Baileys inventor David Gluckman on brand creation, design – and his book, ‘That Sh*t Will Never Sell’

First up, can you give us a brief introduction to yourself and your career in brand creation?
After 10 years as an advertising executive, I switched to become a creator of brands in 1969. I’ve worked in the field ever since. All my best work has been in the drinks business and my best-known brands include Baileys, Sheridan’s, The Singleton, Smirnoff Black and Tanqueray Ten.

My story is now in a book – ‘That Sh*t Will Never Sell’ – which can be previewed on davidgluckmanauthor.com.

Yes, what was the motivation in writing the book?
Well, I think I had a unique career, consulting for a company for 36 years that became the world’s largest drinks company. I worked with one partner for the first 14 years and then as a lone hand for the next 22. I was lucky enough to tap into a very entrepreneurial corporate culture, which was the main reason why we were successful. I thought it a story well worth telling.

How did you find the process of writing a book?
Because I had some brilliant stories to tell, and no day job at the time, the process of writing the book was fairly painless. An academic friend gave me some invaluable advice: ‘Write it like you talk’. And I did. I think that made it more readable – but you judge that for yourself. The act of publishing the book was quite challenging and still is, but I learn something new every day.

The book is full of fascinating stories and insights about the drinks business. As a tempting aperitif, can you share one of the stories you have included in the book…
The brand Sheridan’s was thought up during a 10-minute walk from the bar in Dublin airport to a nearby hotel where I was going to get the brief for the brand. The idea was inspired by seeing a pint of Guinness being poured and remembering a bottle in my father’s drinks cupboard back in about 1950! The client bought the idea on the spot and a few months ago, Diageo sold the brand for an undisclosed sum.

Amazing. Now, a lot of our readers are designers and product developers. Thinking about design in the drinks sector, do you think there are “must haves” when designing for drinks companies?
Great design was vital. We didn’t like working with design ‘heavies’. We wanted ideas rather than flash premises! I liked to work with single designers, and my favourites were Gordon Smith, Howard Waller, Bob Wagner, Gerry Barney and Daryl Ireland. I especially liked designers who gave single answers to briefs. I was never happy looking at a raft of alternatives.

What advice would you give to brand owners when setting creative agencies a design brief?
One main reason we were successful was our relationship with clients. We were people working together to solve problems that we both understood. I think earlier experiences during my advertising career were more confrontational, and that rarely created good work.

Another reason was for our success was that brand development was owned by high-level management. Middle management didn’t have the power to make things happen… And we had a healthy disrespect for asking consumers about innovative ideas. We did tiny amounts of consumer research. New ideas were likely to appeal to a minority, not a mass market.

Finally, can you share one quick story that you decided not to include in the book?
In 1988 we created an olive oil margarine brand for Kraft called Olivia. They dithered around for six months and then dumped it. Their competitors launched Olivio a few months later. I don’t think there was anything untoward! I was aways desperate to have a non-drink success.

David, thanks for taking time out for this. And people can check out your book over at: https://davidgluckmanauthor.com/.