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Bacardi CEO hints at Bourbon brand acquisition
The CEO of Bacardi has suggested the company may be looking to acquire a Bourbon brand in order to fill a gap in its portfolio.
Bacardi’s CEO Ed Shirley has hinted the company is looking to enter the Bourbon and rye market
Speaking to The Telegraph newspaper, Ed Shirley, chief executive officer for Bacardi, said that the Bermuda-based company was keen to move further into the dark spirits category.
Shirley told the publication: “The obvious gap that we have would be Bourbons and ryes.
“We have a track record in participation in industry consolidation, as we have shown with Martini, Dewar’s, Bombay Sapphire and Grey Goose. If it’s right for us, we’ll do something.”
Currently in the drinks group’s portfolio of dark spirits sits blended Scotch brands Dewar’s and William Lawson’s, a collection of single malts – Aberfeldy, Glen Deverin, and Royal Brackla, the Facundo Rum Collection, and three Cognacs – Baron Otard, D’Ussé and Gaston de Lagrange.
Drinks industry commentators have been increasingly looking to potential acquisition and merger deals in the near future since news broke that Beam Inc would be purchased by Japan’s Suntory Holding’s for $US16 billion.
Bourbon in particular has gained in interest in recent years, with the Distilled Spirits Council of the US identifying it as one of the fastest growing spirits in the country in 2013.