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Havana Club celebrates Cuba embargo changes
Pernod Ricard Travel Retail EMEA has added labels reading ‘Now you can take Havana Club into the US’ to its rum range following changes to the trade embargo between the US and Cuba.
Havana Club’s new labels aim to “raise awareness and celebrate the regulatory changes” between the US and Cuba
The stickers and neck labels will appear on bottles of Havana Club 3 Años, Especial, 7 Años and the Icónica Collection.
“Pernod Ricard Travel Retail EMEA is delighted to be able to inform customers in a simple but engaging way about the easing of trade restrictions on Havana Club Cuban rum,” said Michael Wilson, brand manager for Havana Club at Pernod Ricard Travel Retail EMEA.
“Havana Club is a key priority for us and we’re excited to get behind this initiative targeting US customers at key European hubs.”
US president Obama and Cuban president Raúl Castro agreed to restore diplomatic relations in late 2014, the first step for the US in potentially lifting a 56-year trade embargo against Cuba.
Under the new terms of the embargo, US citizens were able to bring US$100 worth of Cuban rum and cigars back into the States. However, in October last year, Obama signed an executive order eliminating the restriction.
Pernod Ricard is currently engaged in a legal battle with Bermuda-based Bacardi over the rights for it to launch Havana Club in the US if the trade embargo is scrapped.
The French drinks group has received trademark approval to launch its rum in the US, but faces a challenge from Bacardi, which has sold its own Havana Club rum brand – made in Puerto Rico – in the US since the mid-1990s.