Heineken acquires Hibu brewery

Through its subsidiary Diberit Import, Heineken has completed its first acquisition in Italy with the purchase of the Brianza-based craft brewery Hibu, which has a portfolio of more than 30 labels.

The operation reflects the growing trend amongst Italian consumers for special brews and a clear preference for natural beverages over soft drinks. In the first 8 months of 2017, Iri has reported year-on-year growth in beer segment revenues of 7.7% by volume and 7.2% by value to €1.5 billion (in contrast to the decline in sales of alcohol-free and flavoured beers).

Over the same period, Heineken posted 11% growth to reach €315 million revenues through major retail outlets (a 37.3% share by value), followed by Asahi-Peroni (16% share) which saw 11% growth to €135 million, AbInbev (14.5%) up 9.7% to €123 million, Carlsberg (9.4%) +10% and Bavaria (4.2%) +7.9%.

However, Heineken ranks second in the special brew segment with a 20% share behind AB InBev with 31%.

Heineken Italia owns 7 companies and posted 2016 revenues of €1.043 billion), and during the year has invested more than €20 million out of the €65 billion planned for the three-year period 2015-2017.