Heineken Ireland has released its results for the first half of the year to end June 2014 which show that it has increased its market share to 28 per cent.
This is mainly attributable to the success of the Heineken brand, with one third of all consumer spend on lager going to the Heineken brand. This means that it is now the top-selling lager brand in Ireland in both the off- and on-trade.
Within the on-trade lager sector, one in every two pints of lager consumed in the pub comes from the Heineken Ireland portfolio. Heineken reported strong growth for all brands in the portfolio, including Coors Light and specialty brands such as Tiger and Desperados.
The company’s newest beer Radler, which is a low strength premium lager consisting of Amstel beer & cloudy lemon, is also growing quickly. The beer was developed through the company's focus on product innovation.
Maggie Timoney, CEO Heineken in Ireland, commented: “Our continued focus on top line growth continues to be successful with the Heineken brand again performing well in the premium segment. We remain committed to investing in all of our brands and delivering impactful commercial programmes for our consumers and our customers”.
Discussing a theme that is close to the hearts of everyone in the drinks industry, Heineken called on the government to provide stimulus to the industry, particularly in the rural areas which have been most affected. “It continues to be tough to operate in this declining market, particularly in the context of the punitive excise tax increase imposed on our industry by the government," said Timoney. "These taxes are a tax on consumers, tourism and jobs.”
