Heineken launches new product called Charli

Dutch brewer Heineken has announced it is about to launch a new alcoholic drink with the brand name Charli. The new drink will be based on both cider and beer, and also contains sparkling water. The alcoholic content will be 5% and the new drink will be available in both bottle and draught.

According to the brewer the new product is an alternative to beer and wine. The product is a further attempt to attract new consumers to the beer market. Just as is the case with the successful Rosé beer (Wieckse Witte), Charli will be less bitter and more accessible for non-beer drinkers.

Heineken will be testing Charli in September and October in seventeen bars in Amsterdam and Deventer. If all goes well, Charli will be launched throughout the Netherlands in the spring of 2008.

Take a first peek at the Charli website (in Dutch).

Li-Ning opens second store in the Netherlands

The Chinese sporting goods retailers Li-Ning, will open a second store in the Netherlands this year. The retailer already has one store in Maastricht and will soon open the second outlet in Almere. According to the retailer the chain has a 14% share of the sporting goods market in its home market China. This makes the Li-Ning brand the biggest sports brand in China next to Adidas.

The Maastricht store opened on the first of April this year and according to the distributor the store has done very well. The company is also trying to establish itself in other European countries. The brand sponsors the Swedish and Spanish Olympic teams. The ambition for the Benelux is to open twenty more stores over the next five years.