Cuckoo Gin starts to fly off the shelves thanks to Boost

A Lancashire farming family have successfully launched their own brand of gin after taking part in Boost’s Growth Support Programme.

Demand for Cuckoo Gin is quickly taking off and the locally-distilled tipple is already stocked by many wine and spirits outlets as well as Booths supermarkets.

Produced at Brindle Distillery near Chorley, Cuckoo Gin was created by Gerard and Cath Singleton. Along with their son-in-law Mark Long and their children, Liz, Alice and William, Cuckoo Gin is a real family affair.

The family decided to enter the spirits market as part of a plan to diversify their farm, which has been in the Singleton family since the 1930s. They grow their own crops and use spring water from the farm to distil grain spirit and create the unique gin.

After being introduced to Boost by Chorley Council, Liz attended a Lean Launchpad event to gain a better understanding of how to start and develop a business.

During the event, Liz also met designers Graham and Nina Walker from Design by Gray who eventually worked to create the marketing materials and packaging used by the Cuckoo Gin brand.

Boost is Lancashire's Business Growth Hub and is led by the Lancashire LEP (Local Enterprise Partnership) and Lancashire County Council and supported by funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

Mark, who manages the Cuckoo Gin business, said: “Liz wanted to expand her knowledge concerning commercial matters as well as gaining a basic understanding of business.

“She found the events really useful and learnt a lot about all aspects of running a business, including the jobs that nobody likes doing, but are still essential, like paper work and legal issues.

“Networking at the Launchpad event also introduced us to Graham and Nina, who were in a similar position to us, it was a great opportunity to meet likeminded business owners, who we eventually collaborated with on our brand.

“The team at Boost has been really keen to support our business growth, and the beauty of the system is that you can have as much or as little support as you need.”

Sue Denver, Winning Pitch, said: “Brindle Distillery has a great product with a fantastic story behind it and a market that is ready and waiting for unique gins to become available. Liz and Mark just needed some guidance on how to run their business and market their product well.

“The Lean Launchpad events were a great tool for Liz and meeting Graham and Nina shows how effective networking in your local area can be, it’s a great example of collaboration between two pre-start local businesses working together in their early stages. We wish them both the best of luck.”