《市场营销》案例
Global forces and the European brewing industry
Mike Blee
This case is centred on the European brewing industry and examines how the increasingly competitive pressure of operating within global markets is causing consolidation through acquisitions, alliances and closures within the industry. This has resulted in the growth of the brewers’ reliance upon super brands.
In the mid 2000s the major centre for production of beer in the world was Europe; its production was twice that of the USA, which in 2003 was the world’s largest beer-producing country. In the alcoholic drinks sector beer sales are dominant: total sales across the world accounted for 74 percent of all alcoholic purchases (Euromonitor 2002).
Although the European market as a whole is mature, with beer sales showing slight falls in most markets, Datamonitor 2003 reported that the alcoholic beverage sector grew at an annual rate in value terms by 2.6 per cent year between 1997 and 2002.
Table 1 European beer consumption by country and year (000 hectolitres )
Country / 1980 / 1997 / 1998 / 1999 / 2000 / 2001 / 2002Austria / 7651 / 9145 / 8736 / 8810 / 8762 / 8627 / 8734
Beigium / 12945 / 10243 / 10011 / 10203 / 10064 / 9986 / 9901
Denmark / 6698 / 6165 / 5707 / 5562 / 5452 / 5282 / 5200
Finland / 2738 / 4170 / 4084 / 4087 / 4024 / 4085 / 4136
France / 23745 / 21655 / 22663 / 22833 / 21420 / 21331 / 20629
Germany# / 89820 / 107679 / 104550 / 104629 / 103105 / 100904 / 100385
Greece / N/A / 3940 / 4211 / 4354 / 4288 / 4181 / 4247
Ireland / 4174 / 5406 / 5592 / 5699 / 5594 / 5625 / 5536
Italy / 9539 / 14535 / 15501 / 15675 / 16289 / 16694 / 16340
Luxembourg / 417 / 466 / 452 / 474 / 472 / 445 / 440
Netherlands / 12213 / 13475 / 13225 / 13309 / 13129 / 12922 / 11985
《市场营销》案例
Norway* / 7651 / 2330 / 2203 / 2305 / 2327 / 2290 / 2420Portugal / 3534 / 6318 / 6494 / 6475 / 6453 / 6276 / 5943
Spain / 20065 / 26238 / 26677 / 27772 / 29151 / 31126 / 30715
Sweden / 3935 / 5459 / 5077 / 5258 / 5011 / 4932 / 4999
Switzerland* / 4433 / 4249 / 4277 / 4212 / 4194 / 4141 / 4127
UK / 65490 / 61114 / 58835 / 58917 / 57007 / 58234 / 59384
Total# / 269358 / 302587 / 298295 / 300574 / 296742 / 297081 / 295121
*Non-EU countries, ＃1980 excludes GDR. Figures adjusted.
Source:
Table 2 Annual consumption per capital by country and year (litres)Country / 1980 / 1997 / 1998 / 1999 / 2000 / 2001 / 2002
Austria / 101.9 / 113.3 / 108.1 / 108.9 / 108.1 / 107.0 / 108.5
Beigium / 131.0 / 101.0 / 98.0 / 100.0 / 99.0 / 98.0 / 96.0
Denmark / 130.7 / 116.7 / 107.7 / 104.6 / 102.2 / 98.6 / 96.7
Finland / 56.6 / 84.0 / 80.0 / 80.1 / 77.9 / 80.2 / 79.5
France / 44.3 / 37.0 / 38.6 / 38.7 / 36.2 / 35.9 / 34.7
Germany# / 145.9 / 131.2 / 127.5 / 127.5 / 125.3 / 122.4 / 121.5
Greece / N/A / 39.0 / 42.0 / 43.0 / 40.0 / 39.0 / 39.0
Ireland / 121.7 / 123.7 / 124.2 / 126.0 / 125.0 / 125.0 / 125.0
Italy / 16.7 / 25.4 / 26.9 / 27.1 / 28.1 / 28.9 / 28.2
Luxembourg / 115.8 / 112.0 / 107.0 / 110.0 / 108.2 / 100.9 / 98.5
Netherlands / 86.4 / 86.4 / 84.3 / 84.4 / 82.8 / 80.5 / 79.2
Norway* / 48.1 / 52.9 / 49.7 / 51.7 / 52.0 / 51.0 / 53.7
Portugal / 35.0 / 63.6 / 63.3 / 64.9 / 64．6 / 61.3 / 58.6
Spain / 53.7 / 66.7 / 66.9 / 69.1 / 72.0 / 75.7 / 73.4
Sweden / 47.4 / 61.7 / 57.3 / 59.3 / 56.4 / 55.4 / 55.9
Switzerland* / 69.5 / 59.5 / 59.9 / 58.8 / 58.3 / 57.2 / 56.6
UK / 118.3 / 103.6 / 99.3 / 99.0 / 97.2 / 99.0 / 100.6
Total# / 82.5 / 78.6 / 77.2 / 77.6 / 75.9 / 75.9 / 76.8
*Non-EU countries
Source:
The Interbrew market trend report 2002 states that within Europe the on-trade market (sold through licensed premises) beer accounts for 59 per cent of all alcoholic beverage sales by volume , while in the take-home market this figure increase to 72 per cent..
