- The shift to luxury – Johnnie Walker
Another article I have come upon in The Economist (October 1st 2011 page 72) titled “Keep on walking”, details the push for Africans to consume more scotch and less cheap beers, made by Diageo, the owners of Johnnie Walker, a fairly renowned english scotch.
In Nairobi, Africa, a majority of the middle class population can be found spending time in local pubs after work hours, drinking cheap beer produced by local brewers. However, that is no longer the case. Diageo, the London-based drinks giant have now shifted the gaze of their monstrous marketing department to these very pubs located in the small towns and residential areas of east Africa.
It is estimated that over 790 000 litres of beer was consumed by the working populus of east Africa in 2010. In order to cash in on this goldmine, Diageo has begun a very intensive marketing campaign, to shift the cultural consumption from beer to scotch.
From criminals to the wealthy, all africans purchase expensive scotch, because it can be related to power, and now represents the degree of success they enjoy. It is evident that the cultural paradigm behind liquor consumption is now changing, due to the efforts of Diageo.