World of Heineken 39 winter 2008/2009
A cold refreshing beer to enjoy in the warm South East Asian ciimate.
Wilson looks back on the past decade as a
particularly successful one. "We have been
very successful in growing our markets in the
region in general and the Pacific Islands in
particular."
Wilson counts his Heineken Far East's market
penetration as the spearhead of its success.
Even opening markets in countries where
there are unstable political situations, we
have still managed to establish a position as
the leading importer of beer. There have still
been hiccups. In one case, an entire shipment
was lost when two major supermarkets were
ransacked and looted during civil unrest."
Heineken Far East has also become
accustomed to markets where they have
had success to leave the nest and start local
production. "Economically, to propose any
country for local production, there must first
be a very high excise duty barrier," Wilson
explains. "In most Asian countries, such as
India, excise duties on imported alcoholic
beverages are very high, so that would make
it a prime candidate for local production in
the future. Other countries where duties are
very low will remain export markets for many
years to come.
Heineken Far East now delivers an annual
volume of 250,000 hectolitres to the region.
"Over the past 10 years, we have effectively
penetrated the markets in virtually every
country in Asia," says Wilson. While further
penetration of new markets becomes more
challenging, our focus is now shifting towards
sustaining and building those markets, to
achieve or retain a position as market leader
in imported beer, and paving the way for local
production in the future."
Boon. Han.Tan@Heineken.com
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