Carlsberg Brewery and Asahi Group to stop distribution of the Asahi brand in MY

Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia and Asahi Group have mutually agreed to not renew the distribution of the Asahi brand in Malaysia.

The exclusive distribution of the brand will expire on 31 December 2023, according to Carlsberg Malaysia in a statement. The brewery also noted that the renewal of the Asahi agreement is not expected to have any material financial impact to CBMB once the distribution ends.

Stefano Clini, the managing director of CBMB shared that the parting is an amicable one, after having the sole rights to locally manufacture, sell and distribute the brand for more than a decade.

“Having said that, the group will remain the exclusive distributor of Asahi for 2023 and we will continue to support the brand for the rest of this year,” Clini added. He went on to explain that following this development, Carlsberg will continue to drive its premiumisation strategy while simultaneously exploring opportunities to expand its premium portfolio to “deliver the best drinking experience to [its] Malaysian consumers”.

A+M has reached out for more information.

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Its efforts to do seem to be paying off, as Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia recently reported a net profit of RM317.0 million this year, on the back of a revenue of RM2.4 billion, for the financial year that ended on 31 December 2022.

On the fourth quarter which ended 31 December 2022 (Q4FY22), the group registered a revenue growth of 13.0% to RM612.8 million, while net profit fell by 15.8% to RM60.1 million versus the corresponding quarter in 2021.

These lower earnings were mainly attributed to one-off expenses pertaining to the disposal of the old bottling line, the prosperity tax in Malaysia, and a higher marketing spend given the earlier timing of the 2023 Chinese New Year (CNY), said the group.

Clini added that he foresees 2023 to be another challenging year due to the looming global recession and rising inflation which are bound to detrimentally impact consumer sentiment. However, the company is confident that its new strategy, SAIL’27, will continue to guide it in detail.

In 2021, Carlsberg announced its five-year strategy SAIL’27 which is an evolution of SAIL’22. SAIL’27 is built around its purpose of brewing for a better today and tomorrow, to realise the company’s ambition of “being the most successful, professional and attractive brewer”.

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