C&C set sights on foreign expansion to tap sales growth for cider brands

BULMERS and Magners owner, C&C Group, is set to start focusing on the internationalisation of its main cider brands next year — saying it has identified real worldwide scope for the product.

Addressing shareholders at the group’s annual general meeting in Dublin yesterday, C&C’s chief executive John Dunsmore said that management is laying the foundation for the international development of its core cider portfolio.

Despite C&C’s previous failure in testing Magners in markets like Spain and Germany, management sees real potential in areas like Scandinavia, Russia, France, Australia and the US.

The nordic markets of Finland and Sweden have previously been mentioned by management as potential new focus territories.

Mr Dunsmore said that although work has begun, on a small scale, with early growth having already been seen in the US market, the full international push for Magners is unlikely to be made until the group’s next financial year (beginning next February) at the earliest.

Although, C&C’s cider internationalisation will likely focus on the Magners brand rather than being acquisition-led, the group will not be averse to making further buys to strengthen its overall business.

The reduction of the group’s debt levels — mainly thanks to the recent €300m sale of its spirits division — has left C&C in a strong financial position and well positioned to react to what it sees as a continuing challenging trading environment in Ireland and Britain.

Strategy director Kenny Neison said that the rest of the current financial year would be taken up with integrating recent acquisitions and that no further buys are currently in the pipeline, but added that the group is appropriately structured, financially speaking, to take advantage of any opportunity that may arise.

Yesterday’s AGM — the last for chairman Tony O’Brien — also saw management reiterate that current full-year operating profit should meet market expectations and repeat their claims that Magners’ growth in Britain can mirror the 6%-7% overall growth evident in that market, in the current year.