Americanisation is over

28 June, 2017

Available in 160 countries (Europe 58%, North America 35%), the company’s aim, said Battioni, was to stay independent and expand into Asia and South America.

Bremmer's Warnings

KEY FACTORS

1 GLOBALISATION has created a lot of discontent. Over the past 20 years globalisation has taken millions of people out of poverty in China, India and emerging markets. We have a global middle class. But we have a ‘forgotten’ working class in the US and Europe.

2 MOVEMENT OF PEOPLE Millions of Syrians have fled to Europe and particularly Germany. They are not going to integrate. They are not educated so not going to contribute to the economy. In the 1980s Reagan clamped down on Mexicans coming in. The prices went up because no one was picking the fruit. So Reagan pulled back and allowed Mexicans back in.

3 TECHNOLOGY Lots of jobs are going. The inability of governments to provide jobs. Lots of people are saying: “I do not support government anymore.” Left, right, median –that is why we got Brexit and Trump.

YOUNG MARKET

Modi’s Group’s CEO Umesh Modi described the Indian market as the “youngest in the world” with 20m babies born every year. He spoke of his company’s Artic premium 100% grain vodka and Rockford, its premium branded whisky, which is made from scotch provided by William Grant & Sons, blended with Indian whisky. The Modi Group has a joint venture across the Indian sub-content with Illva Saronno.

IRISH WHISKEY

Walsh Irish Whiskey was founded in 1999 and 17 years later Augusto Reina, Illva Saronno’s CEO, invested in the company, becoming a partner. With its leading brands, The Irishman and Writers’ Tears, the company now produces 8m bottles of Irish whiskey a year.

Founder and CEO Bernard Walsh eulogised about the “Irish whiskey renaissance” with 400,000 cases in 1990, 8m last year and 24m projected for 2030 – “but still only fifth in the world behind Japanese, Canadian, American and scotch whiskies.” From six distilleries in 2015, there are projected to be 27 by 2020. He said at the moment Irish whiskey sells in just 80 countries compared to scotch in 190 and Illva Saronno in 160.

Walsh said Writers’ Tears pot still whiskey was “the Macallan of Irish whiskey” (Edrington’s Macallan is the most sought-after batch whisky at auction).

Walsh said his distillery is the sixth largest in Ireland with a 650,000 case capacity and the only Irish distillery able to produce all three styles of whiskey - malt, grain and pot still.

IN SUMMARY

Illva Saronno Holding CEO Augusto Reina concluded the conference, saying that, having started to penetrate the Indian and Chinese markets via partners the Modi Group and Changyu, the next challenge was to reshape and reposition the company in the US.

Asked by Drinks International about Changyu’s intention to buy wine producers in Australia and Chile, he said Changyu had begged him to help identify which companies are attractive and amenable to an approach. He refused to give any indication of where they are looking. He said he thought

it would be an “easy task” to sell Chinese wines abroad. Changyu dominates the domestic market and there are currently 400m wine drinkers in China. The company has plenty of potential for growth and was looking to export more, he answered.





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