Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) and Beam Suntory will part ways in H2 2025 after a 16-year partnership in Australia and New Zealand.
Since 2007 in Australia and 2015 in New Zealand, CCEP has been responsible for the sales and distribution of the Beam Suntory spirits portfolio and the manufacture, sales, and distribution of its Ready-to-Drink (RTD) portfolio.
The dissolution will come into effect when the contract between the two companies expires in Australia on 30 June 2025 and in New Zealand on 31 December 2025.
Peter West, Regional Managing Director for Australia, Pacific and Indonesia at CCEP, said the partnership between the companies had successfully driven strong growth in the spirits and RT categories in the region.
“We are incredibly proud of the results and capabilities we have built over the last 16 years. It’s been an exceptionally successful partnership, achieving rapid growth and driving strong category leadership, including recently becoming the MAT market leader in alcoholic RTD in Australia.
“Until the contracts end, it remains business as usual for our customers and the great service we deliver. We intend to continue maximising our business performance and the category performance for the remainder of the contracts,” he said.
Post break-up, CCEP plans to launch new “scalable offerings” using their understanding of the market in collaboration with brand partner The Coca-Cola Company to make the most of the explosive growth of alcoholic RTD beverages in Australia and New Zealand.
“Alcohol is a dynamic and important category, and when you look at the growth in alcoholic RTD beverages around the world, two of the most developed markets are Australia and New Zealand. CCEP’s experience in manufacturing alcoholic RTD beverages, our relationships servicing over 21,000 customers across the sector, and our deep consumer and customer knowledge all position CCEP well for a great future in alcohol,” said West.
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