THE PROBLEM WITH
EXPORTING TO SWEDEN
Based on years of experience, we can say with confidence that most Swedish import companies will never offer you a good chance of winning a Systembolaget tender because of the way they structure their portfolios. And they don’t want you to know that. We will explain why.
1.
Only ONE offer is allowed per importer
For example, let’s say that Systembolaget releases a tender for a red wine from Rioja / Piedmont / Burgundy etc. Many Swedish import companies have 10+ vineyards in their portfolio that produce red wines that fit the tender. Here is the catch. Each importer in Sweden is only allowed to send in ONE offer to Systembolaget.
2.
10% chance of being able to compete
To participate in the tender, the Swedish importer first has to select ONE of the 10+ vineyards they have in their portfolio whose product they want to send in. This means that right from the start you only have a 10% chance of even being picked as a candidate for Systembolaget.
3.
1% chance of winning
On average, Systembolaget tastes 10 different products for each tender. If you first have a 10% chance of being picked by your importer for competition, and then a 10% chance of winning the tender, your total chance of winning is just 1%. We have spoken to many producers that have given up on the Swedish market because of these low odds.
THE OFRÄLSE SOLUTION – 50% SELECTION RATE
We work very differently from other importers. At Ofrälse, we have a maximum of two producers per region or country for a single beverage category (for example, two vineyards in Piedmont, two breweries in the UK, etc). This means with us you will always have a minimum 50% of chance being picked right from the start for each tender, drastically increasing your chances of winning.
Already have an importer?
No problem
Many Swedish importers will try to lock you into exclusivity agreements. This is good only for them. Not for you. As we mentioned before, each importer is only allowed to send in one producer per offer. However, you as the producer, can send in as many offers as you want for each tender with different importers. Technically, you could send in 10 offers for the same tender with 10 different importers, and suddenly your chance of winning has increased by 1000%.
After talking with numerous producers from around the world, we have realised that almost no one knows this. The good old Swedish importing companies have acted only in their own interest for years, and we think it’s time for a change.
ABOUT OFRÄLSE
Ofrälse was originally founded as a microbrewery in 2015 by the three friends Adam Östbring (middle), Simon Leppänen (left) and Hampus Tarras-Wahlberg (right). Since then, we have expanded into imports, and have so far sold hundreds of thousands of litres of both our own beer and imported beverages. Ofrälse is a company large enough to be able to offer efficient logistics and cost efficient deals, while still being small enough to offer you personal service and the greatest chance possible of winning tenders.
HOW BIG IS THE MARKET?
Systembolaget, Sweden’s government monopoly on alcohol sales, is one of the biggest purchaser of alcoholic beverages in the world with a turover of 3.6€ billion. With 2400 purchasing tenders released every year, the potential to get your beverages sold in Sweden is large as long as you have the right partner. For wines, a typical order we place is 8000-100 000 bottles, for beer 15000-200 000 cans or bottles, and for liquor 5000-25 000 bottles.
The Swedish System
The process to get your beverages sold in Sweden works like this:
1. Tender is released
2. We offer your product
3. We send Systembolaget a sample
4. Blind tasting by Systembolaget
5. We win (knock on wood)
6. We import your products
READY TO EXPORT TO SWEDEN?
Let’s get the conversation started. Simply send us an email to imports@ofralse.com with a short introduction and we will let you know which tenders might suit your beverages. You take the first step, and let us handle the rest.
OFRÄLSE IMPORTS
Personal service. Efficient logistics.
Maximum chances of winning.