2023 has been a big year for the Australian drinks trade, and with the immediacy of reporting it can be easy to forget some of the stories from earlier in the year. In the last six weeks alone a couple of the biggest were in the news; the Campari purchase of Courvoisier for $1.2 billion and the Suntory Oceania new $400 m production facility in Ipswich.
2023 was a huge year for the House of Arras, top and tailing our news cycle. The very first article of the year was: – House of Arras Museum Release Blanc de Blanc 20001 winning the the 2022 Champagne & Sparkling Wine World Championships Library Vintage release, and then reported by Drinks trade in November: Handpicked Wines completed the purchase of acclaimed Tasmanian sparkling House of Arras.
The year kicked off with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and NT Chief Minister Natasha Fyles announced sweeping alcohol restrictions in response to a surge in crime in Alice Springs and the excise rate for spirits closed in on $100 LAL (litre of alcohol) at the start of February.
Also in February, Vanguard Luxury Brands Founder, James France, announced: “I have come to the decision that it’s the right time for me to leave Vanguard.
“I have worked closely with the Vanguard and Lion teams to ensure a smooth transition. With this now complete, I am so happy to see that Vanguard is now standing strongly on its own two feet and ready to enter the next phase of its growth.”
Coles Group appointed a new CEO, Leah Weckert, who said: “we have a transformational strategy that, through the hard work of our 130,000 team members will deliver better experiences for customers and create value for shareholders. I am excited by the many opportunities and look forward to bringing them to fruition over the years ahead.”
The big news in March was Fever Tree’s announcement that they were leaving SouthTrade and setting up operations in Australia, including sales, distribution and marketing, ahead of commencing onshore production later in the year in partnership with remedy Drinks.
In April Richard Angove was honoured as a Keeper of the Quaich, and Coles Liquor Chief Executive Darren Blackhurst announced he would be stepping down.
At the start of May, Orlando Rodriguez commenced as the CCEP Australia Managing Director, and the Liquor Barons bi-annual conference kicked off in Rome.
May also produced upheaval with the collapse of Boozebud and Kaddy Group appointing voluntary administrators. May finished off with the arrival of Luiz Schmidt as Managing Director for Bacardi in Australia and New Zealand.
June saw the announcement of brewing giant Lion taking full ownership of Four Pillars Gin, purchasing the final 50% for a reported $50 million. Four Pillars was founded in 2013 by Stuart Gregor, Cameron McKenzie, and Matt Jones.
July brought the news of a new MD for Diageo Australia, Dan Hamilton, and Wine Australia reported on a weak global wine market affecting Australian wine exports by 10%.
Moët Hennessy made to key announcements in August; Ashley Powell returns to Australia taking up the role of Managing Director and Julien Marteau becomes the new marketing and Consumer Engagement Director. Both come to their roles with significant industry experience – Ashley Powell has been with the business for 16 years across Australia, New Zealand, Korea and Macau.
“For Julien and myself, it is an honour to join Moët Hennessy Australia and New Zealand as we continue to Craft Experiences for our team, customers and consumers,” said Powell.
September was dominated by the start of the news of the Endeavour Board “insiders club”, set to continue through to AGM later in the year, and October brought the sad news of highly regarded ALM CEO Chris Baddock’s retirement for health reasons.
Later in October, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced a breakthrough with China on wine tariffs, fuelling hope a change could be seen in the coming 12 months.
In November Brown Forman completed the sale of Finlandia to Coca-Cola, and in the most read story of the month Mighty Craft Chair Chris Malcolm ousted by shareholders, followed by Brown Family Wine Group appointing new CEO, Cameron MacFarlane.
Our vote for most entertaining piece of the year goes to British comedian Ricky Gervais who pleaded with the public to ignore their liver health and help make him millions of dollars by purchasing Dutch Farm Vodka from Ellers Farm Distillery. Unfortunately not available in Australia…yet.
The team at Drinks Trade wish you all the best for a safe and enjoyable new year’s eve, and we look forward to bringing you all the news in 2024.
Cheers…
