My heartfelt thanks and appreciation to all the supporters who made this campaign for the Flavour Trail a success! 

You can still support the Flavour Trails' fast-track development journey by pledging towards our stretch goal of $20,000

CREATE A NEW WAY TO DISCOVER, EXPLORE AND SHARE 

THE WORLD’S BEST PREMIUM AND CRAFT SPIRITS

Hello friends,  

In July 2017 we will launch True North, an enjoyment club for intrepid spirits adventurers featuring curated monthly tasting kits of the best premium and craft spirits.

Built around a belief that we are all adventurers at heart, True North will deliver beautifully packaged, environmentally sustainable ‘spirits’ tasting kits of whisky, craft gin and other premium spirits plus a world-first online platform called ‘Flavour Trail’.  

Conceived by an endeavouring young chemist with a deep passion for whisky, True North has been created for the next generation of spirits lovers looking to move beyond the conventions of mainstream brands. They’re socially active and tech savvy discovering premium whisky and craft gins at cocktail bars, events and online contributing to the projected 2.5% growth in premium and craft spirits in Australia over the next 5 years.

Our ambition for True North is to be more than just a subscription spirits kit service. Combining physical and virtual experiences, True North will offer people a new 360 degree experience around tasting and sharing premium spirits at home, with friends and online.

And that’s where you come in. We invite you to read on and learn more about how you can join our journey to navigate True North and the world of spirits.

A BEHIND THE SCENES LOOK AT TRUE NORTH

Discover a new way to taste, explore and share the world’s finest premium and craft spirits.   

True North will offer a range benefits and experiences to its members:

• Beautifully packaged and curated Spirits Tasting Kits: containing five 5 x 50 ml tasting bottles of premium spirits; beginning with premium whisky or craft gin followed by other limited edition distillery products delivered monthly or as one off gifts.

• The opportunity to try before you buy plus preferential pricing on full bottles: enjoy 50 ml portions of hard to get spirits and use your exclusive membership to buy full 700 ml format bottles at members-only prices.

• Education notes: profiling the makers, ingredients and places behind each spirit.

• Access to the Flavour Trail; our unique online platform for the senses: built for true spirits lovers to record their favourite aromas, flavours and an archive of taste preferences. As your journey with the Flavour Trail continues, it will also serve as an invaluable guide to you and consumer preferences for distilleries around the world. 

• Physical and online workshops and masterclasses: lead by True North’s founder, Rowan Prangley, along with guest distillers and specialists teaching you about the world’s finest premium spirits.

• Access to exclusive online discussion groups: for like-minded spirits lovers keen to share and learn from each other.  

THREE TIERS OF MEMBERSHIP

True North will offer three levels of membership to guide curious spirits lovers through their journey of discovery, whatever their level of knowledge:  

 TWO LIMITED EDITION TRUE NORTH LAUNCH KITS

We will launch True North with two exceptional limited edition kits featuring some of the most sought after premium peated whiskies and five of Australia’s most exciting craft gins.

Meet Peat Blazers: a limited edition whisky kit featuring ultra-premium peated whiskies from the heart of the Scottish producing region, Islay.  

Meet Coast to Coast: a limited edition kit featuring award winning craft gins from the best new world distilleries around Australia.  

WHO’S BEHIND TRUE NORTH?

Every great journey has a unique beginning. True North’s began over a decade ago when a young chemist named Rowan Prangley purchased his first bottle of single malt whisky.

Initially confounded by the smoky, medicinal flavours; a passion to learn more was ignited.

Working as a scientist by day, Rowan schooled himself in premium spirits by night; throughout the years he collected over 150 bottles of whisky including prized collectors’ items from The Dalmore and The Balvenie in Scotland plus others from Australian distilleries such as Black Gate Distillery, Lark Distillery and Sullivans Cove Whisky.

Rowan also became an educator and began sharing his love for spirits with hundreds of people around Australia each year via whisky masterclasses and education events.  

Along the way he dabbled in subscription services, whisky groups and other social hubs where he could share his passion with peers and experts as the demand for premium and small batch, handcrafted spirits grew.

Out of this came the idea for a new kind of ‘try before you buy’ spirits enjoyment club. A club that combined beautifully curated and packaged kits with an immersive online platform for the senses that would direct and archive flavour preferences. And so True North was born.

In 2017, Rowan will complete his PhD in ethanol and bio-alcohol refinement and plans to make True North his full time passion. He can’t wait!

WHY TRUE NORTH WILL SUCCEED

The market for premium whisky and craft gin is experiencing strong growth in Australia and around the world with the Australian retail liquor sector generating sales of nearly $17 billion in 2016 (a growth of 3.3% compared to 2015) and also in the number of Glass Spirits products growing another 5% in 2016, up from a staggering 7% in 2015. This has generated a $3.5 billion Glass Spirits industry, according to ALSA – March 2017 IRI State of the Industry Report.

