Uncategorised

SABMiller struggling with lager losses

According to SABMiller, the umbrella brand for brews including Foster’s, VB and Coors, lager volumes fell one percent in Australia in the second quarter.

SABMiller acquired Foster’s in a $12 billion deal three years ago, but has struggled to rebuild its popularity amongst consumers.

According to SMH, the company listed weak consumer sentiment following May’s budget, as well as bad weather in China’s peak summer months and ongoing foreign currency movements as key contributors to lager’s lacklustre performance.

Lager volume has declined three percent in China, while sales in the Asia Pacific region have fallen eight percent in volume terms in the three months to 30 September.

Not all brewers are experiencing the same struggles however, with Coopers’ December 2013 sales the highest on record. The month saw record sales of Coopers Original Pale Ale and Coopers Sparking Ale, at almost 400,000 and 100,000 cases sold, respectively.

Managing director, Tim Cooper said the fact that the company was growing, despite beer consumption in Australia falling, was pleasing.

“Coopers has enjoyed average growth of more than 9.8 percent per year for the past 20 years and now represents more than 4.5 percent of the total Australian beer market,” he said.

At a recent investor conference, SABMiller marketing director, Nick Fell, said the company plans to expand beer’s appeal.

“We know there's untapped potential in beer and it's time to change the image of beer as just a drink for guys watching sport. Why shouldn't beer be a great choice with food or something that has much more appeal for women?” he said.

Despite lager’s lagging sales, craft beer sales are continuing to rise, growing between 10 and 15 percent a year for the past five years. Craft beer now accounts for four percent of the total beer market.
 

Send this to a friend