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Tag: |Diageo

  • Why Diageo aborted $130m equity increase in Guinness Nigeria

    Why Diageo aborted $130m equity increase in Guinness Nigeria

    There are fresh indications as to why Diageo Plc, the parent company of Guinness Nigeria Plc, failed in its bid to increase its share capital in the brewery giant.

    It may be recalled that Diageo had in mid September 2015 announced its intention to make an offer through its wholly owned subsidiary, Guinness Overseas Limited for up to 15.7% of the share capital of Guinness Nigeria Plc.

    The Nation gathered that everything seem okay as the different parties worked out the finer details of the deal.

    However, trouble began to brew when some local shareholders vowed to resist any move to sell more shares to the parent company under any guise.

    Convinced about what it considered the impropriety of the proposed deal, the shareholders set machinery in motion to thwart the plan thus leading to a stalemate.

    Not happy with the turn of event in spite of making several entreaties to pacify the aggrieved shareholders, Diageo naturally soft-pedalled and it subsequently communicated its decision not to go any further with the potential offer to Guinness Nigeria Plc.

    Further checks at the Nigerian Stock Exchange by The Nation revealed that Guinness Nigeria Plc had received a letter from Guinness Overseas Limited confirming that Diageo had taken the decision not to proceed with the potential offer.

    However the major reason Diageo adduced for its decision to back down was its fears over the seeming challenging market condition in the country over the past 12 months.

    But despite its inability to increase its shareholding in Guinness Nigeria Plc, Diageo assured that it maintains a positive outlook for Nigeria in the long-term just as it proposed to focus its resources on continuing to support Guinness Nigeria Plc.

    Thus to enable Guinness Nigeria Plc tide things over in the face of the strangulating economy already having a negative run on its operations, the company got the nod of its shareholders for a rights issue to raise at least N40billion fresh cash injection into the business from the capital market.

    The rights issue is the first in 25 years.

    Justifying the need for the rights issue, Babatunde Savage, Chairman, Guinness Nigeria Plc, during its Extra Ordinary General Meeting in Lagos, said: “”Guinness Nigeria has been in this country for over 60 years and, in that time, we have continued to add significant economic and social value to Nigeria and Nigerians. We believe this Rights Issue will positively impact on the financial performance of Guinness Nigeria and help mitigate the impact of increasing finance costs in what continues to be a challenging economic environment in Nigeria.”

    Echoing similar sentiments, Peter Ndegwa, Managing Director/CEO, Guinness Nigeria Plc said that the company has good fundamentals and potentials for the future. “Guinness Nigeria is a company with excellent fundamentals and we have the right strategy and the right people to grow our business for the future. This Rights Issue in combination with our productivity and cost optimisation drive will help provide the fuel to continue to build this business for Nigeria and Nigerians.”

    On insinuations that the rights issue may be a further ploy to help Diageo raise its stake in the company, Ndegwa said such claims were totally unfounded.

    According to him, the rights issue allows every single shareholder to subscribe for rights based on their current shareholding. So if every shareholder in Guinness Nigeria Plc subscribes for their rights, everyone would keep their current shareholding. So, it is not that we are raising new capital by other means. There is no way if everyone subscribes to the Issue that we can increase the shareholding value of Diageo.”

    The rights issue, he emphasised, “Is meant to support the company to grow, it’s about bringing cash into the business therefore shareholders should feel that this is an opportunity to a business that has been very strong and has paid dividends for many years.”

