Magners unveils European expansion plan

Magners Irish cider maker C&C is to quench Bavarian tastebuds after unveiling details of a trial run for the brand in Munich and Barcelona today.

Buoyed by the success of the Magners brand in the UK, C&C will publish the findings at the same time as its interims in October, meaning some of the trial could overlap with the two-week Oktoberfest in Munich.

The news came as the Irish company posted a 77% rise in operating profits to €212.6m in the year to February 28 as Magners sales volumes grew by 232% in the UK.

The growth of Magners in the UK, boosted by a high profile “four seasons” of Magners advertising campaign, came despite problems with its manufacturing capacity during the period.

In order to meet the soaring demand for the Irish cider, the group invested €80m in extending its manufacturing facility in Clonmel in County Tipperary.

It said it would invest a further €160m during the current year to increase capacity at the plant to 500 million litres of cider a year – more than double the sales volumes in 2006.