REVENUES ROSE at Heineken’s Irish business last year, despite ongoing economic difficulty and a declining beer market.
Figures showed Heineken Ireland increased revenues to €464 million in 2011, with a claimed 37 per cent share of the lager market and 26.5 per cent of the total beer market here.
Its Coors Light brand grew by 8 per cent, despite a falling beer market, while the stout brands – Murphy’s and Beamish – have performed in line with the market.
Heineken Ireland managing director David Forde described the figures as “positive and solid”.
“Our focus on maintaining a sustainable investment in our portfolio has enabled us to deliver robust top-line growth,” he said. “Being mindful of the continuing volatility and increased uncertainties in our market place we remain confident that our efforts combined with our strengthened portfolio and marketing investments, position us well to deliver sustainable growth over the long-term.”
The Irish results came as the world’s third-largest brewer reported group-wide results. It beat expectations with a 9 per cent profit increase in 2011 after recovering from a damp European summer that kept a lid on drinking, and launched a new drive to cut costs.
Heineken, which had forecast flat net profit, said its earlier caution was driven by a poor summer mainly in Europe.
“We had a very good fourth quarter and so, overall, the business is doing better than we thought at that moment in time,” chief executive Jean-Francois van Boxmeer said in a conference call.
The company gave no forecast for 2012, beyond saying it expected to grow in emerging markets and boost revenue in developed ones.
The maker of Europe’s top-selling Heineken lager and Amstel said 2011 net profit before one-offs rose by 9.2 per cent on a like-for-like basis to €1.58 billion, ahead of forecasts. In addition, lower interest costs due to cash flow generation and a slightly reduced tax rate helped the bottom line.
Heineken said it had launched a new €500 million cost savings plan. – (Additional reporting Reuters)