  • Diageo, UN agency harp on road safety

    Diageo, a global leader in the beverage alcohol industry and parent company of Guinness Nigeria Plc, have partnered the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) to promote road safety and sustainable transport systems in the country.
    At a two-day workshop at the University of Lagos, Akoka, Guinness Nigeria PLC Corporate Relations Director Mr Sesan Sobowale, noted that by partnering UNITAR, Guinness Nigeria/Diageo shows its continued commitment to the responsible use of alcohol and the prevention of alcohol-related road traffic accidents.
    He said: “We believe that a single death caused by drinking and driving is one too many and can and must be prevented. We are encouraged that over the last few years, the number of alcohol related fatalities has fallen significantly in many countries. However, there is more to do and we are committed to playing our role in eradicating harm caused by drink driving in Nigeria. This new partnership with UNITAR is important as it will allow us to work together to deliver the global goal of halving drink driving road traffic deaths”.
    The event was attended by the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Transportation, Mallam Sabiu Zakari who represented the Minister for Transportation, the Lagos State Commissioner for Transport, Prince Anofiu Elegushi, the Sector Commander, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Ogun State command, Commander Clement Oladele, his Lagos counterpart, Mr. Hyginus Omeje and Sustainable transport experts from Kennesaw State University, Georgia in United States. The conference was also attended by transportation and road safety resource persons from Benin Republic, Ghana, Cote d’Ivore and Togo.
    In their submissions, speakers outlined strategies that will help Nigeria create a sustainable transportation system while ensuring the safety of road users.
    Country Head and Resident Representative of UNITAR in Nigeria, Dr Larry Boms, said road safety is a top priority in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development which aims to reduce road traffic deaths and injuries by 50 per cent by 2020.
    “I am looking forward to bringing to fruition this new initiative between the United Nations and Guinness Nigeria/Diageo. Achieving the 2030 Development Agenda and its different goals will only be possible through innovative partnerships with the private sector such as this one, where different stakeholders join forces to reach specific beneficiaries and targets by sharing their respective expertise and resources,” he said.
    Oladele, who represented FRSC Corp Marshal, Boboye Oyeyemi, observed that about three percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is lost to road crashes every year and stressed the need to address the human factor element in road safety interventions.

  • Diageo boosts consumer awareness with DRINKiQ.com.

    IN its quest to raise awareness among consumers, Diageo, the parent company of Guinness Nigeria, has launched its newly revised website, DRINKiQ.com.

    DRINKIQ.com includes useful new tools such as a simple to use ‘Drinks Calculator’, to help people calculate and track their alcohol and calorie intake. It also provides responsible drinking tips and advice on how food, age, size and gender affects how the body processes alcohol, alongside the enhanced ‘What’s in your Drink’ tool.

    Today’s announcement builds on Diageo’s global commitment in March 2015 to start voluntarily providing nutrition and alcohol content information per standardised serving on all its brands. In the first move to fulfil this commitment, the first shipment of Crown Royal labelled with macronutrient and calorie information was released in the US in October 2015.

    Carolyn Panzer, Alcohol in Society Director, Diageo said: “As people become more and more interested in their diet and lifestyle choices, we need to play our part. We know that consumers want nutritional information about what they drink – just as they do with the foods they eat; they also want a clear and easy way to know how much alcohol they are drinking. We believe passionately in helping people to understand what’s in their drink and to make informed choices about drinking or not drinking. Alcohol is alcohol. There is no drink of moderation – only a practice of moderation.”

    Sesan Sobowale, Corporate Relations Director, Guinness Nigeria said, “We are proud of the approach we have taken, over decades, to promote responsible alcohol consumption and help tackle harmful drinking. As part of our ambition to be leaders in addressing alcohol in society, we have set ourselves goals beyond our industry-wide commitments in our 2020 Sustainability and Responsibility targets for alcohol. Our revamped and relaunched DRINKIQ keeps us on track as we work towards the attainment of our sustainability and responsibility targets.”

    The new DRINKiQ.com is mobile-friendly and easy to use so that consumers can quickly access information about what’s in their favourite cocktail on their phone whenever they want.

    The site is available in 24 countries and 12 languages, and has been designed to ensure content is tailored to the environment and regulation in the consumer’s location, particularly legal purchase age.

  • Fanfare as Diageo unveils Smirnoff Ice Double Black

    Fanfare as Diageo unveils Smirnoff Ice Double Black

    Smirnoff, the world’s number one vodka from the stables of Diageo Brands Nigeria has launched its new variant, Smirnoff Ice Double Black with Guarana amidst fan fare. The Double Side launch party was the first of its kind in Nigeria as guests were welcomed to an unconventional venue for a party- a thriving auto workshop turned into a party venue. Arriving at the venue located in Lagos, guests were eager to experience the uniqueness and dynamics of taking the party to such an unusual venue.

    Smirnoff Ice Guarana combines refreshing and invigorating taste of Smirnoff Vodka blended with Soda and extracts of Guarana. It joins the existing Smirnoff family of Smirnoff Vodka and Smirnoff Ice Red.

    Unveiling the brand, the Head of Marketing, Spirits and RTD, Liz Ashdown said Guinness Nigeria is driven by innovation and the company is committed to launching products that meet more of their consumers’ needs and occasions.

    “Smirnoff Ice Guarana has been produced to satisfy the quest of our younger consumers, who are of the legal drinking age and want to make less obvious choices because that’s what makes their nights better and more memorable. The refreshing taste of this new Smirnoff variant is the outcome of an extensive research that resulted in the right blend of the best ingredients,” Liz Ashdown said.

