Expert interview: How close customer relationships ensure tomorrow's beverage innovation

An exceptional beverage aroma doesn't emerge in the vacuum of an impersonal corporate structure. It's the result of agile, collaborative partnerships that combine short decision-making processes, technological expertise in recipe development, and direct sensory fine-tuning. While the global market is rapidly shifting towards ready-to-drink (RTD) and non-alcoholic alternatives, Hertz & Selck secures its decisive edge in product development through Hanseatic precision and maximum customer focus.

In our expert interview, Michael Möller provides insights into the dynamics of the modern beverage sector. We discuss the strategic differentiation from traditional tobacco segments, the enormous market potential of the alcohol-free generation, and why a successful development partnership goes far beyond simply bottling the product.

Hertz & Selck in conversation with Michael Möller (Sales, Beverage Division)

H&S: Michael, you started at Hertz & Selck almost ten years ago and are now responsible for sales in the beverage division. What distinguishes our collaboration from the processes of international competitors?

Michael Möller: The decisive advantage lies in our medium-sized company's agility and extremely short, direct lines of communication with the customer. With us, a project isn't just an anonymous ticket number. When a customer comes to our offices in Hamburg, they sit down directly with our application engineering lab. Our colleague Jan Laskowski mixes the formulations live – modifications to sweetness, acidity, or aroma intensity are immediately tested sensorially. This close collaboration and personal support, from initial concept to market launch and beyond, offers a high degree of reliability that large corporations can hardly replicate at this speed.

H&S: Hertz & Selck has established a separate platform in the beverage sector (hertz-selck.rocks). Why was this step towards targeted market differentiation so important?

Michael Möller: The primary goal was to give the beverage division a clear, dedicated identity and visually separate it from the vaping and smoking sectors. For B2B decision-makers in the food and beverage industry, a sterile, highly professional environment is crucial. A product developer seeking innovative components for spirits or RTDs needs a platform that immediately conveys substance and tailored solutions. Our healthy, continuous growth over the past few years clearly demonstrates that the market demands this focused approach.

H&S: The market for non-alcoholic spirit alternatives and ready-to-drink (RTD) concepts is growing rapidly. How do you assess this development from a sales perspective?

Michael Möller: This trend is absolutely unstoppable. The younger generation – the consumers of tomorrow – drinks more consciously and demands high-quality taste experiences without alcohol or with a moderate alcohol content in convenient cans. Several brands are demonstrating with strategic campaigns that the non-alcoholic segment will catch up with classic spirits in the medium term. Since non-alcoholic distillates have to do without the flavor carrier ethanol, they are 100 percent dependent on the technological depth of our aromas. Anyone who fails to deliver uncompromising sensory stability here will lose the consumer.

H&S: Besides spirits, you also serve the traditional tea market. What are the challenges in flavor development here?

Michael Möller: The tea market is incredibly sensitive and noticeably more traditional than the dynamic spirits industry. Since Hertz & Selck operates exclusively in the beverage sector, we consciously focus on refining high-quality, loose-leaf tea. The aroma must adhere perfectly to the tea leaf and must not release any unwanted bitter notes when steeped with hot water. It is a purely relationship- and quality-driven market that demands an extremely delicate touch.

H&S: Your global brand claim is "WE FLAVOUR THE WORLD". How does this claim fit with your deep roots in Hamburg?

Michael Möller: Hamburg is the historic gateway to the world for gourmet foods and raw materials – especially in the tea and spirits sectors, many key players are based in the north. For us, the expertise "Made in Hamburg" is both a commitment and a promise of quality. Whether for regional SMEs or international clients, our goal is to make the world more vibrant and flavorful through precise, distinctive aromas. Because at the end of the day, every recipe that leaves our premises adheres to this principle: "A strawberry must always taste like a strawberry. There is no room for error.".