Netherlands: Heineken plans acquisitions and Cervejarias Kaiser is a possible target

Dutch brewing force, Heineken NV, plans acquisitions and branding to win over young consumers as it fights back in a consolidating industry, the Financial Times reported on October 31.

Without citing its source, the paper said Brazilian brewer Cervejarias Kaiser, owned by Molson Coors Brewing Co., was one possible target. It said the brewer was also looking at opportunities in China. Speaking to reporters on October 25, Carlos Fernandez, Modelo’s chief executive and chairman said that he believes Molson Coors will offload its Brazilian subsidiary to Heineken.

The Dutch brewer currently distributes its beer in Brazil through Kaiser, and is seen as the brand’s most likely buyer together with Mexican beverage conglomerate Fomento Economico Mexicano, or Femsa, which distributes its beer in the US through Heineken, and sells Coors Light in Mexico for Molson Coors.

Molson Coors bought Kaiser in 2002 for US$765m but the unit has proved problematic for the recently-merged North American company.

The newspaper cited Heineken Chief Operating Officer Marc Bolland as saying the firm wants to pursue "worldwide scale" through local and regional buys as well as organic growth.

Heineken declined comment on a report by Belgian newspaper Le Soir on Saturday that Heineken and Belgian rival InBev have made competing bids for a 30 percent stake in Xujin, a Chinese brewer in the province of Fujian.

The Financial Times also cited Peter van Campen, the Heineken group's commerce director, as saying the brewer was perceived as being too exclusive in some markets.

"If we want to grow faster, we need to be more accessible than we are today while not losing our aspirational value," the paper quoted him as saying in Valencia at the launch of a new marketing project targeted at young people.

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