    Regarding the possibilities of the new variant putting sales pressure on the existing variants, Ashdown explained that “we have provided consumers with greater choice and with a drink that is more relevant for higher tempo occasions than many other offerings in the market.”

    “The #doubleside idea is the celebration of an alternative side of life -be that of places doubling as something more epic or oneself that is more expressive and open to new experiences. The double side party brought this to life through the unexpected performances and location – an auto workshop doubling as a party venue at night,” Ashdown noted.

    The Smirnoff team also hinted of plans to carry out a series of consumer activities across major cities for the product launch starting from July through December 2015.

    The highpoint of the occasion was exhilarating performances from Mr. Incredible, M.I Abaga, Terry G, Kola Soul and ace disc jockeys D.J Spinall and D.J Nana who kept the party crowd going all night.

  • Day Diageo entertained wholesalers

    WITH so much entertainment ideas in its kitty, having sponsored several shows in 2014, Diageo Brands Nigeria, distillers of Irish Cream Liqueur, Baileys, treated its wholesalers to a remarkable night of entertainment and rewards during the last yuletide.

     The brand, which attributed its market success to the unflinching loyalty of its wholesalers, staged what it called the Christmas edition of its monthly Wholesalers Promo raffle draws in Lagos, where several items including a brand new car was won.

     Ndubuisi Onyenami of Gindus Limited, Aba, emerge the winner of a brand new KIA Sorento SUV car 2014 model, while Chigozie Anagwe of Chigotex Royal Link, Chukwuebuka Charles of Buka Biz, both of Trade Fair, Lagos, and Nonso Okonkwo of Nolly Global Limited, Lagos Island, went home with a 4.5KVA Hyundai power generating set each.

    Kayode Oluwo, Commercial Planning and Activation Manager, Diageo Brands Nigeria said that its brands, including Baileys is able to maintain its No. 1 status in Nigeria, due to the efficient working partnership Diageo has with its wholesalers, especially as it relates to the wine and spirits Baileys’ market.

    “At Diageo Brands Nigeria, we see our wholesalers as veritable partners and our backbone to success, and the fact that our brands including Johnnie Walker, Baileys and others have remained leaders in their categories is an attestation to assertion. We appreciate we will never have been the choice of Nigerians if not for the loyalty our wholesalers have shown us.”

     Oluwo attributed the Wholesalers Raffle Draw as a way of appreciating Diageo’s trade partners, and appealed to them not to relent on their partnership with the company.

    Also speaking on the Wholesalers Promo, Udjoh Ufuoma, Baileys Brand Manager, said that Diageo Brands Nigeria has so far rewarded three wholesalers with KIA SUV cars while 12 others have also been rewarded with power generating sets

  • Former boss interested in buying back Whyte & Mackay from Diageo

    Former boss interested in buying back Whyte & Mackay from Diageo

    Former Whyte & Mackay Chief Executive Vivian Imerman is interested in buying the whisky assets back from Diageo (DGE.L), his investment firm said on Friday.

    Diageo may be forced to sell most of Whyte & Mackay’s whisky assets to address competition concerns arising from its July acquisition of a controlling interest in India’s United Spirits (UNSP.NS).

    Imerman, chairman of investment firm Vasari and once dubbed “The Man from Del Monte” after leading a turnaround at the tinned fruit company, sold Whyte & Mackay to United Spirits in 2007 for 595 million pounds ($972.62 million).

    Vasari said in a statement on Friday that it would be interested in buying back the whisky assets should Diageo be forced to sell them.

    “Whyte and Mackay would make an important addition to the portfolio of spirits and beer businesses in Africa and Asia where Mr Imerman has been concentrating his efforts through his company Vasari,” the firm said in an emailed statement.

    “The W&M brand would be complementary to the strategy of acquiring and growing businesses in these regions to take advantage of rapid consumer growth.”

    Diageo declined to comment.

    In July Diageo took a 25 percent stake in United Spirits, part of industrialist Vijay Mallya’s empire and owner of Whyte & Mackay, which sells a branded Scotch whisky but has a bigger business supplying bulk whisky that other drink makers brand as their own.

    However, the British competition authority said on Monday that Diageo’s lower-end Bell’s whisky competes with Whyte & Mackay’s own-label and branded whisky and that the merger may lead to “a substantial lessening” of competition.

    Culled from Bloomberg