Continuing our countdown to this year’s Neighbourhood Retailer Awards, we find out more about our sponsors – this time we focus on Drinks Inc., who are sponsoring the Off Licence of the Year award and we’re delighted to announce they are also the wine sponsor at our gala awards dinner.

Drinks Inc. was founded over 24 years ago and has grown into one of the Northern Ireland’s leading drinks distributors, with a broad portfolio that includes an impressive range of wines, spirits, beers, and soft drinks.

As the Northern Ireland agent for many of world’s best-selling wines, we are excited to be adding Santa Rita to our Wine Portfolio within Drinks Inc. With Santa Rita Sauvignon Blanc already the best-selling white wine in the Republic of Ireland, we are looking forward to making this brand available to all our customers this month.

Category Manger, James McLornan said: “We’re delighted to be sponsor of the Off Licence of the Year award and to be this year’s wine sponsors with our newest Wine Agency Santa Rita pouring throughout the gala awards dinner.

“Santa Rita sits perfectly within our Wine Portfolio that already includes Mionetto, the world’s most popular Prosecco brand and Trivento, the UK’s best-selling and multi award-winning Red Wine.”

In 2025, we’ve made a significant investment in developing our online order platform, to make ordering as easy and convenient as possible for all customers.

If you haven’t yet explored our site, now’s the perfect time. You can easily place orders online, view all current promotions in one place, and benefit from quick repeat ordering with just a few clicks. Not sure how to get started? Your sales rep or our Telesales Team will be happy to help you set up and place your first order.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the retailers and their teams for their support for Drinks Inc. over the past year and offer congratulations to all the nominees for making it to the shortlist in the tough category of Off Licence of the Year,” added James.

Why Choose Drinks Inc.?

• Vast Selection: Explore a wide array of beverages, from premium wines and spirits to refreshing beers and soft drinks.
• Exclusive Brands: Enjoy access to exclusive products from top-tier producers.
• Experienced Team: Benefit from the expertise of a seasoned team dedicated to your success.
• Reliable Delivery: Count on our efficient logistics to keep your shelves stocked and customers happy.
• Innovative Technology: Experience enhanced service with our state-of-the-art mobile tech solutions.

For more information on our wine range, contact our wine specialist, Jonny Callan, on 073 7906 6786.

DON’T MISS OUT – BOOK YOUR TABLE AT THE 2025 NEIGHBOURHOOD RETAILER AWARDS HERE!

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The campaign follows the recent publication of Musgrave’s economic and social impact report which was unveiled at a special event at St George’s Market in Belfast earlier this month and set out a £1.2 billion contribution to the Northern Ireland economy by Musgrave NI.

Supporting the findings and celebrating the brands’ commitment to local, ‘Love Local? So Do We’ is live in stores, branches and online now, with customers encouraged to enjoy the very best local products.

“Our commitment to local is evident not least in our £240m annual spend on local food and drink, our relationships with over 250 local suppliers and our support for our local charity partners Action Cancer and Northern Ireland Chest Heart and Stroke, for which we have raised a combined total of £4.4 million,” said Director of Marketing, Desi Derby.

“We’re excited about our new campaign which will spotlight everything local, from food and drink to people and partnerships, testament to the positive impact we’re committed to making in local communities here.”

The campaign will also see the launch of a ‘Love Local? So Do We’ SuperValu summer roadshow, which will visit 10 SuperValu stores over the summer, for afternoons of family entertainment.

Customers can meet local suppliers, and enjoy sampling local food, while entertainment will include live music, face painting, balloon modelling, a surprise cartoon character and plenty of prizes with the spin to win wheel.

The SuperValu stores which are on the roadshow route are: Aughnacloy, Crossgar, Downpatrick, Dungiven, Eglinton, Fruitfield (Richhill), Irvinestown, Newry, Portadown and Portstewart.

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David, who has over 20 years’ experience in the FMCG/alcohol industry, joins from Diageo Ireland where he was most recently Head of Spirits, following roles including Head of Strategic Accounts.

As Retail Sales Director, David will oversee the development of the retail partnership model across Northern Ireland, specifically for SuperValu, Centra

and Mace.

John McGinnity has worked with Musgrave for 17 years in various trading and sales roles including his previous position of Head of Specialist and World Food Sales for Musgrave Wholesale Partners across the Republic of Ireland.

As Head of Wholesale and Foodservice, John takes over from Richard Mayne who has moved to the role of Director of Beverage within Wholesale and Foodservice for the Musgrave Group. With 10 years’ experience of working with Musgrave under his belt, Richard will be responsible for leading Musgrave’s beverage businesses across the island of Ireland, supporting the Group’s ambition of being a world class food and beverage business.

