Among the pumping bass, neon lighting and professional dancers at this year’s nightclub-themed National Distributors Conference for HEINEKEN USA, White Plains, N.Y., a subsidiary of Amsterdam-based Heineken International B.V., the company announced that, for the first time in five years, Heineken Lager is back in the black. Mirroring its goal for 2013 — accelerate — HEINEKEN USA has reclaimed growth for its flagship brand in 32 states and hopes to hit all 50 states by the end of the year, says Scott Blazek, senior vice president of sales.
The previous year’s goal was growth, he notes, and as a result, in 2012 total company performance increased 4.4 percent; Dos Equis was up 26 percent; and Tecate Light was up 28 percent, Blazek says. In the on-premise segment, focusing on the company’s strategic better beer accounts, Newcastle was up 3 percent; Heineken was up 14 percent; and Dos Equis was up 33 percent. In 2013, the company aims to increase its distribution base by 10 percent, with a 50 percent growth target for key 2013 brands, Dos Equis and Strongbow.
Although the beer category has been struggling to regain share from wine and spirits, upscale import beers were up more than 3 percent in volume in 2012, notes Dolf van den Brink, president and chief executive officer.
“After years of losing share in total alcoholic beverages, we’re starting to close the growth gap,” he says. And according to van den Brink, this is only the beginning.
The beer category is faced with three major challenges: sameness, SKU proliferation and diminished import support, van den Brink says. Currently, four mainstream beer brands account for approximately 80 percent of the beer market, he explains.