Alcoholic beverages major Suntory Global Spirits recently established a new division in APAC dubbed the commercial excellence team, to be led by VP, commercial excellence for APAC, Bruce Song.
We recently spoke with Song in an exclusive interview, where he highlighted that the new team’s imperative will be twofold: Covering the acceleration of business growth in APAC, as well as enhancing engagement with consumers here.
“Our commercial excellence agenda is key to fulfilling Suntory’s ambition of becoming the World’s Most Admired Premium Spirits Company – It’s an exciting remit and I’m delighted to be leading it,” he says.
The team’s specific tasks will include collaborating with local commercial and marketing teams to drive ‘excellent execution’ in both on-trade and off-trade scenarios.
“APAC is a critical growth region for us: we have our roots in Japan as a subsidiary of Suntory Holdings, and strong macroeconomic fundamentals in many markets here make it attractive,” he said.
“For example, favourable demographics and positive GDP growth in markets like South East Asia provide new growth opportunities. Asia’s status as a global tourism hub also boosts the potential for turning to our premium spirits in the meal occasion.”
Song believes that regional growth in APAC requires localisation and deep consumer understanding, then combining these to optimise innovation.
“There’s a Japanese word we use at Suntory called ‘Gemba’, which loosely translated means ‘where the action is’ or ‘where things happen’. For us, it’s about getting close to the consumer – our approach is to really understand what they are looking for,” he said.
We tailored the global campaign for Jim Beam in APAC by featuring popular K-pop girl group LE SSERAFIM as brand ambassadors
Bruce Song, VP for commercial excellence, APAC, Suntory Global Spirits
“For example, while the highball trend originated in Japan, we adapted the Japanese version to suit Korean palates – like using tonic and ginger ale instead of soda for a sweeter taste.”
Highballs have not traditionally been a popular drink in South Korea, especially as an accompaniment to meals where beer and soju have always been the stronger players.
Suntory has opted to take the category head-on with its localised sweeter highballs, successfully building its presence by offering these as a refreshing alternative to beer and soju.
“Now that highball is well-established in Korea, we’ve introduced new flavour choices including core, original recipes – like whiskey and soda from Japan – and locally-driven variants, to continue to develop the category,” Song said.
He added that each of Suntory’s localisation initiatives have taken a leaf from the Gemba approach and incorporated local cultural aspects that are on-trend.
“We tailored the global campaign for Jim Beam in APAC by featuring popular K-pop girl group LE SSERAFIM as brand ambassadors, and specifically in Taiwan we collaborated with local professional baseball team Rakuten Baseball to promote the -196 Strong Zero brand,” he added.
Baseball is Taiwan’s national sport, drawing millions of eyeballs at every tournament. Suntory’s partnership with the Rakuten Baseball allowed the showcasing of its brand assets in the team stadium throughout the recent baseball season.
Japanese whiskey and RTD next routes for growth
In terms of specific product categories, Song believes Japanese whiskey is the next big growth market for the firm, based on recent high demand.
“We see continued high demand for our Japanese whiskies in APAC, and have made recent investments in our distilleries in Japan to increase capacity to better meet this demand,” he said.
“Consumers are becoming more discerning and seeking quality over quantity, as well as brands with a strong story, real craftsmanship and a sense of authenticity.”
On the other end of the spectrum is the rapid growth of ready-to-drink (RTD) products, which are generally lower in alcohol content.
“There is strong momentum in the low- and no-ABV RTD options – Convenience is a key driver, but it is also about offering refreshing formats that resonate with local palates, whether these are lighter and sweeter or richer, more complex profiles,” he said.
“This segment is growing rapidly as more consumers explore diverse drinking experiences that suit different meal occasions and preferences [and we aim to take] the lead in this RTD category [by] innovating to cater to different meal occasions and preferences.”
Fast change, fast innovations to survive
In terms of innovation, Song emphasised that in APAC it is ever more critical to keep up with the rapidly-changing needs in the region, which is one of the fastest in the world.
“APAC is home to fast-evolving consumer tastes and offers a great opportunity for innovation – this is something that Suntory excels at, and we’ve launched a diverse range of products in this region reflecting our focus on understanding local preferences,” he said.
“One example is the Auchentoshan 14 Year Old Sherry Cask Single Malt Scotch Whisky which is a Taiwan-exclusive release, an entry-level single malt with an accessible taste ideal to recruit/trade-up drinkers.”
Keeping up is even more important now than ever before for the firm to maintain visibility and popularity amid the current economic situation worldwide.
“Despite inherent global volatility, we need to continue to build our brands grounded in quality and authenticity, stay committed to our long-term values and ensure we’re innovating to meet consumer and customer needs,” he added.
“Our focus in 2025 is on ensuring brands such as Jim Beam, Maker’s Mark and Hibiki stay relevant with the next generation of LDA (legal drinking age) consumers, and that we expand our focus on markets outside of the US and Japan where favourable demographics provide new growth opportunities.”
