Carlton & United Breweries (CUB) and Belgian-based Interbrew, the world’s second largest brewing company, have signed a new 10-year contract which gives CUB the right to brew, distribute and market the premium international brand Stella Artois in Australia.

The renewal of this agreement follows the success of Stella Artois in the Australian beer market in recent years; the brand has grown by more than 40 per cent over the past two years. In Australia, Stella Artois is in the top 10 premium import brands by volume and is one of the fastest growing imported premium beers in the country.

Announcing the new contract, CUB Managing Director Mr Trevor O’Hoy said, “This long term commitment confirms the confidence Interbrew has in CUB and the commitment both parties share for the future growth of Stella Artois in Australia.”

Mr O’Hoy noted that, within the total Australian beer market, the premium segment has shown phenomenal growth over the past five years. Growing at approximately 15 pre cent each year by volume, premium beers now account for almost 7 per cent of the total beer market. CUB’s combined domestic and imported premium beer portfolio accounts for almost 70 per cent* of this growing market.

“CUB is ideally positioned to benefit from this growth,” said Mr O’Hoy. “We are Australia’s leading importer and distributor of international premium beer brands covering a portfolio of strong brands. This new arrangement clearly supports our growth strategy for premium brands. With Stella Artois we have one of the most highly regarded and most successful premium lagers in the world,” Mr O’Hoy said.

“Stella Artois’ reputation, founded on its Belgian heritage and great premium qualities, is attracting an increasing following of premium beer aficionados in Australia,” he said.

In Australia, CUB has held the contract to oversee the Stella Artois brand since 1997. The growth of Stella Artois has also been prompted by the success of the Belgian Beer Cafés across Australia. Interbrew is the parent partner in all Belgian Beer Café developments around the world. The Belgian Beer Café concept was established in Brussels in 1998 and now has over 40 stylish brasseries operating in 13 countries.

These innovative and typically Belgian-style bars, with their strong focus on serving draught beers, have been a popular platform on which to raise awareness and trial of Stella Artois. There are four Belgian Beer Cafés in Australia: Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth. Australian Leisure & Hospitality (ALH), a division of CUB, owns the Adelaide and Perth venues.

“Given the proven attraction of the Stella Artois brand and CUB’s strengths in brewing, marketing and distribution, we are confident that Stella Artois will continue deliver significant growth in Australia,” Mr O’Hoy said.

* Source: A C Nielsen (69%)

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