Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

July 24, 2008 8:04:43 AM CDT

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

Pernod Spirits High After $8.3B Absolut Buy

Posted Mar 31, 08 9:14 AM CDT in Business 

(Newser) – French liquor giant Pernod Ricard's spirits were soaring after its $8.34 billion bid won it ownership of Sweden's state-owned Vin & Spirit, the parent company of Absolut vodka. Pernod topped US-based Fortune Brands in an auction for the purchase, the Wall Street Journal reports, and is now the wine and spirit industry's co-leader.

Pernod set its sights on Absolut, the world’s third-biggest-selling spirit behind Smirnoff vodka and Bacardi rum, to enhance its premium vodka line. The V&S sale is the latest in a spate of liquor industry-consolidations over the past several years, and is the first major deal since credit woes brought mergers and acquisitions to a relative standstill.

Source Wall Street Journal

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • Absolut Cans Bottle Ads, Sees Sales Soar

    Feb 19, 08 10:55 AM CST
    Absolut Cans Bottle Ads, Sees Sales Soar Absolut is selling a lot more vodka now that it's dumped one of the world's best-known ad campaigns, Advertising Age reports. The Swedish brand and its arty ads featuring the iconic bottle had been a big hit since entering the US market in 1979, but sales were flat before the launch of the "Absolut World" campaign last year. Now global shipments have spiked 9%. More »

  • An Absolut Blockbuster

    Sep 20, 07 11:35 AM CDT
    An Absolut Blockbuster British beverage conglomerate Diageo, maker of best-selling vodka Smirnoff, is “very interested” in acquiring Sweden’s Absolut, the world’s second-largest vodka. Diageo says it isn’t worried about anti-trust problems, although its CEO tells Reuters “complexity will vary from market to market.” One easy market would be the US, where analysts say Absolut’s higher price tag puts it in a different category. More »

Absolut Vodka sold to Pernod for a winning bid of $8.3 billion.   (Getty Images)
A passerby walks past Pernod Ricard logo at the Pernod Ricard headquarters in Paris, Monday March 31, 2008. French drinks-maker Pernod Ricard SA confirmed Monday it acquired Swedish company Vin & Sprit.   (AP Photo/Remy de la Mauviniere)
A man enters Pernod Ricard headquarters in Paris, Monday March 31, 2008.   (AP Photo/Remy de la Mauviniere)
Bottles of Ricard liquor are seen at Pernod-Ricard headquarters in Paris, in this April 21, 2005 file photo.   (AP Photo/Jacques Brinon, file)
Various flavors of Absolut, which sold to Pernod for a winning bid of $8.3 billion.   (Getty Images)
State-owned Absolut Vodka sold to Pernod for a winning bid of $8.3 billion.   (Getty Images)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Our editors also recommend:

Threads (1 of 1)

Tags

acquisitions  • Sweden  • vodka  • Absolut


Loading...

Loading...

Today's Most Popular


Other Business Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Newser gives you more news in less time. We search for the best and most important stories all over the web, read them for you, and deliver concise and sharp summaries—along with links to the full text. Newser provides a way to stay on top of an ever-expanding horizon of news and opinion—politics, sports, business, trends, technology, personalities, crimes, and controversies. Newser keeps you not just better informed, but, with our signature graphic interface and smart condensed format, more enjoyably informed.

Learn more »