Bangalore: The UB group plans to export rum to the United Kingdom and the United States and position it as "Indian Rum", with an initial shipment of one lakh cases this fiscal.

"We produce quality rum, which has a unique taste and we feel there is a market for this in the West. We will be selling both existing rum brands and have a new brand Maharaja for these markets," UB Group (spirits division) president Vijay K Rekhi said today (Apr 5, 2004).

The Bangalore-based UB plans to market in the US through its subsidiary Mandocino and is in discussions with active distributors for the UK.

"We are targeting a sale of five lakh cases in three years both in the UK and US," Rekhi said, pointing that UB is exploring sales of Indian Rum in the developed markets, as whisky produced in India is not defined as whisky in the West.

The foray into the West with rum is part of UB's strategy to achieve annual sales of 50 million cases in the next three years, he said, adding the firm had become the fourth largest spirits group in the world clocking sales of 35 million cases in 2003 joining the league of Diageo, Allied Domecq and Pernod-Ricard.

McDowell and Co and Herbertsons Ltd are the major spirit-producing firms of UB, which registered a 15 per cent growth in volumes in 2003 over sales of 30 million cases in 2002.

Rekhi said that UB had clocked exports of five lakh cases last fiscal, a 40 per cent increase over 3 lakh cases exports in 2002.