Destillerie sieht doppelt: Zwei Otto-Liköre ergeben ein Ganzes

The International Green Week in Berlin is the world's largest trade fair for food, agriculture and gardening. From 20th to 29th January, companies from Saxony-Anhalt will showcase their products, business philosophy and partners. A traditional company - originally a subsidiary of the "Marienhof" winery founded in 1924 in Magdeburg and known for its production of spirits such as liqueurs and brandies since 1928 - is also setting up its stand in the trade fair halls: the speciality distillery "Abtshof" will serve liqueur specialities and absinth this year.
Above all, however, the team has a lot of experience behind them. We talked to Ilona Borchers, Head of Sales and Distribution at the Abtshof Magdeburg GmbH, about the Green Week, the "double Otto" and about how difficult it is even for traditional companies to assert themselves on the market.

What does taking part in the International Green Week mean for you?
As a regional manufacturer, we try to have a nationwide presence by taking part in the Green Week. For us, the exhibition is a place where we can present our products and make contact with customers and people in the manufacturing industry. But Green Week is also a test and research site for both our own and external products. We therefore hope that our participation in the Green Week will be a success once again this year.

What has been your experience of previous appearances in Berlin?
Communication with customers is important for us, particularly beyond the sector in which we are known. In this regard, we use the trade fair in order to receive feedback from interested parties. To date, the visitors at the Green Week have been very open-minded and curious towards our products and our company. One of the highlights, as every year, was the Minister President's visit to our stand.

Which innovations will you score points with in Berlin?
This year, we are represented by the "double Otto". As an ambassador for the city of Magdeburg, we have developed two liqueurs as part of the Otto campaign and marketed these under the names "Otto von Guericke" and "Otto the Great“.
"The double Otto“ is made up of two bottles in a semi-spherical shape which are placed together and are sold in decorative gift packaging. The product was presented last May in the town hall by the mayor of Magdeburg, Dr. Lutz Trümper.

You are a traditional company. How difficult is it to assert yourself on the market today? And what kind of force is behind this?
We are not only a company with a 88 year tradition, but also a family business which is owner-managed. Therefore, we are unable to afford large investments or significant advertising expenses like other larger spirits companies or brands. The market is becoming smaller and smaller. We know that trends come and go. Many consumers are thinking about their regions once again. This is a factor which we focus on among other things.

You've opened an Absinth cellar. Why have you decided to do this?
We have a national brand with "Absinth 66" and offer our visitors extensive cultural activities at our works premises. We had already been considering expanding our old tasting cellar into an absinth cellar for quite some time. For brand politics reasons alone, this is simply part of bringing a brand to "life" - particularly as there is a legend surrounding the brand.

Where do you envisage your focal points to be over the next two years from a purely entrepreneurial perspective?
In the next two years, successful product development and product marketing shall be crucial for the success of "Abtshof". To ensure that we can distinguish ourselves from the competition and uniform products, we will mainly focus on these key factors in the near future.


Author: Manuela Bock

Contact:
Abtshof Magdeburg GmbH
Brauereistraße 2
39104 Magdeburg
ph: +49 (0)391 405150
Fax: +49 (0)391 4051515
E-mail: info@abtshof.de
Web: www.abtshof.de