Finally, after two unsuccessful attempts, Carlsberg, a renowned Danish brewing company, has successfully negotiated a £3.3 billion (€3.9 billion) acquisition deal for the British drinks corporation, Britvic. This deal, which has received approval from the UK business’s board, will provide Carlsberg with a vast range of non-alcoholic beverages as well as potential savings of £100 million over a span of five years.
One of the main reasons Carlsberg was drawn towards Britvic was for their bottling contract with PepsiCo, covering the UK and Irish markets. Carlsberg also has similar agreements with PepsiCo in both Asia and Europe.
Regarding the Irish branch of the business, Carlsberg, which lacks a local company presence in Ireland, plans on keeping Britvic Ireland intact, according to an official declaration regarding the proposed transaction. This comes as good news for the Irish division, which employs 387 people and had pre-tax earnings of €13.3 million on a revenue of €161 million as of September 2022. These figures represent an increase from the previous year as the company has been recovering from pandemic lockdowns.
The Irish business is headed by Kevin Donnelly, a member of the executive leadership team, and grouped with France within the international unit at company level. It was revealed in a recent trading update, that despite a drop in international earnings by 6.6% year on year, momentum in Ireland had counterbalanced a slump in France and other global markets.
Britvic Ireland’s portfolio includes Ballygowan water, the Club range of soft drinks, MiWadi and TK Lemonade, among others. It also distributes a number of brands such as Pepsi and 7-Up through a partnership with PepsiCo that is set to last until 2025.
Undoubtedly, Carlsberg’s vast resources and international reach pose an appealing prospect for Britvic’s staff. It’s still in the air, however, whether this British drinks group deal will open the door for Carlsberg to extend its interests into the portfolio of Irish soft drinks.