Meet Louis Goddard-Watts, Founder of Premium Spiced Rum: Sly Dog

SLY DOG is a premium spiced rum brand that was introduced to the public in March 2021. SLY DOG’s mission is to change the direction of travel for the rum category, we’ve ditched the tired and overused pirate, parrot and palm tree themes and created a brand that’s stylish fun, evidenced by excellence.

We believe in the SLY DOG moment, the moment when you are out with your friends, creating unforgettable memories (depending on how much you drink) and enjoying amazing drinks. We don’t take ourselves too seriously and neither do we want our customers!

SLY DOG Spiced Rum is a blend of premium Caribbean rums from carefully selected distilleries in Jamaica and the Dominican Republic, aged for up to 3 years. The combination of our tropical spices with fiery Caribbean rum delivers a smooth, warming and exquisite flavor with a gentle sweetness that is truly delicious and crafted for the crafty and cunning beast.

How did you come up with the idea for the Sly Dog, what do you think makes Sly Dog unique?

SLY DOG was 18 months in development, the rum and spiced rum trends were starting to gain momentum and having been drinking spiced rum for a while I was shocked at how poor the supply of spiced rum was on the market. The gin and craft beer boom had offered customers a much larger selection of premium craft drinks, but the flavored rum selection didn’t extend further than a mass-produced Kraken or Sailor Jerry.

During development it was clear to us that we would not sacrifice quality elements to save on cost, we wanted to show how incredible and versatile a well made flavored rum can be if certain ‘big boys’ cost saving measures are not taken.

Aside from the brand’s unique style and bottle, which help make it instantly recognizable, the liquid is what sets SLY DOG apart from the competition. Working with one of the UK’s leading taste masters for 12 months, we worked on hundreds of flavor combinations until we found SLY DOG’s signature recipe. Since our establishment, we have won 10 medals for the quality of the liquid!

How has the company developed over the past year?

SLY DOG was unleashed at a very difficult time for the beverage industry, like most industries, retail was non-existent, brands and venues were just trying to survive so it probably wasn’t the most sensible time to launch. We started out online first and at a few online retailers and our local independent stores and it was just my brother and I doing everything in the business.

A year later we have grown to a team of 8, managed to open 5 national wholesalers and now have sales teams operating in 4 different cities in the UK, showing our determination and confidence in the huge potential of SLY DOG and as a country proves post-pandemic, retail opportunities are thriving, so it’s a very exciting time for a brand like SLY DOG.

What can we expect from Sly Dog in the future?

SLY DOG has a very clear goal of becoming the most popular flavored premium rum on-trade. We need to draw more lips to our liquid to let them know there’s a better alternative than what they’ve been served up to now.

SLY DOG has an incredibly young team that thinks ahead and is always looking for innovative ways to give the brand the presence it needs. Expect SLY DOG to wreak havoc at a few festivals this summer and if you look further we’ve got some NPD cunningly made at the Doghouse so you’ll need to keep your sly eyes peeled.