Highlighting the uncomfortable fact that the 2015 to 2019 gin boom left a vast stock of old and open gin bottles languishing behind the UK’s bars, Paragon Brands has hit upon an excellent ruse to promote its own premium gins – The Big Gin Swap.
Under the Paragon scheme, leftover and half-full bottles can be swapped for new bottles, completely free of charge.
Bars partaking in The Big Gin Swap can exchange their forsaken spirits for one of three gin brands on Paragon’s roster – premium French gin G’Vine Floraison, Irish-born Dingle Gin and traditional English Gin Martin Miller’s.
The offer applies to old bottles of clear full-strength gins, open and unused (or at least 40% full) which should be safely sealed and handed to the Paragon team or even posted to their Manchester offices, to receive in exchange a fresh bottle.
A survey of 53 independent UK bars was commissioned by Paragon to discover the after-effects of the 2015-2019 gin boom, which concluded that 30% of UK bars have old, unused and open gin bottles leftover, with one in ten venues having at least 20 leftover bottles sitting in cellars or back bars.
As of 2023, there were 19,737 clubs, bars and pubs in the UK, meaning that approximately 5221 bars have leftover stock from the gin boom, which was further extrapolated to arrive at the figure of £1.9 million worth of old and open gin bottles going to waste in UK bars.
Managing director of Paragon Brands, Chris Jones, said: “Trends come and go, but the Gin Boom really took the industry by storm. Sadly, when the dust settled, bars were left with a fortune in unused stock.
“£1.9M is no small figure to have lying around, so we’ve launched The Big Gin Swap to help make a change for the on-trade.
“Whether it’s G’Vine, Dingle or Martin Miller’s Gin, we’re urging bars to dust off those old bottles of gin and replace them with a fresh new bottle from our premium gin range.
“It’s our mission to help bars truly love their gin range again. We look forward to swapping those leftover bottles with unique and great-tasting new gins.”
The Big Gin Swap is available now for the on-trade. To register, visit The Big Gin Swap website here.
