France
11a I y
Greece
Regional Review
Europe
Aguila and Cruzcampo and, by the end of 2001, most of
the staff functions had been brought together in Seville.
Following the compulsory sale of two breweries,
Heineken Espafia has made a start on improving the
cost structure of the remaining breweries. The distribu
tion operations were transferred to a new organisation.
Although the market share in the Canary Islands
of imported Heineken beer is more or less stable, our
competitive position will be affected by the levy on
imported beers which has been introduced in 2002 to
protect local brewers.
Improved result generated by Heineken and
Desperados brands
Although France had its second poor summer in a row in
2001, with a great deal of wet weather, Sogebra's beer
sales were up from 7.7 to 7.9 million hi. Despite intense
competition, it succeeded in boosting its market share
and returned an improved result.
The Heineken brand increased its share of the market
and achieved record sales volume, supported by
consistent development of consumer preferences and
the launch of new and attractive packaging variants.
The growth in sales of our premium and speciality beers
translated into an improved sales mix. Desperados, the
international speciality beer which is brewed in France,
once again performed exceptionally well, recording sales
growth of almost 30% in France and over 40% in export
markets. The relaunch and repositioning of Affligem,
an abbey beer brewed in Belgium, was a success.
Sales of "33" Export and Panach' in PET (high-grade
plastic) bottles were again higher. A new dedicated
filling line for PET bottles entered service in 2001. Sales
of beer in PET bottles are growing steadily and currently
account for around 1% of the French take-home market.
Higher Heineken and Birra Moretti volume
improves sales mix
Beer consumption in Italy continued to grow. Heineken
Italia's beer sales increased slightly to 5.8 million hi and
its market share remained virtually stable. Heineken
Italia posted a higher result, helped by an improved sales
mix and efficiency gains in production and distribution.
The Heineken, Birra Moretti and Ichnusa brands were the
main contributors to the improvement in the sales mix.
The launch of Dreher beer in PET bottles fulfilled our
expectations. Innovative multi-packs were also intro
duced successfully.
Heineken Italia supports its brands with a number of
prestigious sponsorship activities. The fourth Heineken
Jammin' music festival and the fifth series of the Birra
Moretti football competition attracted record numbers.
The long-established Umbria Jazz Festival in Perugia was
also a great success.
Production capacity was expanded in 2001, notably in
Bergamo. Improvements in supply-chain management
enabled us to speed up beer deliveries while cutting
costs. Partesa, Heineken Italia's distribution organisation,
is playing a prominent part in the process of rationalisa
tion in the beverage wholesaling sector. With its 65
depots, Partesa now has national coverage.
Sales down in declining beer market
The Greek beer market contracted for the second year in
succession. Athenian Brewery's beer sales were also
down, from 3.9 to 3.7 million hi, but it managed to limit
the effect on the result through rigorous cost control.
Athenian Brewery's market share remained virtually
unchanged.
Sales of Amstel, the market leader in Greece, and
Heineken were down, in line with the market. Beer
exports to neighbouring countries increased and sales of
loli mineral water were again higher.
Heineken and Athenian Brewery have been selected by
the Athens Organising Committee as principal sponsors
of the 2004 Olympic Games. This sponsorship agreement
will significantly benefit the image of the Heineken
brand.
A number of efficiency and quality improvement proj
ects were undertaken at the three breweries and the
mineral water plant in 2001. The Amstel half-litre bottles
and crates were also replaced. Athenian Brewery in
troduced new management information systems which
comply with the uniform Heineken standard.
HEINEKEN N.V. ANNUAL REPORT 2001
26