Miller Coors deal prompts distributors look to do their own mergers As Miller and Coors prepare to merge their U.S. operations, the network of distributors that carry the two brands will be playing their own version of the mating game. The Miller Brewing Co. and Molson Coors Inc. proposal to form the MillerCoors joint venture… Read More…
Whole Oats
Whole Foods and Wilds Oats merger completed Whole Foods Market Inc. has lined up financing to complete its $565 million purchase of rival organic and natural foods grocer Wild Oats Markets Inc., ending a six-month battle against federal regulators who tried to block the deal on antitrust grounds. The company said it took out a… Read More…
FTC Blocks Whole Foods/Wild Oats Merger
FTC claims the merger will eliminate competition The Federal Trade Commission will sue to stop a pending merger between rival natural foods grocers Whole Foods Market Inc. and Wild Oats Markets Inc. Boulder-based Wild Oats has agreed to be acquired by Austin-based Whole Foods in a deal announced earlier this year. Wild Oats said Tuesday… Read More…
New Award Honors Craft Beer Distributors
NBWA and BA teaming-up to launch new award The National Beer Wholesalers Association and the Brewers Association have announced the creation of the Craft Beer Distributor of the Year Award. The award will recognize the beer distributor in America who does the most to market, sell and promote craft beer in their market. A Craft… Read More…
Big to Bigger
Distributor consolidation in Texas creates largest A-B distributor in the country Houston’s Anheuser-Busch distributor has agreed to buy the Budweiser distributor in San Antonio which it says will make it the nations’ largest wholesale Anheuser-Busch distributor. Silver Eagle Distributors is planning to acquire San Antonio-based BudCo, which will join two of the largest beer distributor… Read More…
Good Beer in the Board Room
Sheraton announces new Chief Beer Officer Four Points by Sheraton’s has announced its new Chief Beer Officer, Scott Kerkmans, who started his job by ringing the opening bell at the NYSE. As CBO, Kerkmans will serve as an ambassador for Sheraton’s newly-launched Best Brews program. He will also help cultivate and promote Best Brews’ offerings… Read More…
Whole Foods Goes Wild
Whole Foods Market to acquire Wild Oats Austin-based Whole Foods Market, the world’s largest retailer of natural and organic foods has agreed to buy competitor Wild Oats Markets. Whole Foods has 91 stores in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, while Wild Oats operates 110 stores in 24 states and British Columbia, Canada,… Read More…
Gambrinus Sheds Another
Ex-Corona importer sells imports rights to Moosehead back to brewery Gambrinus Co., which has imported and sold Moosehead Lager in the United States for the past 10 years, is selling the import rights back to Moosehead Breweries effective March 31, 2007. Moosehead Breweries announced they will export the brand through their own subsidiary, Moosehead USA…. Read More…
Paperless Import
Heineken to test electronic tracking of beer shipments In what could be one of the great milestones of the horizontal integration of technology, IBM Corp. will collaborate with Heineken N.V. to electronically track the shipment of beer from Europe to the United States. The project will explore the possibility of using sophisticated software and hardware… Read More…
Union Beverage Gets Golden Egg
Illinois distributor sells rights to Goose and Grolsch for $9.1 million Union Beverage of Chicago announced that it has finalized the sale of the distribution rights for Goose Island Beer and Grolsch Beer to the Anheuser-Busch distribution network for the state of Illinois. The final price tag for the two brands was $9.1 million. The… Read More…