Earlier today, Brown-Forman posted its H1 and Q2 results. Here, just-drinks takes a closer look at the company’s performance by region and brand in the six months to the end of October.
Regions
Brown-Forman’s emerging markets generated a rise in reported sales in the six months to the end of October of 2%. The top performers were Turkey, Brazil, Indonesia, Ukraine, and sub-Saharan Africa, which all generated double-digit growth. Mexico‘s growth was described as “modest”, while Poland struggled in the half-year following the implementation of a tax increase in January.
In the US, reported sales were up by 6%, as “second quarter takeaway trends for the company continued to accelerate and inventories began to re-balance”. Both the Jack Daniel’s and Casa Herradura portfolios were flagged as performing well, the latter generating a 7% reported sales rise, the latter up “strong double-digit”, in underlying terms.
Net sales in Brown-Forman’s developed markets outside the US “improved significantly” in Q2, meaning that reported sales in the half-year rose by 1%. The UK posted high single-digit growth, but Germany saw H1 sales fall, due to “continued variability in trade purchasing patterns”. France was up by double digits, with combined sales in Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland growing similarly. Italy and Spain struggled, with both reporting dipping sales.
Underlying sales in Australia were down “slightly” in the half-year, with Japan coming in flat as it cycled tough previous-year comparisons.
Sales in Global Travel Retail were up by high single-digits, thanks to continuing premiumisation trends, the company said.
Brands
The Jack Daniel’s stable saw sales rise by 7% in underlying terms in H1. The star performer was the Tennessee Honey expression, which leapt by 32% year-on-year. This growth was fuelled by expansion into new markets and “continued growth in established markets”.
The company’s high-end whiskey brands, including Woodford Reserve and Woodford Reserve Double Oaked, Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel, Gentleman Jack, Jack Daniel’s Sinatra Select, Jack Daniel’s No. 27 Gold, and Collingwood saw their combined sales rise by double digits in underlying terms. Old Forester was also up by double digits, with the Woodford Reserve brand increasing sales by a third.
Finlandia struggled in the six-month period, with the vodka portfolio’s sales falling by 6%. The excise rise in Poland was blamed for the poor performance.
The Herradura Tequila brand was up by double digits, thanks to “large gains” in the US and Mexico. While El Jimador performed well in the US, the brand saw volumes slip in Mexico as a recent price rise hit numbers.
The flavoured whiskey sub-category continues to hurt Southern Comfort: The liqueur brand saw sales fall by 4%.
Finally, Sonoma-Cutrer and Korbel both posted high single-digit increases in half-year sales.
