Kisko returns
Published:Wednesday | December 18, 2024 | 12:07 AM
Chas. E. Ramson Limited recently launched a locally made Kisko Drink Mix with the aim of revitalising a brand that was ever-present on the lips of Jamaican kids.
The new Kisko Drink Mix is now available at select stores across Jamaica. To support its strategy, Ramson recently doubled its warehousing space at its headquarters on Spanish Town Road. The company spent $400 million expanding storage from 20,000 to 40,000 square feet (sq ft). Ramson also owns a 15,000 sq ft facility in Montego Bay.
“For me, it’s about developing our own brands—whether through partnerships like the one with Kisko or expanding our own household brands like Foska Oats. You need to create a brand that becomes a household name,” managing director of Chas. E. Ramson, Phillip Ramson, explained in a Financial Gleaner interview.
The drink comes in three flavors—Mango, Ginger Lemonade, and Ginger Pineapple. Ramson said that the launch of Kisko Drink Mix is rooted in a series of relationships. The drink is manufactured by Salada Foods Ltd, under licence from the brand’s owners, a Jamaican family based in Canada. The Kisko brand, owned by the Joseph family since the 1960s, has long been a favourite among Jamaican children. After the Josephs migrated to Canada, they entrusted the business to a friend in Jamaica, but that arrangement faltered. Consequently, the brand was sold to Nestlé Jamaica in the 1970s or 1980s. While Nestlé continued manufacturing Kisko products in Jamaica, the Josephs established Kisko Canada, focusing on freeze pops under the Kisko brand. They eventually acquired Mr. Freeze, positioning themselves as one of North America’s leading freeze-pop manufacturers, Ramson recounted.
“Then about 12 years ago, they returned to Jamaica, bought back the brand from Nestlé for Jamaica, and appointed Ramsons as their distributor. We’ve been importing Kisko from Canada and selling it in Jamaica ever since,” Ramson says. It was always part of the long-term plan to eventually resume local production of Kisko.
Ramson also has a deep connection with Salada, dating back to his grandfather, Laurie Ramson, who was chairman of Salada Foods in the 1970s. Present General Manager Tamii Brown of Salada was once a brand manager for Foska Oats when she worked with Ramsons.
“See how small Jamaica is, right,” Ramson explained. “Everyone knows everyone. Tamii reached out to me, saying that Salada wanted to explore expanding into other categories, like powdered drink mixes.”
Instead of using the Ramson name, he chose Kisko for its iconic status as a long-time favorite of Jamaican children.
Ramson said that naming the drink mix Kisko was “a no-brainer” for brand owner Mark Josephs.
It’s well known that the spray-drying facilities at Salada often sit idle between production runs for Mountain Peak instant coffee and other beverages. The company had been considering utilising this excess capacity for new products. The new Mango, Ginger Lemonade, and Ginger Pineapple flavours were selected after a thorough research and development process, with Ramson’s team working closely with Salada.
“When selecting flavors, it was crucial to choose those that resonate with Jamaica and the Jamaican palate. Over the past year, we’ve conducted samplings and reviewed artwork to ensure the flavors felt authentic. Every Jamaican knows that ginger is the perfect complement,” Ramson says about the flavor selection process.
For Chas. E. Ramson, developing the Kisko Drink Mix is part of an aggressive expansion strategy. In addition to its Foska Oats manufacturing facility at subsidiary Caribbean Foods in Twickenham Park, St. Catherine, the company also distributes products manufactured under co-manufacturing deals with companies like Gracekennedy and Salada.
“Business requires aggression. If you’re standing still, you’re dying. You have to either reduce to fit the market or push forward aggressively. The fast-moving consumer goods industry is exciting because people are always eager to try new things,” Ramson declared.
The top five brands distributed by Chas. E. Ramson are Foska Oats, Double 7 energy drink, Elle & Vire dairy products, Blue Diamond Almond Milk, and Magic Sparkling Non-Alcoholic Juice.