How our two-century-old fine cider brand is climbing its way to the top
Ambition A.M. meets Nick Showering, brand manager at Somerset-based Showerings Cider, to look at how the 180-year-old fine cider brand is climbing its way to the top of an evolving market with family values at its core.
You’ve probably already spotted a public transport advertisement for an English cider brand – whether it be Inch’s or Strongbow – at least once this morning on your way into work.
What you won’t find yourself staring at during your early-morning commute, however, is a bulletin board persuading you to purchase the 180-year-old family-run fine cider brand, Showerings Cider, for your weekend picnic in the park.
The award-winning Somerset fine cider brand, which was founded in 1842, is far from what you’d consider an average cider-crafting business.
It’s mostly found in several top fine-dining restaurants nationwide, including at multiple Michelin-starred spots like Simon Rogan’s L’Enclume and Tom Kerridge’s Hand & Flowers. The cider has also won several brewing and tasting awards over the years.
The family brand is now owned and operated by four Showering brothers, Francis, Jonathan, Matthew and Daniel, with one of the youngest generation, Nick Showering, now at the helm of its brand and marketing efforts.
Showerings Cider’s rich family history and milestones to date are hard to ignore, especially with the firm now seeing turnover up 220 per cent as the fine English cider category ticks its way to the top of the market.
But what is it that makes the family legacy — and it’s cider — so special?
Honouring the family legacy
Nick, 34, joined the family business in 2017 and now serves as brand and marketing manager, a role he says he believes to be the perfect way to show his devotion to the family brand.
“This project of doing the sales and marketing for Showerings Cider is in fact a way to prove to myself of what I can do, because I’m given full control and direction of this brand so the success and failure of it is very much tied to me,” Nick tells me.
“I’ve got myself, fortunately, in a position within the family business brand, [where I am] able to satisfy that sort of creative and innovative aspect of doing your own thing.”
When it comes to honouring a family legacy that spans nearly 200 years, however, managing the pressure can be tricky for most.
Nick, however, seems more than confident that the pressure is far from an obstacle, as long as he keeps his focus in check and continues to foster the innovation that comes with each generation.
“I think honouring tradition comes from your attitude and the successes that come from that,” Nick says.
“Applying yourself, working hard, being diligent and striving for the success of the business is the best honour to the tradition and legacy that you can serve.”
Why fine cider?
You would be forgiven for assuming that cider is a drink traditionally meant for an affordable picnic in the park, or a tasty alternative to beer at the pub after a long day out in the sun.
For the team at Showerings Cider, however, that assumption couldn’t be further from the truth.
And the UK’s shift towards premiumisation might just be more than enough to prove that the consumer mindset is in agreement.
With the ongoing cost-of-living crisis continuing to bite, I cannot help but question why consumers are willing to spend £10 – on average – for a glass of Triple Vintage Showerings Cider with a meal.
Turns out, according to a 2023 survey by CGA Brandtracker, consumers are beginning to prefer to spend their money on one ‘better quality’ drink instead of a handful of those that might be ‘value’ priced.
“Their budgets are tighter, but they’re looking for that special treat,” Nick says.
“They’re still looking to go out less, but when they do go out, they really want to make an occasion of it and really relish it and enjoy it.”
‘Patience is a virtue’ – but what’s next?
Growing up in the shadows of successful entrepreneurs can undoubtedly bring a plethora of career advantages, especially when it comes to breathing in ambition and witnessing success.
Nick’s own personal experience, however, is a unique combination of observations from entrepreneurialism within as well as the learnings from others, especially having kicked off his career with another cider brand from the start.
“My dad’s always said – and he sort of drummed it into me – that getting experience elsewhere externally is incredibly valuable to bring it back… to see a little bit about how they do things,” Nick says.
His role as brand manager now will only continue to grow as he “looks up to the generation above”, he says, now dialling in his focus on the importance of getting the product in front of as many people as he can.
“When you witness success that’s within your vicinity, it drives you on,” Nick says.
“I think the success that you have individually within a business is like with any business really, the better you perform, the higher you rise within that business.
“It’s important with family businesses that that’s not taken for granted, because that’s where you sort of lose that motivation and that incentive.”
CV
Name: Nick Showering
Company: Showerings Cider
Founded: 1842
Staff: 16
Title: Brand Manager
Age: 34
Born: London
Lives: Somerset
Studied: Philosophy
Talents: Chess, Tennis & cider making
Motto: My school motto: Sicut serpentes, sicut columbae – ‘be wise as serpents, and gentle as doves’.
Most known for: Being a perfectionist
First ambition: To sell American imported sweets for a profit at school.
Favourite book: The Zulu Principle by Jim Slater
Best piece of advice: Patience is a virtue