Women At Work: Kerry Cowan, International Brand Manager at Scapegrace
Kerry Cowan is international brand manager for award-winning New Zealand gin brand, Scapegrace. Kerry manages to juggle 2 kids and a horse with this exciting role from her home just outside Edinburgh.
As gin lovers we were keen to find out more about the world’s first naturally black gin and the woman charged with the job of raising brand awareness across the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa.
Q. You started your role with Scapegrace during the pandemic, what did you do before?
I worked as Marketing and Events Manager for Roxburghe Estates & Floors Castle - home of the 11th Duke of Roxburghe. Before having children, I had spent the majority of my career working in the drinks industry for brands including Red Bull, BenRiach Distillery Co, and Glenmorangie - owned by LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessey).
Q. How did the opportunity of international brand manager come up?
My husband, James, has worked for Scapegrace for a number of years as Global Sales Director. I got to know the company owners over that time, and they were aware of my skillset within the drinks industry. When the role of EMEA Brand Manager came about, I put myself forward as I felt that I had the skills required to take the brand to the next level in the EMEA region.
Q. Ordinarily this role would require serious travel commitments, how have you found working from home?
I've really enjoyed working from home so far. It's amazing how markets around the world have adapted to working online. In a role that would have required travel and face to face meetings in the past, zoom calls have really helped to bridge this gap. We're managing to work in an agile and efficient way, which has worked well throughout the pandemic, with sales flourishing.
Q. Does your territory mean working out of office hours?
Yes, a flexible approach to working hours is needed, whether that be early starts, or calls late in the evening - especially when catching up with the management team in New Zealand, as there is such a big time difference!
Q. As travel restrictions begin to lift will your role change or have you found a new way of working? Attending meetings and events within international markets will be required on occasion, but I feel, like many other businesses, we have adapted to a new way of working, so I think working from home will continue for me.
Q. How do you make time for you?
I live out of town in the countryside, so love long walks with the dog. I have a horse called Denny, and a lot of my spare time is spent with him, whether it be training - we quite enjoy a bit of dressage, going on hacks or just mucking out and grooming. It's a big commitment, but worth all the time and effort.
Q. Black gin sounds very exciting, tell us about the unique formula, what makes it black?
Scapegrace Black is an ultra-premium gin distilled using glacial pure water from New Zealand’s Southern Alps. The gin is created using a unique collection of natural extracts from the ground, plants, flowers and berries, it combines aronia berry, pineapple, saffron, butterfly pea and unexpectedly, sweet potato. When all the colour components of each ingredient are mixed together in their respective quantities, this creates an inky black colour. There's some real science behind it and the product's formula took nearly two years to perfect!
Q. What are the plans for the brand?
Scapegrace is currently sold in 45 markets around the globe and we have ambitious plans both in innovation and product development. We intend on launching single malt whiskies in 2022, along with other unique extensions to the gin portfolio, as well as our own take on the booming 'ready to drink' category. We've got a few awards under our belt, including 'World's Best London Dry Gin' at the International Wines and Spirits Competition - the Olympic gold medal of the spirits world - so it'll be nice to aim for a few more of these accolades in the future.