DCC acquires British wine sales business Bottle Green for €37.3m

Industrial holding company DCC has bought a British wine sales business for up to €37.3 million, the company announced yesterday.

DCC said its food and beverage division had agreed to buy Leeds-based Bottle Green, a wine sales and marketing business with 5 per cent of the British off-trade market.

According to the statement, Bottle Green is currently generating operating profits of €3 million per year and expects to have net cash in the bank of €7 million.

DCC has agreed to pay an initial €19.5 million for the company. Allowing for Bottle Green's cash balances, the deal will cost DCC a total of €12.5 million, the statement said.

The agreement includes provision for further payments of up to €17.8 million, based on Bottle Green's average results for the three years to the end of March 2007.

DCC said yesterday that, in order to earn the maximum consideration, Bottle Green's average profits in the period to the end of March 2007 would need to be at least €8 million per year.

The deal is subject to approval by the Competition Authority, DCC said.

The industrial holding company, which has interests in the food, drinks, energy, technology and property businesses, owns a number of wine and spirit businesses in Ireland.

These include Woodford Bourne, Mitchell and Son Ltd, and Ecock Wine and Spirits Ltd in the Republic, and DWS Wholesale Ltd in Northern Ireland. Woodford Bourne bought the three other companies.

Bottle Green's managing director, Mr Jerry Lockspeiser, founded the company in 1990. He will continue to run the business after it becomes part of DCC. The Leeds-based company has new world and old world suppliers that produce a range of company-owned, private label and estate brand wines.

The company sells wine from France, Hungary, Spain, Australia, Chile and a number of other countries.

Bottled Green has developed its own brands aimed at producing accessible and affordable wine.

The most successful are French Connection and Riverview.

DCC chief executive Mr Jim Flavin said the deal provided the company with an opportunity to build on the market performance of its Irish wine business by expanding into the more substantial and growing British market.

"Bottle Green is well positioned in the off-trade segment of this market, benefiting from the company's strong reputation, deep knowledge of the wine market and the success of its own brands," he said yesterday.

DCC holds its annual general meeting in Dublin today.