Campari, an Italian company known worldwide for its aperitif, has announced its intention to acquire Forty Creek Distillery Ltd, the Canadian leader in the production of whiskey.
This deal will surely provide Campari with entry into the foreign market, as well as significantly expand its product range. According to experts, the Italian company will have to shell out as much as 120 million euros, despite the fact that Campari is currently experiencing some financial difficulties.
Campari Executive Director Bob Kunze-Concewist said in an official statement: “The acquisition of FCD will allow us to build special capabilities in the markets of North America, strengthen our position in Canada, and accelerate our development in the US market.” Meanwhile, the founder Forty Creek Distillery John Hall noted:
“My dream of giving our customers around the world whiskey has finally come true.”
The Italian company also noted that the purchase price of FCD, whose main products are vodka, brandy, rum and liquors, as well as Forty Creek Whiskey, exceeded the initial estimates by 14.5 times. By the end of March 2013, the Canadian company had earned $ 34.2 million, and its profit by the end of this fiscal year is likely to increase by 15.6 percent to 39.5 million. Campari officials also revealed that the transaction price includes a distillery, production equipment, as well as a company center in Canada.
- We recommend reading: what to drink Campari
Campari Foundation History
Campari was founded in 1860 by representatives of the Campari family, who directly had a hand in the invention of the famous bitter, as well as a number of other alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Later, the Italian company managed to acquire several more brands, such as Cinsano, Aperol, Wild Turkey, Carolans and others. Campari today is a completely successful beverage producer that is popular not only in Europe but also in Russia. So, for example, over the past year, company sales in the Russian Federation increased by more than 36 percent compared to 2012.
Thus, Campari's total revenue in 2013 amounted to 1.5 billion euros, while organic growth reached 1.7 percent.
The most popular product of the Italian company is, of course, the bitter of the same name, which was invented in the first year of Campari's existence. One of the owners of the company, Gaspar Campari (Gaspar Campari) liked to experiment, mixing different types of alcohol. It was he who managed to create this bright scarlet citrus-herbal tincture with a bitter aftertaste, which today is often a component of many cocktails.
In fact, the manufacturer of this amazing drink designates bitter as an aperitif, which must be consumed before meals to increase appetite and improve digestion, however, many bartenders and experts say that Campari can be attributed to vermouth.
The exact recipe for bitter is kept in strict confidence by the manufacturer, however, it is known that the composition of the liquor includes more than 20 types of herbs, fruits and spices, and the bitter taste provides a special sort of orange.
