Plan to establish Clonmel distillery

SCOTCH whisky group William Grant, which completed its €300 million purchase of the spirits division of C&C recently, could build a multi-million euro distillery in Clonmel as part of ambitious plans to grow its new Irish subsidiary.

The acquisition adds Tullamore Dew and liqueurs Carolans, Frangelico and Irish Mist to its portfolio of products that include Glenfiddich and Balvenie.

Chief executive of Grant’s Stella David said a new plant was one of “a number of options” the group will consider at it evolves plans for the Irish operation.

Ms David spent part of last Thursday briefing the 57 Irish employees in Clonmel after the takeover of C&C’s spirits division.

She reaffirmed to the workforce that their jobs were safe and said the Irish products will add hugely to the group’s strength in the US, which is its main overseas market.

“We shall invest significantly in the Irish operations and are committed to building a strong business in Ireland and to maintaining and developing current operations here in Clonmel,” she said.

The acquisition is the first big deal for the company since Ms David, a former head of global marketing at Bacardi, became chief executive almost a year ago. She said Tullamore Dew would become one of the company’s “core global brands”.