Philip Diklev
38, Swedish entrepreneur
When British-born Swedish businessman Philip Diklev and his wine-tasting buddies ventured beyond the vineyard during one of their weekly sessions, their taste buds weren't exactly tickled by the other alcoholic drinks they tested. Diklev and friend Henrik Facile thought, "We can do better," and a company was born. Two liquors later — Stockholm-based Facile's rum liqueur and aquavit have won prizes and praise — executive chairman Diklev and his team are shaking up the spirits sector with the launch of a new product, "seriously" vodka. Diklev decided long ago that most vodkas don't taste good, but it took years to concoct a formula — secret, of course — that did. "We wanted to get the product absolutely right," he says. "Other people just package generic products in the belief that advertising will sell anything." With the vodka in the bottle, Diklev is taking his anything-but-generic attitude to the business side. Instead of relying on agencies, Facile is asking visitors to seriously.com to write ad blurbs. The firm skips traditional wholesalers, selling and delivering most of the vodka itself. And it's offering stock options to bar owners who agree to sell seriously. The ideas are daring, but Diklev believes that seriously has to be seriously different to make its mark in the spirits sector.
— By Jeff Chu/London
PHOTO: BONNY HÅKANSSON FOR TIME
No. 4 of 4
close window