Interbrew Romania, the domestic branch of InBev, the world”s biggest brewer, last year reported turnover worth 140 million euros, 35% higher in terms of value from 2004, due in part to the total volume of sold beer rising by 18%, three times more than the beer market.
In line with MEMBR Romania, the beer market last year grew by 5.2% in terms of volume.
Intrebrew last year sold 2.6m hectolitres of beer, as compared with 2.2m hectolitres in 2004.
“Interbrew Romania results are mainly due to the Bergenbier brand,” said Mihai Ghyka, general manager of Interbrew Romania. Ghyka specified that besides Bergenbier, Stella Artois and Beck”s also had a significant contribution to the sales growth.
“The company registered solid increases on the sector of PET beer, too, with Bergenbier Q-Pack and Noroc PET,” Ghyka also said.
Interbrew Romania is one of the most active brewers on the Romanian market, with a 21.5% market share at the end of last year, according to MEMRB Romania retail audit data.
“I believe the beer market will see a smaller growth this year, only 2-3%, followed by constant growth over the next few years,” says Mihai Ghyka.
In his opinion, the market will also grow in terms of value this year, because consumers will opt for superior segment brands.
“We are likely to witness the emergence of new brands joining this race, but with an insignificant impact over the current leadership,” maintains Ghyka.
While the market advanced by a mere 5% in 2005, investments in advertising soared by 38% from 2004. Per bottle sold, there is a net increase of advertising expenses by 33%. In Ghyka”s opinion, motivation is linked to this market”s competitiveness.
The value of investments Interbrew made in Romania tops 150 million euros and were aimed at strengthening the brands it produces locally, namely Stella Artois, Beck”s, Bergenbier and Noroc. Apart from these brands, Interbrew imports Leffe and Hoegaarden Belgian specialties. In 2004, the domestic branch of InBev reported turnover standing at 103m euros, while the sales volume exceeded two million hectolitres.
Romania, Russia, Ukraine and Bulgaria were some of the main growth factors for InBev last year. At the end of 2005, InBev figures pointed to organic growth by 5.4%, year-on-year. Total sales in Central and Eastern Europe reached 38.1 million hectolitres, 10.7% more than in 2004. The beer market is valued at over 600m euros, and four of the top five players are multinationals: Brau Union, Ursus Breweries, Interbrew and URBB. The four multinationals currently operating on the domestic market account for around 70% of the annual sales. European Drinks, the biggest domestic food group, announced investments worth in excess of 100 million euros over the following period, in order to boost beer production capacities.