Two key trends within Europe were the rapid growth in leisure spending and the consumers’ increased awareness of health and fitness. These factors had resulted in a drop in the volumes of beer consumed.
Another current trend across Europe is towards drinking a wider range of alcoholic beverages. There has been a growth in demand for flavoured alcoholic beverages, with wine consumption having shown large increases. Within the UK alone wine sales had grown from 14 per cent of the market in 1980 to 26 per cent of the market in 2002. Meanwhile there has been a negative trend in the overall consumption of spirits.
Acquisition, licensing and strategic alliances have all occurred as the leading brewers battle to control the market. There are global pressures for consolidation due to over capacity within the industry and this has resulted in a focus upon cost containment and brand reinforcement (see table 5). Interbrew’s market trend survey 2002 shows that the consolidated global share of the top 20 brewers increased from 51 per cent in 1990 to 65 per cent in the year 2000. The report suggests that consolidation will further increase and compares brewing with the cigarette industry. In 2002 the five largest global brewers accounted for 30 per cent of production volume, whereas in the cigarette industry the five leading players had a 60 per cent market share.
Table3 European production by country and year (000 hectolitres)
Country / 1990 / 1997 / 1998 / 1999 / 2000 / 2001 / 2002Austria / 7606 / 9366 / 8830 / 8869 / 8750 / 8588 / 8731
Beigium / 14291 / 14014 / 14105 / 14575 / 14734 / 14966 / 15696
Denmark / 9145 / 9181 / 8075 / 8024 / 7460 / 7233 / 8534
Finland / 2823 / 4804 / 4697 / 4700 / 4612 / 4631 / 4797
France / 21684 / 19483 / 19807 / 19866 / 18926 / 18866 / 18117
Germany# / 92342 / 114800 / 111700 / 112800 / 110000 / 108500 / 108400
Greece / N/A / 3945 / 4022 / 4359 / 4500 / 4454 / 4443
Ireland / 6000 / 8152 / 8478 / 8648 / 8324 / 8712 / 8113
Italy / 8569 / 11455 / 12193 / 12179 / 12575 / 12782 / 12592
Luxembourg / 729 / 481 / 469 / 469 / 450 / 438
Netherlands / 12213 / 24701 / 23988 / 23988 / 24502 / 25072 / 25232
Norway* / 2001 / 2299 / 2169 / 2222 / 2223 / 2216 / 2300
Portugal / 3557 / 6623 / 6784 / 6760 / 6451 / 6554 / 7121
Spain / 20027 / 24773 / 24991 / 25852 / 26414 / 27741 / 27860
Sweden / 3759 / 4858 / 4568 / 4673 / 4495 / 4449 / 4376
Switzerland* / 4433 / 3563 / 3586 / 3586 / 3599 / 3630 / 3551
UK / 64830 / 59139 / 56652 / 57854 / 55279 / 56802 / 56672
Total# / 276198 / 321637 / 315114 / 319932 / 313883 / 315674 / 316530
*Non-EU countries, ＃1980 excludes GDR. Figures adjusted.
Source:
Consolidation trends are indeed continuing: Interbrew had purchased in 2001 parts of the old Bass Empire, Becks and Whitbread and in 2004 announced a merger with Am Bev, the Brazilian brewery group. Meanwhile Scottish and Newcastle had acquired the Danone French brewing operations as well as Bulmer cider. In 2003 it targeted Eastern Europe and China, acquiring Finland's biggest brewery, Hartwall, for ￡1.2bn (￡1.8bn) together with a purchase in December 2003 of a 20 per cent shareholding in a leading Chinese brewing. It is interesting to note that Bass contradicted this trend prior to the sale of the company in 2001, when a disposal took place of its interests in Northern China and some of its operations in the Czech Republic.
