Brand chaos at AB InBev Germany

Incoming Country Director faces trademark drama Munich-based news outlet Inside Beer reports of confusion over the launch of AB InBev's flagship beer Budweiser on the notoriously tough German market. Quite why the world's biggest brewer believes that an American light lager is what Germany needs is a separate issue, but we will have to wait to find out as the roll-out has been postponed at the last minute. The reason given is a trademark conflict with two existing European beers. The stan...
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Dramatic drop in AB InBev share price

Over 11% wiped off company value in one day Financial news sources have reported that AB InBev's share price took a steep dip on Friday 25th October, plummeting by 11.1% of its total value. The collapse comes after the release of third-quarter earnings figures, beset by difficulties in the Asian beer market, and China in particular. From €82.84 per share at close of trading on Thursday 25th, the price tumbled to €74.26 just after trading opened on Friday morning. The value has contin...
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AB InBev acquires CREW Republic

Minority stake in Bavarian craft brewer The craft beer scene is Germany is a nascent one, largely confined to the big cities and making very little impact on the day-to-day drinking lives of most Germans. But it's there, and the attractions of breaking free of Germany's price-conscious mainstream beer market has lured in a number of players. Large local producers like Dr Oetker and Weihenstephaner have sought a piece of this action via sub-brands and collaborations, while a small number ...
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AB InBev expands UK wholesale

Acquires assets of failed distribution business and bar Earlier this year, beer specialist wholesaler and retailer The Bottle Shop went out of business. The short-term causes were said to be the loss of distribution contracts for popular beer brands Beavertown (now part-owned by Heineken) and Mikkeller. Today, in an article on the Beer Insider website, it has been announced that the remnants of The Bottle Shop, including around £400,000 worth of stock, have been purchased by AB InBev....
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EU fines AB InBev €200m for antitrust breach

Brewer admits infringing competition rules. The European Commission has fined AB InBev €200m for abusing its dominant market position in Belgium. The investigation began in June 2016 when it was discovered that the company had changed the text on Jupiler beer sold in the Netherlands and France, where it's sold relatively cheaply, to Dutch or French alone. This restricted the extent to which those beers could be imported to bilingual Belgium where competition is less intense and price...
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AB InBev rebrands in UK and Ireland

"Budweiser Brewing Group UK & I" is the new name for AB InBev in the UK and Ireland. This subsidiary of the world's largest brewing company, headquartered in Leuven, owns two large industrial breweries in Great Britain where it brews Budweiser, Stella Artois, Boddington's and other subsidiary brands. It also owns the Camden Town Brewery in north London, and a Goose Island brewpub in the east of the capital. The company does not have a direct footprint in Ireland but instead uses loca...
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Financial woes at AB InBev

Megabrewer slashes payout to shareholders Last week, AB InBev announced it would be cutting the dividend paid to its shareholders by 50% this year, a move which caused the already poorly-performing stock to instantly drop a further 10% in value. The company is still carrying a debt of $109 billion following its acquisition of SAB Miller in 2016, and reducing the dividend is one way in which the management hopes to ensure stability and longevity. Chief Financial Officer Felipe Dutra added t...
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Craft brewery buy-out strategy pays off

AB InBev beats Sierra Nevada and Boston Beer in US microbrew sector  Financial website The Motley Fool reported this week that AB InBev is now America's biggest craft brewer. The veracity of this statement depends, of course, on one's definition of "craft". The Brewers Association, for example, sets a generous production limit for a brewery's beers to be considered craft, one which AB InBev far exceeds. But there's no arguing with the numbers: $107.3m of beer sold in the first half of 2018 me...
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AB InBev increases ecommerce activity

Australian acquisition follows similar purchases in Colombia and UK ZX Ventures, the disruption arm of AB InBev, has bought Australian drinks retailer BoozeBud for an undisclosed sum. An announcement today on the website of Australian subsidiary Carlton & United Breweries emphasised the improvement in customer experience which is the driving force behind the move: a push to make online beer shopping easier and more attractive. AB InBev has invested in a number of projects around the wo...
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Farmers accuse AB InBev of reneging on grain price deal

Formal complaint lodged with South African Competition Commission Reuters has reported that Grain SA, the South African grain farmers' lobby group, has filed a complaint with the local competition regulator against AB InBev over the price paid for the 2018 grain harvest. AB InBev acquired South Africa's largest brewer SABMiller in 2016. The deal was approved by the South African authorities on the condition that existing agreements with suppliers would be honoured. Now AB InBev has advised fa...
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