Today we are in conversation with The Local Gin Company, a gin subscription service that specialises in local, craft gins. We find out how our sustainable bottle packaging has been a “revelation” for their business.

Tell us about your gin subscription service and what makes you different to others?

The Local Gin Company is the only gin subscription box and shop that introduces people to their local gin distilleries and champions truly small producers. Customers can choose a gin or subscription box featuring gin made within their region or a 'surprise me' option where we choose for them. Our aim is to help people discover amazing local producers near to where they live, that they perhaps didn't realise existed!

‘Small batch’ is one of the most commonly used phrases in gin marketing – What does the term mean to you?

For us, small batch means not made on a large commercial still in a factory using an automated process. It means personal, handcrafted, and made by real people using traditional methods.

We take the time to understand how the gins we supply are made. We don't supply gins that are contract-distilled by large automated commercial manufacturing plants, thousands of bottles at a time. Ours tend to be made in small stills, typically between 50 and 1000ls in small batches of 12 - 500 bottles per run, largely by hand.

For us, the term 'small batch' on its own has lost it's meaning and is over-used by supermarket producers. This is why we take the time to get to know the distillers we work with, and understand their set up and business.

What challenges did you Meet when searching For sustainable bottle packaging? And why did you choose Flexi-Hex?

We supply eight gins a month, and add new lines to our gin shop monthly. There are so many bottle height, width and shape variants that it's a challenge to safely package them all. We had bespoke packaging designed but it couldn't accommodate the many variables safely.

Using Flexi-Hex has been a revelation...

• The bottle sleeves accommodate over 95% of the bottle types we supply
• We haven't had a single bottle breakage in six months
• We love that it's plastic-free, and so do our customers!

We have been on a mission to introduce the brands we work with to the advantages of using Flexi-Hex over terrible plastic air cushions!

What other green initiatives are you incorporating into your business?

• We use an electric car for our gin collections
• Recycle or reuse all the packaging that our gins arrive to us in
• Ensure all of the packaging in our subscription boxes is plastic-free, recycled or recyclable
• We're working on how we can offset the delivery miles
• Customers have been sending their Flexi-Hex protectors back to us, so we'd love to find a way to incentivise that too.

There is already enough plastic in the world and, whilst plastic tape and air cushions might be cheaper, consumers have made it clear they don't want them anymore and we're happy to invest in sustainable practices.

What are your top tips for making the perfect G&T ?

1. Chill the tonic for better carbonation
2. Fill the glass to the brim with ice to avoid dilution
3. Try different tonic to gin ratios. Start with a little tonic, taste and keep adding
4. A vegetable peeler is your secret G&T weapon - check out our Instagram to learn why
5. It's called a gin and tonic, and not a tonic and gin, for a reason. You want to ensure you can taste the gin and the tonic should enhance the gin, not mask it!

And finally, what’s your favourite gin-based cocktail?

We're all about the G&T so that you can enjoy the fruits of the work the distiller puts into creating it. Sloe Gin makes brilliant cocktails - we love it with Prosecco and Chambord. And a premium pink gin (not the sparkly fluorescent stuff) pairs really well with a spicy ginger beer.