In 2003 Anheuser-Busch was the world's largest brewer ranked by sales volume but with limited overseas operations. It had invested in a Mainland Chinese brewery and had a significant shareholding in Modelo of Mexico. However, its European operations were limited to just one brewery in the UK at Mortlake. In 2004 its world no.1 position merger. This gave Interbrew 14 per cent global market share which made it no.1 (by volume but not by value).
Coors, another large American brewer, had gained European market entry by purchase from Interbrew in 2002 of the Caring Brewing Company. This sale was forced upon Interbrew by the UK regulatory authorities as they felt the dominant position held by Interbrew within the UK's large market was against the consumers' interest.
South African Breweries has also been extremely active. In early 2002 there were market rumours of a merger with Interbrew; these were unfounded, however 2002 resulted in two major acquisitions-the Miller Group(USA)and Pilsner Urquell in the Czech Republic.
These large global brewers (Table 4) control a range of key brands with which they will start to achieve large cost savings with the premium lagers leading the way. Volume sales will help to contain costs and should lead to increased economies of scale. However , differences will occur in the various local country markets. Where there are significant taste and product differentials potential savings are limited. The large groups, however, hope to utilise increased knowledge management systems and linked technologies across these combined brands to improve performance.
During 2003, due to the activity highlighted above, there were major changes to the world market shares of the leading brewers (Table 4) with an ever increasing domination of global brands (Table 5) .Trends within Western Europe (Table 6) reinforced the dominance of the key players and the importance of the lager market in branding terms.
Table4 The world’s top 10 brewery companies by volume:2003
Position / Company / Country of Origin1 / Anheuser-Busch / USA
2 / South African / South Africa
Breweries/Miller
3 / Heineken / Netherlands
4 / Interbrew / Beigium
5 / Carlsberg / Denmark
6 / Am Bev / Brazil
7 / Scottish ＆Newcastle / United Kingdom
8 / Coors / USA
9 / Modelo / Mexico
10 / Kirin / Japan
Source: Coors Brewers Limited UK
Table 5 Top exported lager brands (world), 2001
Brand Name / Ownership / Export sales / Percentage of(million hectolitres) / global sales
Heineken / Heineken / 17.7 / 82
Carisberg / Carisberg / 8.9 / 87.6
Amstel / Heineken / 8.5 / 78.7
Budweiser / Anheuser-Busch / 8 / 17.1
Corona Extra / Groupo Modelo / 7.7 / 32
Stella Artois / Interbrew / 6.8 / 88.5
Fosters / Fosters / 5.7 / 68.7
Skol / Carisberg / 5.2 / 18
Tuborg / Carisberg / 5.3 / 63.3
Becks / Interbrew / 2.7 / 62.5
Source: Impact/ Interbrew SA/ Industry Estimates/ Company reports
Table 6 European beer market: top companies, 2001, by market share by volume
Company / Home Country / Market Share / Leading BrandHeineken / Netherlands / 11.70% / Heineken
Interbrew / Belgium / 10.40% / Stella Artois
Carisberg / Denmark / 6.90% / Carlsberg
Scottish＆Newcastle / United Kingdom / 6.90% / Kronenbourg
Mahou SA / Spain / 2.90% / San Miguel
Holsten Brauerei / Germany / 2.60% / Konig
Diageo PLG / United Kingdom / 2.20% / Guinness
Binding-Brauerei / Germany / 2.10% / Radeberger
SA Damm / Spain / 2.10% / Super Bock
Brau＆Brunnen / Germany / 1.90% / Jever
Source: Euromonitor 2002
The two largest Western European markets
Germany
At nearly twice the size of the UK market in consumption terms, the German beer market is very different to that of the UK. It is highly fragmented, having in excess of 1,200 breweries. However, acquisition has happened in this market with Becks going to Interbrew in 2002 and Holsten being acquired by Carlsberg in 2004. German beer drinkers are used to strict German purity laws and therefore generally trust and drink German beer as against imports. This has resulted in large numbers of regional breweries satisfying the home market. Exports from Germany are nearly double that of the UK in volume percentage terms(Table 7).
