original line, which is a bit more expensive.In other words, it is a test of a marketer's skills as well.

To be continued in Part 2.