Launching a craft rum brand is a bit like setting sail in a hand-built schooner across stormy seas. The waves are high, the competition fierce, and there’s always a chance you’ll be blown off course. But with a steady hand at the helm, a decent compass, and a hold full of exceptional rum, you might just make it to the coveted shores of London’s craft spirits scene.

At Far Shore Merchants, we’re the proud brand owners behind a small but determined fleet of premium British rums, crafted in partnership with the brilliant Tom Read and his talented team at The Cornish Distilling Co. in Bude, Cornwall. Together, we’ve created something rather special — though getting these wonderful rums into London’s fiercely competitive craft rum scene has been anything but straightforward.

When we began creating Peggy Dark Rum back in 2019, the timing couldn’t have been more… unhelpful. COVID arrived just as we were perfecting the blend. Brilliant. Exactly what every fledgling brand owner dreams of — launching a premium rum in the middle of a global pandemic.

Still, proof of concept was the first step. We launched Peggy on our home turf, the Isle of Man, to see if people liked the taste. They didn’t just like it — they came back for more. Then came the gold awards from the London Spirits Competition and The Spirits Masters. Experts agreed we had something special. Next question: would London’s rum drinkers feel the same?

Of course, one rum is never enough. The range grew — Jackdaw Cave Spiced Rum for the adventurous souls, Windsong White Rum for the purists — and we set our sights firmly on the UK market, with a steady stream of large export orders from Belgium to keep morale (and cash flow) ticking over.

This is the part where many believe the brand “just takes off.” Spoiler: it doesn’t.

Refining the message, honing the image, knocking on doors, getting people to listen — that’s the real work. Fortunately, owning an ad agency has its perks. We could keep the branding sharp and the storytelling on point without spending a fortune… although rest assured, plenty of fortunes were still spent.

A breakthrough came when Jaco Strydom our intrepid brand ambassador in London joined our crew. Suddenly, high-end bars and restaurants were listening. The final missing piece was finding the right distributor partner — not just someone who could move boxes, but someone who believed in the brand. We found two: Master of Malt Trade and Champers.

Here’s the truth: it’s a long, hard road. You need deep pockets, thick skin, and the ability to keep moving forward even when it feels like you’re pushing a rum barrel uphill. The frustrations are many — delays, rejections, endless samples disappearing into the ether — but so are the rewards when a bartender in Chelsea, Mayfair or Soho calls your rum “the best thing they’ve tasted all year.”

We’re now at a turning point. With much-needed investment secured, we can finally scale to the volumes we’ve been chasing. The road ahead is still steep, but the view is looking better every day.

The lesson? In craft rum — as in life — you need the right philosophy and a tenacious streak a mile wide. And perhaps a dash of Peggy Dark to keep you going.

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