SB meets… Ryan McFarland, Spiritly
The chief commercial and strategy officer at Drinksology Kirker Greer (DKG) explains what Spiritly can offer spirits brands and retailers.
What is Spiritly?
Spiritly is a bespoke spirits and wine platform that offers three things: direct-to-consumer (DTC), business-to-business, and partnerships, which is where we offer brand owners, retailers or wholesalers integrated solutions.
What makes Spiritly different to other spirits retailers?
We’re embedded in a 360° position in the trade – we understand what we’d like for our brands when they’re being represented. We’re a distributor, so we understand that side. We understand on-premise and we understand consumers. We try to bring all that together in our platforms.
Value creation through experience is the thread that runs through all of our Spiritly platforms, whether that’s offering consumers interactive cocktail recipes through our in-built database or the wine and spirits education courses completed by all Spiritly staff to ensure they can go the extra mile.
Choice is another key driver of our offering. We work hard to curate what we stock, focusing on interesting products as well as staples.
What can Spiritly offer its partners?
Spiritly Partners is effectively using the investment in infrastructure that we’ve built to connect brands with consumers. We have a range of solutions depending on the scale and ambition of brands.
We can go as simple as making a brand available on Spiritly.com or helping to get listed on marketplaces, to as in-depth as creating a bespoke and integrated DTC solution, including order to cash, pick and pack, storage, delivery, customer service – everything.
Spiritly is B Corp-certified – why was that important?
Our purpose-built packaging is sustainable and reduces breakages, keeping service high and reducing secondary transport needs. We’ve removed all plastics and polystyrenes; instead we use paper tape and dissolvable packaging. We also prioritise logistics companies that are committed to carbon neutrality.
But B Corp is also about how we support our people internally and through our supplier network – being a great place to work is something we strive for.
How are you planning to expand?
We will continue to grow Spiritly.com in the UK; we’ve also recently launched in the US and will be expanding into key European markets at the end of 2025. We’re working on partner projects, both for existing brands and for North American brands seeking a solution in Europe.
Do you think DTC spirits and premiumisation are under pressure?
There was a notable surge in DTC during the Covid years, but that’s normalised now. But from a spirits perspective, we’re still seeing growth, particularly for premium products, hard-to-find items, and brand extensions that are not easily available.
In the past two years, we’ve doubled our business in terms of online transactions. A big part of this is about retaining customers who purchase online. Consumers actively seek specific brand extensions or visit brand-owner websites to access exclusives. That’s where the opportunity lies.
We are still seeing demand for premiumisation, but sometimes that means ‘accessible premium’. There are also consumers who are loyal to brands and want to step up to the next level of premium products. I don’t believe premiumisation is over. I think it’s continuing to grow. However, consumers are being more discerning in their choices. It’s up to businesses to engage, educate, and provide the right service so that when consumers are ready for that premium experience, it’s available.
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