SERIES TWO – EDITION THIRTY
In the latest edition of our ‘Faces behind the Business’ series, we caught up with Mark, Terry, Simon, Lianne, Lyndsey & Jackie Murphy, Owners of Murphy’s Gin and Murphy’s Distillery & Bar; a family run business creating premium gin and owners of a Distillery Bar in Liverpool.
When did you first get into the industry?
With a background in science, Mark first started playing with recipes and developing our gins using a traditional 2.5 litre copper still back in 2018. The development of the gins continued into 2019, in parallel to the development of the Murphy’s Gin brand and business in general. We sold our first bottle of gin in 2019 and, due to the quality of the product, the business experienced significant growth between September 2019 and lockdown in March 2020.
We opened our Distillery & Bar on the dock road in May 2021, which offers our customers a close up view of where our gin is made, all whilst enjoying some great hospitality and entertainment.
How long have you worked at Murphy’s Gin and what is your job role?
Mark & Terry have worked in the business since 2018. Initially alongside the day jobs, but are, for now, the only full time employees of Murphy’s Gin. We became full time in August 2021 and are still new to the full time role.
Having previously worked as a scientist and lecturer, Mark predominantly focuses on producing the gin, developing new editions, along with general business development. Terry, with a background in business, focuses more on business development, planning events at the bar and social media. The others also help with things such as finance and admin, markets, working in the bar.
What is the Murphy’s Gin ethos?
Murphy’s Gin began with a clear view of the/brand product it wanted to be. Whilst our business began during the ‘gin boom’, we didn’t want to jump on what might be a short term bandwagon. We knew early on that we wanted to target traditional gin drinkers with a strong brand and a premium quality gin.
All of our gins a juniper forward, all a high ABV and all distilled in traditional copper stills with very close attention to detail. We do not use artificial flavours and do not add sugars. All our gins are made with natural ingredients. We also took a conscious decision to be as environmentally friendly as possible, and ruled out the use of plastic wherever possible. We use paper and card packaging, including our carrier bags, and use paper tamper labels on our bigger bottles, rather than shrink wrap plastic. Our glass is also a lightweight recyclable glass and our corks are from a sustainable cork forest. We have a strong family ethos and hope that is evident when you come to visit our distillery & bar.
What’s the best bit of advice you could give to anyone looking at working in your line of work?
Make sure you develop a strong brand with provenance, in addition to a quality product. You need both and a clear vision of what you are. You will need to stand out from what is a very crowded market place, so be prepared for hard work and to have to knock on doors.
What do you love most about Liverpool?
The friendliness of the people. It’s hard to explain, but there is an invisible energy in the city. I always remember Billy Connolly saying that whenever he returned to Glasgow and stepped off the train at Glasgow train station, he felt at an energy rise through his legs and he knew instantly he was home in Glasgow. I think the same can be said about Liverpool.
If you could describe your business in 3 words, what would they be?
Fortis Et Hospitalis meaning Brave and Hospitable (taken from the Murphy coat of arms, and as featured on our label and the wall of our distillery).
Follow @murphysgin or visit www.murphys-gin.com
Are you a business in the Liverpool City Region and want to feature in our Faces Behind the Business series? Contact us now by emailing hello@explore-liverpool.com or get us on WhatsApp on 07568 532 537.
