KBL Launches Sikera Premium Apple Cider, New Alcoholic Beverage

Kenya Breweries Limited (KBL) has launched a new alcoholic beverage – Sikera Premium Apple Cider.

The innovation is a distinctly light and refreshing, premium drink delivering a perfectly balanced for a drinking experience.

Cider is an alcoholic beverage typically made from crushed apples. Available from today in bars and restaurants – and best served chilled – Sikera Premium Apple Cider comes in a 300ml bottle pack with an Alcohol by Volume (ABV) of 4.5 percent and at a recommended price (RRP) of Kshs 150.

Speaking at the launch event in Mombasa, KBL Managing Director Mrs. Jane Karuku said KBL’s twin desire of recruiting new consumers and responding to their changing tastes and preferences led to the development of the innovation.

“The launch of Sikera Premium Apple Cider today, follows the hugely successful introduction of Kenya’s first locally-produced cider, Tusker Premium Cider three years ago.  Sikera’s launch is the result of a recently-conducted consumer study on the trends driving the alcohol beverage market in our industry. These consumer insights then informed our innovation efforts extending our cider category, to provide a broader variety to our consumers,” said Mrs. Karuku

She added, “This new brand is geared to supporting our business agenda to accelerate growth in our innovation, which has enabled KBL to both recruit new consumers as well as provide a wider variety from around which consumers can build their drinking repertoire.”

EABL Marketing and Innovations Director Graham Villiers-Tuthill reinforced that Sikera Premium Apple Cider entry into the company’s agenda is to connect with an ever-evolving consumer base through flavored offerings.

“We are hugely proud to be launching Sikera Cider in Kenya. This new to world brand has been specifically developed to meet the changing consumer palette and consumption behavior of consumers in Kenya. Sikera is a crisp, light and refreshing apple cider, and early consumer feedback to this fresh new offering has been very positive,” said Villiers-Tuthill.

Sikera Apple Cider will be launched across the country in the coming weeks with expected roll-out to market in the coming days.

KBL has prioritized innovations as one of the company’s key growth pillars, with its innovations contributing 22 percent of East African Breweries Limited’s revenue in the financial year ending June 2019. Recent innovations include Tusker Cider, Captain Morgan Gold and Black & White.