China’s national spirit brand, Moutai, has celebrated Australia and Chinese trade relations by hosting a gala dinner at Sydney’s Town Hall.
Moutai hosted the dinner and cocktail event which is part of a worldwide annual promotion that began in 2015 in San Francisco and has already been to Hamburg and Cape Town before coming to Australia.
Vice President of Kweichow Moutai Limited, Zhang Deqin said the event was not so much to celebrate big business as the “big friendship” between Australia and China. To celebrate that friendship a special limited edition Australian Moutai bottle was unveiled.
“In the past four decades since China’s reform and opening up, the economic and social landscape of the world’s most populous country has not only been completely transformed, the reform has also brought about tremendous change across the global economy,” Deqin said.
“Within the context of trade globalisation, we need to learn from world’s leading liquor makers, including Australian alcoholic beverage producers, to draw meaningful lessons in brand marketing and market expansion, so that the brand culture of Moutai can be recognized and communicated in a better way in different contexts and cultural backgrounds. In the future, we plan to build more communication platforms to allow more Australian friends understand the Chinese liquor culture. Today’s gathering is a feast for Moutai and the Australian people. Here, we can remember the past and look forward to a promising future,” he added.
Moutai describes Australia as a key export destination for the brand and sales here have increased by 43 per cent over the past two years. The spirit is available at a number of high-end restaurant as well as liquor stores across Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Hobart, Perth and the Whitsundays.
In 2017, exports of Moutai and other brands under the Moutai umbrella to Australia amounted to 50 metric tons, generating exports valued at US$9.29m. Over the next three years, Moutai’s overseas sales are expected to increase to a point where they account for 10 per cent of the group’s total.
