BERMUDA. As anticipated in an earlier report, Bacardi has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Grey Goose vodka from US brand owner Sidney Frank Importing Co.
Completion of the sale is expected within the next few months once regulatory approvals are obtained. The purchase price was undisclosed but is estimated to be in the region of US$2 billion.
Bacardi said in a statement: “This acquisition represents a major development for Bacardi Limited. With Grey Goose, Bacardi has acquired not only a brand with an extremely attractive growth profile and premium positioning, but has fulfilled its long-stated goal of becoming a serious player in the strategically important vodka category,” Bacardi said in a statement yesterday.
Commenting on the acquisition, Javier Ferrán, president and chief executive officer of Bacardi Limited, said: “Grey Goose is a top selling premium vodka brand in the United States; it is a perfect fit with the Bacardi portfolio of premium brands and fills a significant category gap. We see great potential to further build on the extraordinary success that has already been achieved under the excellent guidance of Sidney Frank and his company.”
Sidney Frank Importing Co Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Sidney Frank said: “One cannot avoid having mixed feelings on the sale of such a great brand. However, I cannot think of a better new home for Grey Goose than Bacardi. The people at Bacardi understand brand building, and this will ensure the development of the full potential of Grey Goose.”
Distilled and bottled in Cognac, France, Grey Goose is available in four variations, Original, L’Orange, Le Citron and La Vanille.
Grey Goose has sales of around 1.8 million cases in the all-important US domestic market, accounting for about half of super-premium sales there. It was only introduced in 1997.
In duty free, where it is represented in many markets by Allied Domecq Duty Free, the brand has become increasingly successful. Its striking on-shelf presence and premium price point has proved attractive to retailers in traditional vodka markets and in emergent ones such as Hong Kong.
Grey Goose is seen as a perfect fit into the Bacardi group portfolio alongside other recent acquisitions Bombay Sapphire (a super-premium gin) and Dewar’s, the biggest-selling Scotch whisky in the US. Since acquiring Dewar’s, Bacardi has successfully developed the brand’s premium status by launching a 12yo, 18yo and, soon, the ultra-premium blend, Signature.
MORE STORIES ON BACARDI
Bacardi set to acquire Grey Goose – 20/06/04
Bacardi celebrates Bombay Sapphire in a spirit of new ideas – 3/03/04
