Tanduay President and COO Lucio Tan III and Executive Vice President Kyle Tan are leading Tanduay’s aggressive expansion in the United States and other countries. Most recently, the younger Tan worked on the partnership with leading U.S. beverage distributor, Hensley Beverage Company, for its distribution in Arizona.
Kyle Tan – Executive Vice President, Tanduay Distillers, Inc.
“Our partnerships have been crucial to our success in the most recent years. It is important that we work with organizations that share our values like Hensley Beverage Company. Like them, Tanduay is a home-grown brand that prioritizes excellence as shown by the quality we put in the craftsmanship of our products,” said Kyle Tan, who joined the company last year.
Chad Marston, Chief Sales Officer, Hensley Beverage Company, said that they expect the Philippine-made rum to have a strong customer following in the state.
“We expect the market to embrace Tanduay Rum as a truly unique offering. While Tanduay is massive internationally, it is still relatively new to the United States. Rum is a popular spirit in Arizona and Tanduay will help drive category growth,” Marston said.
Apart from Tanduay’s aggressive international expansion, the Tan brothers are spearheading the company’s move toward digital technology such as e-commerce. They both have a strong background in computer science and technology, having worked for tech giants in the United States before joining Tanduay in 2020.
Lucio Tan III has a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and a master’s degree in Computer Science from Stanford University, and has worked at Lyft in the Bay Area. Kyle Tan has a bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering and a master’s degree in Computer Science from the University of Southern California and was working for Microsoft before joining Tanduay.
“Tanduay’s longevity is due to both tradition and innovation. While we have maintained the formulation and distillation process of our award-winning rums for decades, we are also always looking for ways to innovate our distribution channels so we could bring our products to more customers worldwide,” said Lucio Tan III.
Lucio Tan III has given his younger brother the task of Tanduay’s overseas expansion. Since last year, Kyle Tan has been hands-on in the negotiations with prospective distribution partners such as the one with Hensley Beverage Company and exploring other export opportunities.
He is also spearheading Tanduay’s further expansion in Europe, where Tanduay is now available in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. Expansion in Canada is also underway and should be done by the end of the first quarter of this year.
It is the young Tans’ goal to continue the vision of their grandfather, Chairman Lucio C. Tan, and their father, Lucio Tan, Jr., to make proudly Philippine-made brands recognized around the world.
Tanduay has already eclipsed rum brands from other countries in terms of sales to emerge as the World’s Number 1 Rum for three consecutive years. It has also received numerous awards from prestigious international wines and spirits competitions in the U.S., China, and Europe.
To date, Tanduay is available in the U.S. states of Arizona, California, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, and Wisconsin, and the territory of Guam. It is also available in China, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, and select cities in Europe.