Diageo and the USVI have announced a new Rum Distillery for St. Croix that will build a new rum production facility for the Captain Morgan brand of spiced rum.
St. Croix has already benefited from the Cruzan Rum brand which has helped ‘brand awareness’ of the island with their brightly colored tropical-flavored rums associated with country music singer Kenny Chesney.
If the USVI can combine the geo-brand of Cruzan along with the image-brand of Captain Morgan and leverage both with the success of ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ – it could be a real marketing bonanza for St. Croix.
One of the great ‘undiscovered’ islands of the Caribbean – this could be the key to unlocking the potential of St. Croix’s unique combination of history, eco-potential, laid-back style and off-beat charm.
As one of the largest islands that have resisted the ‘Floridia-fication’ of their tourist product – Captain Morgan could attract tourists who want an ‘old-style’ Caribbean experience.
Captain Morgan has been produced in Ponce, Puerto Rico – which never leveraged its brand for tourism purposes – since most people assume that Captain Morgan rum is from Jamaica (where it originated). The pirate theme never meshed well with the Latino brands – Bacardi (San Juan) and Don Q (Ponce) which both feature Puerto Rico in their marketing.
Caribbean Consulting will be working on St. Croix during July – so we’ll give an update when we get back…
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