Head of Pernod Ricard leaves for Croatia

Corneliu Valsan, general manager of Pernod Ricard Romania, one of the leading players on the imported spirits market, will leave his current position to run Pernod Ricard”s business in Croatia, according to market sources. The same sources say that Tudor Furir will take over as general manager of Romanian Pernod Ricard”s Romanian branch. Furir is currently country manager of Allied Domecq Romania, which was bought last year by Pernod Ricard through an international transaction. The two managers did not wish to make any comment. Following the acquisition of Allied Domecq in August 2005, Pernod Ricard became the biggest European spirits producer and the 2nd biggest in the world. The two companies are functioning independently for the time being, although the integration of Allied Domecq structures has already been accomplished in most European states. Before this takeover, Allied Domecq Romania accounted for some 55% of the imported spirits market, whereas Pernod Ricard had an approximate 11% market share. In 2005, Pernod Ricard posted a 5.4 million euro turnover, a 43% increase against 2004, due to sales seen by luxury brands (Chivas Regal, Royal Salute, The Glenlivet single malt and Martell brandy). During the same period, the business of Allied Domecq reached almost 20 million euros, according to the rate of growth announced by the company. ZF