Michael Foley knows what he wants
Buckler tasting on Curasao
Heineken Nederland
withdraws as main sponsor
of hydrofoil
Retaining Heineken s market share, extra efforts for Murphy's
His hand hovers about four
inches above the table top.
"That's how high the pile of
letters was congratulating me
on my appointment as gen
eral manager of Murphy's
Brewery. Not because it's
me, but because there's now
an Irishman in charge. It's
good that Heineken is giving
us the chance and that's
exactly the way the whole
community feels about it."
Challenge
Black Irish stout
Navigator
In consultation with Fons Oerlemans, Heineken Nederland
has withdrawn as main sponsor of the Belgian's hydrofoil pro
ject. To date no sea trials have been held which definitely
prove the seaworthiness of the bottle-boat. And there is not
enough certainty about the technical progress of the project.
HEINEKEN INTERNATIONAL MAGAZINE NR. 23
PAGE 7
On the day we talk to him,
Michael Foley (41) paces through
his office, still not quite accus
tomed to it all. It's his first official
day as general manager. Some
days previously there'd been a high
spirited farewell party for Frans
van der Minne, who has been
appointed Export Director.
After studying at the University
of Dublin - where he gained a
degree in commerce - Michael
Foley started his career with the
Irish branch of Price Waterhouse,
the world's second biggest
accountancy firm. After that his
successive jobs in Ireland were for
a Japanese firm, an American firm
and an Irish beer distribution
wholesaling business before he
strengthened the ranks of Murphy's
Brewery as financial controller in
1983.
On the differences between
those three foreign employers he
Michael Foley, new general manager of Murphy's Brewery in Ireland, on service to the customer: "It will be our
most important weapon in beating off the competition.
has this to say: "The Japanese firm
was a real family business. The
entire personnel also felt they
belonged to one tight-knit family.
For example, everyone, from man
agement to shop floor, wore the
same uniform. The American com
pany was much more aggressive,
pouncing on everything straight
away. Reports there had to be incre
dibly detailed. And then came
Heineken. I think it's much more
informal; not going so deeply into
the subject matter. That certainly
need not be a negative thing. As I
see it, Heineken has a clear policy
in mind for the brewery in Ire
land."
Some six months ago Frans van
der Minne spoke in Heineken Inter
national Magazine about the pos
sibilities and threats for the brew
ery. According to Michael Foley
the situation on the Irish beer mar
ket has now crystallised even
further. "Our competitors have
Buckler, the low alcohol beer
brewed by Heineken, is also start
ing to find its way to consumers
outside Europe. Via the Heineken
export department the product is
being launched in various interna
tional markets. Last summer, for
instance, Buckler was rolled out by
Van Munching Co. in the United
States and other countries are also
showing a growing interest.
On Curasao (Netherlands Antil
les) the Heineken export office in
Willemstad had the idea of serving
Buckler free of charge in various
restaurants at lunchtime as a way of
introducing consumers to the prod
uct. The aim of this initiative was
to let businessmen experience for
themselves that Buckler beer with
out alcohol not only tastes good
but is also a drink for any time of
the day.
woken up. We were able to build
a market share of some 30% for
Heineken lager in five years. That
means we succeeded in stimulating
the demand for Heineken lager.
But now the situation's totally dif
ferent. We'll need to work hard to
retain Heineken's market share.
The strong growth is past, but as
the market's still growing, we're
growing with it. In the years
ahead, therefore, we'll have to con
solidate and, believe me, that's an
enormous challenge!"
But Foley has even more irons in
the fire. Thanks to the spectacular
success of Murphy's Stout in the
U.K. he can also see a big future
for the black-coloured stout in his
own country. "Murphy's Stout is an
excellent product. Consistent qual
ity, good packaging, good market
ing. Up to two years ago we were
trying to take consumers away
from our biggest competitor. After
that we did a great deal of market
research and reached the conclu
sion that we ought not to position
Murphy's Stout as a copy of that
big rival brew, but as a unique prod
uct. Murphy's Stout has also got
everything it needs to claim that
position. We're now targeting the
25 to 35 year old consumers of ale
and lager."
The success being reaped by
Murphy's in the U.K. is, in
Michael Foley's view, having a rip
ple effect on the Irish market.
"That feeling of pride is starting to
play a hand in it. If a British
holidaymaker in a pub in Ireland
asks for Murphy's Stout by name,
that means recognition and a proud
feeling. With extra effort from our
representatives we can lift the mar
ket share for Murphy's Stout."
Michael Foley sees himself as
a captain who has to navigate his
ship through the impending storm
and bring it safely into calmer wa
ters. He can't do it alone: "It's a job
we all have to tackle together, by
improving and refining our work
ing methods. The strong brands
and the personnel are the two main
assets of Murphy's Brewery. We've
generally got a well trained and
young team who've got the right
working attitude. All of us will
have to work on improving our ser
vice to customers. For in ten years'
time service will be the most
important weapon in beating off
the competition."
The Taverne restaurant on Curasao was one of the places where guests were offered a free glass of Buckler
during lunch.
The crossing from New York to
the Scilly Isles was originally due
to have taken place last summer. In
view of the enormous pressure of
time and the technical problems it
was decided to postpone the cross
ing for a year after talking to Fons
Oerlemans and consulting with
Professor S. Hengst of Delft Uni
versity, a marine engineering spe
cialist commissioned by Heineken
to oversee the project.
Oerlemans has been busy build
ing the bottle-boat for the past five
years. Heineken Nederland deci
ded in September 1988 to act as
main sponsor. Heineken made its
sponsorship conditional on the test
voyages being successfully com
pleted. At this moment, however,
there are still insufficient prospects
of the test programme being com
pleted in good time to guarantee
a safe crossing in 1990. Besides,
views differ about the technical
progress. Heineken Nederland
will, however, be giving Fons
Oerlemans the possibility of finish
ing the construction of the hydro
foil on the basis of his own ideas.