Table 7 imports and exports of beer by country (2001)
Country / Import (% of Consumption) / Export(% of Consumption)Austria / 5.3 / 4.8
Belgium / 19 / 39
Denmark / 1.7 / 34.1
Finland / 1.9 / 6
France / 25.5 / 12.4
Germany / 3.2 / 10
Greece / 4 / 10
Holland / 6.1 / 51.9
Ireland / 11.9 / 28
Italy / 26.4 / 3.9
Luxemburg / 37.6 / -
Norway* / 4.1 / 0.8
Portugal / 4.7 / 11.2
Spain / 13 / 2.3
Sweden / 11.6 / -
Switzerland* / 14.8 / 0.6
United Kingdom / 8.6 / 5.6
Total / 9.3 / 14.1#
Note: Import figures do not include beers brewed under licence in home country ;export figures do not include licensed brews produced elsewhere.
*excludes Sweden; #Non-EU countries.
Source:
Packaging in Germany differs form many major markets with 60 per cent of all beer produced being sold in bottles. Due to a deposit scheme being introduced on cans in 2003 the sales of bottled beers have grown significantly.
Discount own-lable beers have increased the off-trade to 70 per cent of total beer volume. However, sales in Germany during 2002 dropped at their highest annual rate in the previous decade and sales since 1998 have declined overall by 7 per cent. The outlook for the later part of the decade is that there will be declining consumption and a gradual drop in the number of breweries, with increases in merger and acquisition as the market consolidates to contain costs. This follows the trends being experienced already in the majority of European markets.
The fastest growing niche in 2003 was within the youth market. Sales of flavoured beer mixed with either lemon-lime soda or cola, available in draught and bottles, had an increasing market share, up 30 per cent in 2002. These accounted for 3 per cent of the total annual beer consumption. Pilsner-type beers in 2002 still dominated the market holding a 67 per cent market share.
United Kingdom
Beer sales were fairly mature and although there was a steady decline in the 1990s the market has begun to stabilise at around 55 million hectolitres per year. However, there are some definite market trends. The major change in the UK industry has been the disposal of the tied pub chains by the national breweries. Scottish and Newcastle became the last of the large companies to dispose of their chains in 2003.
These public house chains are now independently managed separate companies and this has increased the distribution chain access to a much wider variety of brewers. These large independent chains of public houses exert high buyer power on the brewing industry.
Meanwhile ownership of breweries within the UK had rapidly changed. Foreign multinationals have targeted and entered the industry. The Keynote Report 2003 shows three foreign multinationals, Interbrew, Coors and Carlsberg, control 53 per cent of the market. The leading brewer is Scottish and Newcastle with 27 per cent of the market. There are a number of large regional brewers with well-known speciality brands but the trend by the majors in the market has been to consolidate production, closing down plants and containing costs.
Lagers and premium lagers dominate the home market and many are brewed under licence arrangements. Consumption of large has grown from just over 50 per cent in 2002. In 2003 60 per cent of UK beer was packaged in draught from. As the UK market switches more towards production of large the trend will be for incteasing sales through supermarkets resulting in a reduction of draught beer demand. There is limited export of traditional UK beers as demand is relatively limited and therefore the reliance is on the internal market.
As supermarkets within the UK sell high volumes of beer, they exert high buyer power over the supplying breweries and are in a position to dictate terms for the supply of product. As a result there is heavy discounting and brand value destruction as the brewers find themselves operating in an over capacity market with low profit margins. The market is moving more and more towards increased sales in the off-trade. BBPA data 2003 reported that the wholesale price of beer had declined by 16 per cent from the level that was obtained in 1992.
However, home sales are additionally hindered by the ‘booze cruise’. Excise duties on alcoholic beverages are much lower in France and importation of alcoholic beverages for personal use is legal. These cruises have almost become a feature of daily life with large quantities of beer carrying low excise duties being imported both legally for personal use and illegally for onward sale.
Four brewing companies
Heineken (The Netherlands)
In 2004 Heineken was by far the biggest and most global of the European brewery businesses. It remains a family business and its brands are available in more than 170 countries. It owns more than 110 breweries in over 50 countries and exports all over the world. In the UK its licence agreement with Whitbread ceased in 2003 and this was followed by the introduction of its full-strength range, Heineken is now sold as a premium beer in all markets except its home market.
Heineken has become Europe’s favourite brand of beer and the most international beer in the world, with sales increasing annually, Founded in Amsterdam in 1963, the company’s other brands include Amstel and Murphys. Heineken had been acquiring other brewing groups since 1991 and in 2003 announced its biggest acquisition to date, the Austrian brewery BBAG. Of Heineken’s turnover,76.5 per cent is European based.
