Diageo’s Scottish flagship, Johnnie Walker Princes Street, was this week celebrating its millionth visitor, an impressive footfall notched up just three years since its opening.
Recently declared the World’s Leading Spirit Tourism Experience in the World Travel Awards, the interactive whisky exhibition, constructed across multiple floors of what was once a House of Fraser department store, has become a major tourist attraction in the Scottish capital, recording visitors from 141 countries in its short lifetime.
That status has been recognised by Secretary of State for Scotland, Ian Murray, who visited to congratulate the team on their millionth visitor.
Murray said: “It was incredibly exciting to visit Johnnie Walker Princes Street today to celebrate this hugely important milestone. It’s a fantastic attraction, making a huge contribution to Edinburgh’s tourism and the local economy. And of course, it’s a huge promotion for Scotch whisky, one of Scotland’s biggest success stories, and a key part of Brand Scotland.”
The hi-tech venue uses AI technology to help guests discover their personal flavour profile, which is then used to tailor their experience on the ‘Journey of Flavour’ built into the building tour.
To date, the experience has collected the flavour profiles of over 100,000 guests, something that Diageo described as ‘an invaluable resource for product development’.
Managing director of Diageo’s Scotland Brand Homes, Dafydd Pugh Williams, said: “Johnnie Walker Princes Street was launched to recruit consumers from around the World to Johnnie Walker and indeed the entire Scotch Whisky category.
“We wanted to disrupt consumer perceptions of Whisky through offering a pioneering experience which demonstrated the huge breadth of flavours with the category, the incredible history of Johnie Walker and champion the people and communities which have helped make the brand a global icon.
“We could not be prouder of the venue’s hugely dedicated team who have made such an impact on so many guests in just three short years,” said Pugh Williams.
“We’d like to thank our colleagues in the Scotch Whisky Association and Visit Scotland for their continued support as we work together to showcase Scotch, and Scotland, to the world. Most excitingly we feel like we’re just getting started and there is plenty more growth to come as we Keep Walking.”
Chief executive at VisitScotland, Vicki Miller, said: “This is an amazing achievement by Johnnie Walker Princes Street. It is a testament to the investment and confidence of Diageo in creating a luxury visitor experience in the centre of the city, and the staff, whose work has maintained its popularity.
“Scotch whisky is a unique part of our cultural heritage and as such is hugely important to what makes Scotland a must-visit destination. Our own research shows that a quarter of all visitors to Scotland take in a whisky, gin or brewery experience.
“Since opening in 2021, Johnnie Walker Princes Street has become an essential attraction while complementing the burgeoning food and drink experiences across the city. Its popularity will no doubt have helped support the successful post-pandemic recovery of international tourism.”