Welcoming the appointments, Trevor Magill, Managing Director of Musgrave NI said: “With our ambitious plans to grow our retail store network as well as expand our footprint across the foodservice and wholesale sectors, I am delighted to welcome David and John to the Musgrave NI business.

“We recently announced our £1.2 billion impact on the local economy and I am confident that the experience that David and John bring will ensure we continue to remain a positive force here in Northern Ireland. I would also like to wish Richard the very best in his new role.”

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Drinks Inc is sponsoring the Neighbourhood Store of the Year Category 3 at this year’s Neighbourhood Retailer Awards.

In addition to sponsoring an award at this year’s Neighbourhood Retailer Awards, Drinks Inc will supply the wine for the tables on the night, namely Mucho Mas Black Edition Red and Mucho Mas White.

Trading Manager (Wine) at Drinks Inc, James McLornan tells NR about the company’s wine portfolio and training provided.

“I’ve been working as the Wine Buyer for Drinks Inc for the past three years. Since taking up the role, I’ve been focused on refreshing our wine portfolio, securing exciting and fast-growing new wine agencies like Dada Malbec and the new Mucho Mas Range, while also growing sales on our well-established wine agencies like Beronia Rioja and the extremely popular Most Wanted wine range.

“As an approved WSET educator, we’re providing WSET wine training throughout our own business and within lots of independently-owned off licences across Northern Ireland.

“In addition to this formal training, we are also providing extensive customer tasting evenings for off licence staff and their off licence customers. Plus, our annual wine portfolio tasting has proved extremely popular over the past few years allowing our customers to sample across our entire range while meeting the wine producers behind our wines,” added James.

“The great thing about the wine category is that every day is a school day for all of us, you just never stop learning within the wine business. Plus, the more informed we are then the more likely we’ll be in convincing consumers to be more adventurous with their wine choices.”

To find out more, visit https://www.drinksinc.com/

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A total of 34 life-saving defibrillators have been installed by MK Medical inside all SuperValu and Centra stores owned by the company, as well as Musgrave MarketPlace sites, Musgrave’s headquarters on Dargan Drive and drinks wholesaler, Drinks Inc on Boucher Road, Belfast.

SuperValu and Centra stores included are located across the region, including Banbridge, Belfast, Carrickfergus, Comber, Cookstown, Dungiven, Armagh, Limavady and many more.

POTENTIAL LIFELINE

Defibrillators have the potential to save the lives of staff and customers, with latest research showing that accessing these devices within 3-5 minutes of a cardiac arrest increases the chance of survival by over 40%.

Trevor Magill, Managing Director of Musgrave NI, said: “Our stores across Northern Ireland are at the heart of their communities and we’re proud to provide a potential lifeline to them in an emergency with the installation of defibrillators at our Musgrave-owned SuperValu and Centra stores.

“Timing is crucial when dealing with a cardiac arrest, therefore having direct access to a defibrillator whether in our stores or office locations, could be life-saving.”

To learn more about how to use a defibrillator please visit St John Ambulance.

Musgrave sites where defibrillators are installed:

Head Office and Regional Distribution Centre, Dargan Drive, Belfast

Drinks Inc, Falcon Rd, Belfast

Marketplace, Dargan Crescent, Belfast

Marketplace Pennyburn, Buncrana Rd, Derry City

Centra, Ballymagorry, Tyrone

Centra, Banbridge Church Street, Down

SuperValu, Dairy Farm, Belfast

Centra, Foxes Glen, Stewartstown Road, Belfast

SuperValu, Kings Square, Belfast

Centra, Woodburn Rd, Carrickfergus

SuperValu, Comber

Centra, Burn Road, Cookstown,

Centra, Buncrana Road, Derry/Londonderry

SuperValu, Downpatrick

Centra, High Street, Draperstown

SuperValu, Dungiven

SuperValu, Tattymoyle Road, Fintona

Centra, Irvinestown, Fermanagh

SuperValu, Irvinestown, Fermanagh

SuperValu, Market Street, Limavady

SuperValu, Knockmore Rd, Lisburn

Centra, Main Street, Moira

SuperValu, Dundrum Road, Newcastle

SuperValu, Clones Road, Newtownbutler

SuperValu, Market Street, Omagh

Centra, Clady Road, Portglenone

SuperValu, Station Road, Portstewart

SuperValu, Main St, Strabane

Centra, Mullaghglass Road, Whitemountain, Lisburn

Centra, O’Neill Rd, Newtownabbey

Centra, Main St, Claudy

Centra, Mayfield link, Mallusk

Centra, Feeny Rd, Dungiven

SuperValu, Main St, Portglenone

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