The Kite Factory prepares for the hard sell-tzer after White Claw win

White Claw, the US market leader in the booming hard seltzer category, has appointed The Kite Factory to develop its media planning and buying strategy following a competitive pitch

The brand, founded in 2016, launched in the UK last May in its first expansion outside North America. The Kite Factory is its first UK media agency.

Since its launch White Claw, owned by Mark Anthony Brands International, has become a major player in the US drinks market as the market leader in hard seltzers – lightly-flavoured sparkling water with alcohol.

A forecast last year from Grand View Research predicted that the global hard seltzer market would be worth $14.5bn by 2027.

While hard seltzer in the UK is yet to reach the popularity levels it has enjoyed in the US, the market is already highly competitive, with major players including Budweiser, Coca-Cola and Kopparberg all launching brands.

The Kite Factory said it would "bring to life White Claw’s challenger ethos with step-changing creativity defying category norms" and would amplify the brand's "proposition of pure, uncomplicated fun".

Michael Dean, head of marketing at White Claw, said: “The Kite Factory truly understood our ambitions for the UK market. White Claw needs to turn up as a challenger brand and offer our UK audience better for your drinking experience aligned with emerging lifestyle trends. Thrilled to have them on board.”

Anthony Abou-Zeid, client business director at The Kite Factory, added: "It’s always an exciting challenge to launch a brand with so much ambition but there’s also the added layer of launching a product which is yet to be widely adopted in the UK. Hard seltzer is a relatively unknown entity here but we’re going to have a lot of fun with it from launch and beyond."