Today Radico Khaitan has come a long way from the days when it was called Rampur Distilleries, and young 23-year-old Abhishek Khaitan had joined his father to help him run this company which was facing a crisis then. Abhishek simply forgot his dream of doing Masters in Engineering, but he has no regrets because his is a valuable contribution in making Radico Khaitan the seventh largest spirits company in the world.
Abhishek Khaitan, MD, Radico Khaitan Ltd
Thanks to Abhishek’s farsightedness and dynamism, Radico launched its first brand, 8 PM whisky, in 1999. Within the first year of its launch, 8 PM became a millionaire brand, thus marking Radico’s strong presence in the market.
After the success of 8 PM, Abhishek conceptualized and launched with his team many new brands like Magic Moments Vodka, Magic Moments Flavoured Vodka, Morpheus Brandy, Old Admiral Brandy, Contessa Rum, Florence Brandy, Verve Magic Moments Vodka, Verve Flavoured Vodka.
All the Radico brands are acknowledged for their quality and have been winning numerous awards at nternational forums. Magic Moments crossed the million-case mark in 2010 and is expected to reach 3 million cases by the end of this year. With a market share of 90 per cent in its price point and 30 per cent in the whole vodka market, Magic Moments is the fourth fastest growing vodka brand in the world.
Some notable awards won by Radico products include Monde Selection Gold Award by Morpheus Brandy in 2010, 2011 and 2013; Monde Selection Silver Award by Old Admiral Brandy (2008); and Monde Selection Silver Award by Contessa Rum (2008). Till date Magic Moments Vodka has won 17 awards and Magic Moments Remix Vodka has won 23 awards.
Under Abhishek’s leadership, Radico has also successfully concluded two important collaborations. One is for importing, distributing and marketing of Carlo Rossi, the #1 bottled table wine brand in the world from the house of Ernest & Julio Gallo, California, which is the largest family owned winery in the world. The other collaboration is an exclusive sales and distribution tie-up with Suntory Liquors, the largest spirits producer in Japan for their award winning brands.