An AI-Led Build with Edrington and FreelyGive

Edrington exists to give more by crafting the world's best ultra premium spirits, with a charity as its principal shareholder and more than 400 million pounds given to good causes over 60 years. In this session, Acquia senior customer success manager Josie Daley is joined by Paul Henderson, Head of Digital Technology at Edrington, and Debbie Smith, Head of Delivery and Growth at Freely Give, to share how they launched the Casa Brugal site on Acquia Source.

Edrington manages a portfolio of brands, some more than 200 years old, and consumers who adopt AI faster than the business does. Its challenge was the micro-sites that spin up across global markets and quietly drift outside central governance. Casa Brugal had stalled for years because old-world migrations meant long lead times, developer overhead, and design compromises. Acquia Source, with AI-led migration, unlocked it: in one example the team made a decision with stakeholders inside 45 minutes and implemented it the next day, without sacrificing governance.

Paul explains why moving from PaaS to SaaS lets Edrington invest in brand storytelling rather than platform management, while meeting strict requirements like age-gating and accessibility across one platform. Debbie describes the cultural shift for delivery teams: live prompt engineering on calls, instant feedback, and sprints cut from two weeks to two days. With a waiting list of brands now wanting to move to Acquia Source, the team shares practical advice for anyone weighing SaaS against PaaS, and a closing look at the build itself. Watch for a candid, hopeful take on AI-led delivery.