Dawn Davies - Specialty Drinks
- 6 days ago
- 6 min read
Dawn Davies is head buyer of distribution company Speciality Drinks. She previously spent nine years working as beer, wine and spirit buyer with upmarket UK retailer Selfridges, where she was awarded a series of drink retailing awards for her pioneering approach. Before joining Selfridges, Davies had an extensive career as an on-trade manager and sommelier with Zuma, Boxwood, The Square and The Ledbury restaurants. I think she will resonate well with your audience and collectors.
Elevated Wine, Spirits & Cuisine Magazine: You’ve been described as a pioneering buyer in drinks retail. When you look back, what was the first big risk you took in your career that really changed your trajectory?
This is a tough question to answer because I have made a lot of crazy decisions in my life but I think it was probably one of my first few weeks in Selfridges. I was in a meeting with a very well known spirit and wine company, and I felt that they didn’t really understand our business and were not supportive of it. I remember turning round and saying I am not afraid to delist you and your products. I didn’t realize at the time that they were one of our biggest suppliers and their one Champagne made over a million pounds a year for us. However standing up for the business and having the courage to say I am not taking this lead to one of my best relationships with a brand and some of the best collaborations we ever did at Selfridges. I think it is really important to stand up for what you believe in and have real courage in your convictions. I have always taken risks and I have always pushed to find the next new product or trend and this has always stood me in good stead.
At Selfridges you helped shape a very curated, award‑winning drinks offering. What did you learn there about what truly resonates with sophisticated consumers and collectors?
I was a sommelier before I became a buyer and when you are a sommelier you hand sell everything. As a retail buyer you have to ensure your products are good enough so that the customer trusts you and that your staff really have the tools to sell. I spent every Christmas on the shop floor at Selfridges (and still today at the Whisky Exchange) because I want to know what my customer wants, you cannot be a buyer without knowing who you are buying for. I really learnt to listen to what wines and spirits they were interested in. For those that really appreciate great whiskies and wines they want to know that the provenance is there, that it has been kept in good condition and if they haven’t tried it they want to know that you know what you are talking about when you sell it to them. Trust between myself and the customer is hugely important and knowledge about the product is so vital.
Today you’re head buyer at The Whisky Exchange. How do you balance personal instinct with data when you’re deciding which spirits or categories to back?
I am very much instinct led but when you are dealing with over 20,000 different products and you are buying not only for retail but also for the on trade you have to look at data and back up your instinct with the numbers. I am very much someone that doesn’t want to follow trends but create them and you have to look at the data to do this, you have to see small trends amongst all the noise of the big trends to future proof your business. I am very lucky to have a team that love the numbers and they very much help me look at whether my gut is right to follow the trend that I am looking at. I do think however when you see a new brand in the market, data cannot tell you anything it is about the quality of the liquid, the packaging and the story and of course the correct pricing. Only your gut tells you whether you have a hit on your hands or not.
The worlds you’ve moved through—Zuma, The Square, The Ledbury, Selfridges—are all very different environments. What did life as a sommelier and on‑trade manager teach you that you still use every day as a buyer?
My years in restaurants taught me so much, it taught me about service first and foremost. How important that interaction between you and the customer is. You have to be very disciplined when you are working in luxury restaurants and you learn to quickly prioritize and work through challenges, this has definitely followed me into buying. I was also very lucky to work with some of the best Sommeliers in the UK and they taught me you have to know your product and they taught me that taste and quality is paramount to creating a great range. Without working in restaurants I wouldn’t be the buyer I am today.
For collectors who read Elevated and are building serious cellars or spirits collections, what common mistakes do you see—and what would you urge them to do differently?
I think people often get sucked into the marketing spiel and the idea of quality without learning to really judge the liquid. To really elevate your collections it is important to get to know the liquid and don’t just buy to sell on or to flip. Learn what you love to drink and seek out those drams or wines, don’t just blindly follow what people say is trendy. If you want to enjoy your collection you have to collect things that really resonate with you. Also really understand the worth of the liquid as many popular whiskies today are over priced for what they are because people believed the hype and just brought them to resell and not to drink. Don’t be afraid to try different things; if you like say Macallan, dont just buy Macallan look at other sherry forward whiskies like Glendronach, Glenallachie etc. Whether you are buying for investment or drinking do your research look at the scores from people like Serge Valentine @whiskyfun and look at what Dave Broom is saying, what the auction houses prices are doing. All these things will help you buy better, but above all things taste!
You’ve been early on categories that later exploded. Are there any emerging regions, styles, or producers you think serious enthusiasts should be paying attention to right now?
Asian is an area I am really excited about at the moment. It was great to see this year at the IWSC Asian whisky, especially China and Korea, do so well. They are still young whiskies but the potential for them to create real quality is high. Korea for me is definitely the country to watch when it comes to spirits. In a similar way to how Japan became so popular you are seeing the Korean culture and food scene exploding with K-pop and Korean BBQ the buzz words. Normally when we see a country start to trend in popular culture it is not long before the drinks start to also follow the same trajectory.
The drinks world can feel intimidating from the outside. When you’re mentoring younger professionals—or even just talking to curious guests—how do you encourage them to develop their own palate and point of view?
It is often hard to be confident to speak about flavour, I have been tasting for over 25 years and I am confident in describing liquid but that took time. This description of flavour is often what people starting their journey are afraid of. It is important for them to develop their own interpretation of the liquid. Everyone tastes differently and your frame of reference for flavour will be different to the person next to you. My biggest advice for getting better and describing liquid is WRITE IT DOWN. You have to concentrate so much more if you are putting to paper what you taste, you also will remember it much more if you do. Don’t be afraid to just say what you think and have conviction in it. If you like something say it if you don’t like it also say it. We all like different things and our palates change as we go through life. If you are looking for quality always ask yourself four things. Is the product balanced, so nothing should feel like it is ‘sticking’ out when you taste it. Two - when you have tasted it how long does the flavour stay with you, does it disappear immediately or does it go on for a few minutes. Three how intense is the liquid does it really resonate on the palate. Lastly how complex is the spirit, how many times do you go back to it and discover a new flavour, how much does it make you think. This will guide you to understanding the quality of the product, whether you like it or not is then up to you.
Finally, away from tasting rooms and trade shows, what does a perfect, low‑key drink look like for you at the end of a long week? At the end of the day I always go back to my roots and there is nothing better than a glass of wine at the end of a long hard day. Now what the wine is depends but I do love a glass of great wine.
