Mahou San Miguel establishes Indian beer subsidiary
Arian is a family-owned firm in which it already held a 50% stake through a joint-venture agreement reached in 2012.
“These have been two very exciting years during which together with our partners we have learned a great deal about the Indian market and consumers,” said Alberto Rodríguez-Toquero, managing director of Mahou San Miguel.
“We now have the knowledge and experience to take a further step and assume full control of the development of our business in India. Overseas operations will be our main growth lever over the coming years,” he added.
According to a statement, Mahou San Miguel has more than 60 professionals in place in India, along with a brewer located in Bhiwadi (Rajasthan), with an output capacity of 250,000 hectolitres per year.
The company is present in five states around the country through its local brand, Dare Devil, while flagship brands Mahou and Andalucian craft beer Alhambra Reserva 1925 will shortly be added to the company´s portfolio there.
Erik D'Auchamp, previously the company's director of international marketing, will be based in New Delhi as the new managing director of Arian Breweries & Distilleries.
Per capita consumption of beer in India is currently among the lowest in the world (1.5 litres per year), although as a whole the market is already half the size of the beer market in Spain, where consumption stands at 47.5 litres per capita.
The company said that it expected to grow over 11% over the next three years on the back of a young and growing population of some 1.2bn that is increasingly taking to beer.
