Britvic bucks trend with revenues rise

Drinks firm Britvic today said the strength of brands such as Robinsons and Fruit Shoot was helping it outperform the rest of the market.

The Chelmsford-based company reported total revenues of £218.6m (€235m) in the 12 weeks to December 21, an increase of 2.1% on the prior year.

It said volumes in still drinks increased by 7% against a market decline of more than 6% in the period. “Our stills growth was driven by ongoing value and volume share gains from Robinsons and the continued success of Gatorade and Drench,” Britvic said.

In carbonates, revenues growth in Britain came from both volume and pricing, with volumes up by 2.8% against a market decline of 1.9%. Both the Pepsi and 7Up brands, which Britvic produces under licence, continued to enjoy strong revenues and market growth, the company said.

Britvic noted that the soft drinks market in pubs and bars continued to decline, off 5% in the quarter of November although the rate of decline has slowed.

Stronger Christmas trading provided a short-term respite for the licensed sector, but Britvic said it did not expect a more widespread and sustained recovery in the medium term.

The take-home market showed a volume decline of 4%, although Britvic said the categories in which it has a significant presence performed better than the market average.

The company said it had taken a strong line on costs, including the proposed loss of 145 jobs in Ireland, and added that it expected a 1% reduction in raw material inflation to between 4% and 4.5% this year.

Britvic shares opened 2% higher today as it said its strong trading performance had continued into the current quarter.