Progressive new customers are now looking for innovative ways to try and experience premium and artisan brands with a noted trend around ‘home-tainment’, enjoying quality and provenance over quantity at home.

In the US the subscription kit market has grown 3000% over the last three years creating a new direct to consumer e-commerce category. The market is also in fast growth in Australia for quality subscription offers.  

We believe that tasting and enjoying premium spirits is a journey that captures hearts, minds and palates. We are therefore combining the physical joy of a beautiful tasting kit with the Flavour Trail, our unique archival online platform for the senses which responds to the ten hours people spend online each day, mobile first. We believe this places us in a strong position to capitalise on dual category growth. The Flavour Trail will also give True North an added value proposition for distilleries looking for consumer insights.

To build True North we’ve drawn together a team of partners to create our brand, packaging and marketing plan who have won global awards for authentic beverage brands including: www.squadink.com, www.kindredstory.com and www.sakui.com.au

Our aim in year one is to capture just 0.025% of the Australian spirits customer market by 2018, which we consider very achievable; and introduce another 0.063% of new spirits appreciating customers to True North and the Australian Spirit industry sector by the year 2020.

Last but not least, the business is backed by a very ambitious PhD organic chemist who has been obsessed with whisky for the last ten years. We believe the combination of our business model and passion will see True North more than succeed. We invite you to be part of the True North journey and navigate the world of spirits.

truenorthspirits.com.au 

Legal

True North Spirits Liquor Licence: LIQP770017041

It is against the law in Australia to sell or supply alcohol to or to obtain alcohol on behalf of a person under the age of 18 years.
All deliveries of True North Spirits' products must be received and signed for by a person over the age of 18 years. Sorry, but we can not deliver to PO box addresses.

WHY WE NEED YOUR HELP

We have grand ambitions for True North and have so far invested significant time and money in the True North business, brand, packaging and website.

The Flavour Trail, our unique online flavour and aroma platform, lies at the heart of True North because we believe it will take the premium spirits experience to a whole new level.

We’ve completed the first development stage of Flavour Trail (trademark and patent pending) and are now looking to crowdfund $10,000 to assist with the second stage of its online application development life cycle.

If we are fortunate to exceed this amount and reach $20,000 we will fast track the Flavour Trail to a fully integrated website application (within the first six months of True North launch).

We will also be allocating a portion of the $10,000 to growth marketing tactics, with the goal of converting 2000 new True North members by the end of 2018 and a minimum of 5000 members by 2020.

The chart below shows the breakdown of the target, which includes other costs such as the Pozible campaign fees, transaction fees as well as reward delivery/shipping fees. 

We have developed an exclusive range of unique rewards, limited to True North’s launch. Please see below.  Pledges must be aged 18 years or older.

Most importantly however you will become a founding member of True North - a true adventurer looking to journey beyond the conventions of mainstream spirits. We look forward to updating you at every stage of True North and the Flavour Trail’s development and hearing your feedback.   

Ultimately we’re looking to create a new way for people to discover, enjoy and share the world’s best premium and craft spirits. And by doing so, support the growth and appreciation of hand crafted spirits and distilleries plus the people behind them in Australia and around the world. We’d love your help.  

Is True North committed to this project?

Yes! We have invested thousands of hours and dollars planning and creating True North and how best to leverage the growing market opportunity. We can’t wait to play our part in the growth of hand crafted spirits and distilleries plus the people behind them in Australia and around the world.

How will True North get the best spirits for its tasting kits?

Our current business model and cashflow includes the wholesale and cost pricing of all spirits. This means we don’t need to rely on favours from distilleries and gives us the opportunity to profile the very best spirits from around the world.

What are the stats that prove True North can work?

Premium and craft spirits are experiencing significant growth in Australia and in other markets around the world. Australia was the fifth largest market for premium spirits growth globally according to Australian Liquor Store Association and IRI’s 2016 State of the Industry Report, with an increase of 11 per cent or 176,000 cases of premium spirits during 2015-2016. Gin has experienced a 36% consumption increase in the past five years and is projected to overtake vodka as the premier go-to white spirit by the year 2020.

Whisk(e)y has experienced continued growth in the global premium spirits sector at 1.7% increase, with gin steadying upwards at 3.7% in 2016, IWSR 2016.

Subscription box websites in the US have seen a 3000% increase in the last three years (https://www.inc.com/christina-desmarais/heres-data-showing-the-crazy-growth-of-subscription-box-services-infographic.html). Australia has also experienced strong growth. We aim to offer an immersive high quality experience that extends beyond just a subscription box.

Why do we need an online platform like the True North Flavour Trail?

We believe that tasting and enjoying premium spirits is a sensory journey that captures hearts, minds and palates.

We feel there is a very real opportunity to extend this experience in an exciting, self-rewarding way to enhance people’s lives in the comfort of their own homes – using a physically beautiful and curated tasting product plus, an online and interactive environment that responds to the ten hours people spend on average online each day.