Beam Inc. is a leading premium spirits company that makes and sells branded
distilled spirits products in major markets worldwide. Our principal products
include bourbon whiskey, Scotch whisky, Canadian whisky, tequila, cognac, rum,
cordials, and ready-to-drink pre-mixed cocktails. Our portfolio includes several
of the world’s top premium spirits brands and some of the industry’s
fastest growing innovations.
Our portfolio consists of brands we identify as Power Brands, Rising Stars,
Local Jewels and Value Creators. The Power Brands are our core brand equities,
with global reach in premium categories and large annual sales volume. Rising
Stars are smaller premium brands in priority markets that we believe have excellent
growth profiles that receive substantial brand investment to drive expansion.
Brands identified as Local Jewels act as Power Brands in local markets. Value
Creators include a variety of brands competing across multiple categories. Our
Power Brands and Rising Stars, which are the focus of our brand investment,
are listed below.
Power Brands:
Jim Beam Bourbon, Maker’s Mark Bourbon, Sauza Tequila, Courvoisier Cognac,
Canadian Club Whisky and Teacher’s Scotch
Rising Stars:
Laphroaig Scotch, Knob Creek Bourbon, Basil Hayden’s Bourbon, Kilbeggan
Irish Whiskey, Cruzan Rum, Hornitos Tequila, EFFEN Vodka, Pucker Vodka, Skinnygirl
Cocktails, and Sourz Liqueurs
The principal markets for our spirits products are North America, Australia
and Europe, and we continue to invest in emerging markets such as India, Brazil,
Russia, Central Europe, Asia, and other geographies. We operate our business
on the basis of geographical regions, consisting of North America, Europe/Middle
East/Africa (EMEA), and Asia-Pacific/South America (APSA).
Our spirits products are primarily sold through direct sales forces to distributors.
We also sell spirits products through joint ventures with The Edrington Group
Ltd., as well as through third-party distributors and global or regional duty
free customers.
Customers and Distributors
Our spirits products are primarily sold through direct sales forces to distributors.
In addition, we sell spirits products through our joint ventures with The Edrington
Group and global or regional duty free customers. We also sell our products
through governmental liquor authorities in jurisdictions where aspects of the
purchase and distribution of alcoholic beverages are under government control.
Examples of such authorities are the eighteen “control” states (and
one county) in the United States and the Liquor Control Boards in Canada.
Competition
The global distilled spirits industry is very competitive. Based on volume information
from independent industry statistical sources, we are the fourth largest premium
spirits company in the world (the largest U.S. based) as well as the second
largest in the U.S. We compete on the basis of product quality, brand image,
price, service and innovation in response to consumer preferences. While the
industry is highly fragmented, major competitors include Brown-Forman Corporation,
Diageo PLC, Pernod Ricard S.A., Bacardi Limited, Davide Campari Milano-S.p.A.,
Rémy Cointreau S.A., and Constellation Brands, Inc.
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