Edinburgh’s Holyrood Distillery has secured a new funding package with specialist wine and spirits fintech Ferovinum, to support its domestic and international growth plans in 2024 and beyond.

International Beverage has entered into an agreement with Anora Group plc to acquire its Larsen Cognac business.

American drinks group Brown-Forman has announced the launch of its own distribution business in Slovakia, bringing distribution in-house for the first time since the company entered the market.

Irish spirits maker, The Boatyard Distillery, has announced it has earned B-Corporation certification.

Global drinks business International Beverage Holdings has announced the appointment of vice president of sales, Malcolm Leask, to the new post of managing director.

Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has announced that planned increases in alcohol duty have been ditched in his mini-budget.

Jack Daniel’s owner Brown-Forman has confirmed the purchase of gin brand Gin Mare from Spanish premium drinks company, Vantguard.

Diageo has agreed the sale of its Windsor business to the Bayside Private Equity and Metis Private Equity consortium, Bayside/Metis, for KRW 200 billion (approximately £124 million).

Calvados brand Avallen has become a certified B Corporation, a for-profit business that has been verified to meet high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.

Indevin New Zealand has completed the purchase of 100% of the shares of Villa Maria Estate for an undisclosed fee.

The Rise of DTC Sales

02 September, 2021

The Covid-19 pandemic has inspired drinks producers across the world to significantly ramp up their focus on direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales.

Diageo expects direct-to-consumer sales to grow rapidly and emerge as an important part of the business in the years ahead.

Scottish whisky auction firm, Whisky Hammer, and sister company Still Spirit has sold a 49% stake of the business to the Hong Kong investment group, Rare Whisky Holdings.

British bar operator Arc Inspirations has reported that sales have increased by 35% compared to 2019 since it resumed trading in May.

Heineken is in talks with South African wine and spirits producer Distell about acquiring “the majority” of its business.

Diageo stock increased by 4% this morning after it announced an improved profit growth forecast for the 2021 fiscal year.

Melissa Draycott will take over from Martin Skelton as managing director of Gonzalez Byass UK in September.

Hamburg based Broco-Marken-Import has appointed new members of its global business development team as part of its international focus for expansion.

Freixenet Copestick has expanded its portfolio by signing an exclusive distribution partnership with Chilean producer The Garage Wine Co.

Drinks International caught up with Gabriel Bidault of online retailer Le Millésime Paris to learn more about the impact that accepting Bitcoin as a payment method has had upon the business during the prolonged bull run of 2020 and 2021.

In May 2020, when the lockdown was still at its strictest in India, Sidecar bar in New Delhi received the good news that it was the only Indian bar to have made it to the coveted 50 Best Bars in Asia list.

Campari Group has revealed that some of its personal and business data has been compromised after it suffered a targeted ransomware attack.

Drinks International caught up with Anne Le Naour, executive director at CA Grands Crus, to find out how the business has adapted to the challenging trading conditions of 2020.

Drinks International caught up with Naked Wines’ chief financial officer James Crawford to discuss the firm’s impressive H1 results.

Naked Wines enjoyed 79.6% revenue growth in the six months to September 28 after demand for online wine purchases soared during the lockdown.

Diageo stock enjoyed its best session since March after chief executive Ivan Menezes issued a positive trading update ahead of the firm’s annual meeting.

Templeton Rye has released a limited-edition Caribbean Rum Cask Finish expression into the domestic and export markets.

Danish brewer Carlsberg expects to report an organic operating decline of 10% to 15% this year as a result of on-trade closures.

Naked Wines has reported 81% year-on-year revenue growth during April and May as online orders spiked during the coronavirus lockdown.

Carlsberg UK will merge with Marston’s to form a British brewing giant worth around £780 million.

Campari Group has reported a 5.3% decline in organic sales for the first quarter of 2020 after suffering from the impacts of the coronavirus outbreak.

Treasury Wine Estates has appointed John Grant as managing director of its Beringer Brand Business Unit.

Wine journalist, Tim Atkin MW and d'Arenberg owner and winemaker Chester Osborn, were both named as recipients of the Wine Intelligence 10 for 10 Business Award.

Su Birch, CEO of Wines of South Africa (WoSA) is the winner of Wine Intelligence’s inaugural ‘10 for 10 Business Award’.

Gifting remains the driving force behind wine sales growth in China, according to research by Wine Intelligence.

Wine merchant Laithwaites Wine has concluded the purchase of Chateau du Bois, a vineyard near the village of Castillon in Bordeaux, France.

Diageo has delivered 3% volume growth and 7% organic net sales increase for the six months ended December 31, 2011.

Global business consultancy McKinney Rogers has appointed a former Bacardi USA president to its board.

Altia buys Xanté

23 January, 2012

Altia Plc is buying the Xanté Company and the Xanté spirits brand from the Swedish Tilander family.

London Pride brewer Fuller’s has announced half-year growth of 6% after registering a turnover of £128m.

Central European spirits and liqueurs company Stock Spirits Group is gearing up to acquire new business.

SABMiller, has formed a strategic alliance for Turkey, Russia, the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States, former Soviet republics), central Asia and the Middle East with the Turkish brewer, Anadolu Efes.

Cert Octavian Plc, the UK’s leading logistics and specialist wine cellarage business, has announced that Vincent O’Brien is managing director with immediate effect.

Sobieski vodka owner Belvedere has appointed Krzysztof Trylinski as chairman and chief executive officer of the group. He aims to clear the company's debt by selling two of its brands.

Diageo, through its Johnnie Walker brand, has launched a social media project to get communities involved in either technology, arts or business projects.

Beam Global has appointed Debora Boyda to the role of general manager of the Mixables Category Business Team (CBT). 

UK cider producer Aspall is to restructure its business and invest £4m following “40% volume growth” last year.

Morrison Bowmore Distillers has made five new appointments within its sales and marketing team.

New World brands continue to dominate the global wine sector and now constitute 13 of the top 15 wine brands, according to a recent study.

Brown-Forman has sold its Fetzer wine business to Concha y Toro for US$238 million. The transaction is expected to close in April 2011.

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