Finland has an estimated population of around just 5.3 million people, yet it has become one of the brand's leading markets, says global marketing manager Jackie Olivier.
Sales are controlled by state-run monopoly, Alko, which has 350 stores and an annual turnover of R14.32 billion. According to its most recent annual report, it sold 56.4 million litres of wine last year, slightly up from 2011. South Africa was the second biggest supplier of white wines in 2012, with a 17% share of the segment, behind Chile with 21.5%.
Volumes of South African whites sold through the monopoly were up by 1.1% on the previous year. South African reds were in sixth position with a 9.4% share of the category, with sales volumes growing 2.7%.
South Africa occupied third position when it came to total wine sales in Finland in 2012, as year-on-year sales volumes rose by 6.4%. Chile was in the lead, followed by Spain.
Olivier said the company continued to benefit from the Finnish appetite for smooth-drinking, well-priced wines and was significantly outpacing South Africa's growth in the market. The brand's approachable styling and market positioning and the regular communication of its international quality awards, including those from Finland's Vuoden Viinit Kilpailu, had also helped to boost sales. The Shiraz, for example, was one of Alko's top ten sellers.
She confirmed that most of the Two Oceans wines offered in Finland were sold in a 3-litre bag-in-box format, in line with the Northern European preference for boxed wines but that a 750ml red blend would also soon be listed.
"We tailor our packaging to suit individual markets. The versatility of the range has seen the brand grow sales in a mix of developed and developing markets. To give you an idea, there has been good growth in New Zealand but also in countries as varied as Indonesia and Brazil."
Last year the brand won several medals and best buy ratings at the 2012 World Value Wine Challenge, held in the US.