The four major strategic objectives for Heineken were to:
●remain one of the top global brewers;
●be more profitable per cent than other international brewers;
●build the most valuable brand portfolio with Heineken as the international flagship brand;
●remain independent.
By the utilization of its key brands the company aims for a broad leadership position with a target of being NO.1 or NO.2 in its local markets. Achieving this in production ,marketing and distribution brings economies of scale. The local breweries give it market access from which they can sell their high-premium Heineken and Amstel beers.
Groisch (the Netherlands )
In 2001 Groisch NV is a medium size international brewing group, less than one-tenth the size of Heineken, with overall sales in 2002 of 3.27 million hectolitres. The group’s strategy calls for this to increase to 4.6 million hectolitres by the end of 2006. Its key products include Groisch premium lager and new flavoured beers(Groisch lemon and Groisch pink grapefruit). In the Netherlands Groisch holds the right for the sales and distribution of the valued US Miller brand. The Groisch Brewery has been established since 1615 and has been exporting since 1946. The brand is available in over 50 countries; however in certain territories, including the UK and Poland, the brand is brewed under licence. In the five years to 2002 the group turnover had increased by 20 per cent with net profits increasing by more than 30 per cent. Although the home market for beer is declining, The Netherlands is still the company’s most important market and accounts for over 50 per cent of its sales volume. Export sales are increasing, with the UK, USA and Canada being the most important overseas territories.
Groisch has two main breweries that are situated in Enschede and Groenio. From 2005 production is situated within a single new site at Bokelo. Efficiency is the key driver behind this relocation: by concentrating brewing on one site, Groisch will again ultimate cost control and will also increase volume capacity significantly. Groisch’s drive to optimize costs has included the outsourcing of its distribution and a move within The Netherlands to use inland shipping rather road.
Interbrew (Belgium)
Interbrew is one of the oldest beer companies in the world. It has operations in 21 countries and Interbrew’s beers are sold in more than 120 countries. The company strategy is to build strong local brand reputation as well as to market its international labels. These include Becks, Stella Artois, Bass, Hoegaarden and Labatts. Interbrew has been on the acquisition and organic growth trail as a determined strategy since 1993. In the five years to 2003 the company had made over 20 acquisitions and 35 per cent of the operating income during 2002 was derived from this acquisition programme. 2004 saw the merger between interbrew and Brazil’s largest brewer Am Bev. Interbrew’s philosophy is reinforced by its claim to be ‘The World’s Local Brewer’.
In 2001 the company acquired Bass (UK), Whitbreads (UK) and Becks (Germany). At the time of acquisition Bass brands accounted for 24 percent of the UK market. The acquisition from Bass was unconditional and when the UK regulatory authorities challenged the decision to acquire Bass, Interbrew was forced into a sale situation. Due to this forced sale the stock market at that time formed the view that Interbrew had overpaid for the company.
On appeal to the High Court Interbrew managed to overturn the competition authority decision agreeing as a result to sell the Carling Brewing Company to Coors but retaining much of the Bass Empire. Between 2000 and 2002 net turnover for the Interbrew company increased in excess of 20 percent. In 2002 Interbrew invested heavily in the growth market of China and in 2004 Interbrew became the largest brewer in Germany, following a partnership with Spaten giving them an 11 percent market share.
Scottish and Newcastle (UK)
Scottish and Newcastle is an international brewing group with leading positions in 13 European countries. These countries include the UK, France, Finland and Russia. Its strategy is to be a major force within the global brewing industry with a concentration of effort upon expanding a number of leading positions in the Western European market. In 2003 the company disposed of its retail and leisure businesses, which had been significant in the company’s past. In the year 2000 this business alone had accounted for ￡1.1bn of turnover and ￡246m of profits.
The company’s expansion strategy is to enter high-growth emerging markets. This will be achieved by working through alliances with experienced local breweries that hold strong market positions. Its key brands include John Smith, Kronebourg, Kanterbrau and Baltika and it brews Fosters under licence for the UK market. In 2003 turnover had increased by 17 percent, with profits up 8 percent and overall volume up 2.4 percent. The brand of Kronebourg, Fosters and Newcastle Brown all showed substantial volume growth in the year 2003. Acquisitions in the early 2000s have included Hartwell, Kronebourg from Danone in France,Buliners Cider and investments in Mainland China and India.