AN ORGANIC soft drink brand is looking to capitalise on its success at one of the UK’s most exclusive food stores with expansion overseas.
Zingi Bear, an award-winning organic ginger switchel, is already sold at Fortnum and Mason in London, Simon Rogan’s L’Enclume restaurant in Cartmel, and the Westmorland Group’s famous Tebay and Gloucester motorway services farm shops.
Now founder and ‘Big Bear’ Laurie Freeman – a trained cheesemaker and brewer – is hoping to quench the thirst of overseas customers as he builds an export plan for the business with support from the Department for International Trade’s (DIT) Cumbria experts.
He said: “I love a good beer and we have some great craft breweries in Cumbria, but when not drinking I am yet to taste a zero per cent beer that tastes as good as a real beer, I would rather have an interesting and great tasting high-quality soft drink made with the finest organic ingredients as an alternative and that’s where the idea for Zingi Bear came from.”
Zingi Bear – from the Latin for ginger ‘zingiber’ and how Laurie thought it sounded – was established in December 2019 and is based on a style of drink called a Switchel; refreshing and rejuvenating apple cider vinegar and ginger elixirs, once drunk by thirsty farmers to stay cool and refreshed in the field, and then after hours as a mixer for spirits.
After two-and-a-half years of hard work from Laurie, the Lake District-based business now has a growing list of UK stockists and is producing upwards of 100,000 bottles a year.
Laurie said: “Now is the time to explore other markets. I have had customers try Zingi Bear in the UK who own businesses abroad and have asked if they can buy it.”
“Attending the Export Academy has confirmed a lot for me in terms of what I need to do next; it has been useful for starting to map out what actions I need to take and the support I might need moving forwards.
“The US is my dream market but the business is not ready for that just yet; we will look at countries closer to home for now. We are particularly interested in Scandinavia as their craft beer scene is excellent, so I imagine their appetite for a soft drink of equalling standards should appeal.”
Sarah Peak, the DIT’s Export Manager for Cumbria, said: “It was great to see Laurie at our recent Export Academy. Zingi Bear is a perfect candidate for help and support from the DIT and its team of very experienced Trade Advisors who work in Cumbria.”
“We are always available to discuss with businesses the steps they need to take to build a successful export plan. Everything starts with an initial meeting and we can then move forwards from there.”
The DIT provides support in many areas, with a focus on the Export Academy – which offers practical help, advice and access to experts – and the Internationalisation Fund which provides match funding of up to £9k to support businesses with their export plans.
For more information contact sarah.peak@tradenw.org
