Chapter 1305 – Beverage Empire
Feng Yu’s decision to invest in Budweiser is not a rash decision. Budweiser is the biggest brewery in North America and is currently the no. 1 brewery globally. But beer prices still have not risen, and the profits are not as high as before his rebirth.
In Feng Yu’s previous life, AB InBev is the world’s beer market leader. They own 20% of the global market share, and their profits reached 40%!
That means they had increased the whole beer industry’s profits, which is the advantage of being a market leader. Other breweries will not oppose them as no one will reject higher profits.
Most importantly, Budweiser owns a powerful sales distribution network in the West. They might be a brewery, but they are also one of the world’s top consumer products companies.
Their company focuses on the consumers and profits from its sales. Budweiser is also one of the giants in the beverage industry. Although they cannot be compared to Coca-Cola and Pepsi, they are still top beverage companies.
The beverage alliance had reached a plateau, and Feng Yu is unhappy about it. They still have not opened up the market entirely, and they should be growing.
There is still room for growth in the domestic market. The Beverage Alliance had taken over the cities, but they can still expand into the villages. Who says villagers don’t like to drink beverages? Who says villagers must be poor?
Other than the overseas supermarket chains’ channel opened up by Feng Yu initially, the Beverage Alliance is not successful in opening up new channels.
Budweiser is experienced in alcohol and beverages sales and has good sales channels. Once Feng Yu invest in Budweiser successfully, he can open up a better sales channel for the Beverage Alliance.
Budweiser is currently the top beer brand in the world. Their parent company, Anheuser-Busch, owns the second amusement park in the US and America’s biggest cold-beer chain. They are also the second-biggest producer of cans in North America.
Canned drinks are popular in amusement parks, and canned drinks do not only include beer. There are other beverages available.
In Feng Yu’s previous life, Anheuser-Busch was acquired by InBev. But why can’t Feng Yu acquire this company in this life? With Budweiser’s technologies and brand, and better sales network and market, they might be the ones who acquire InBev instead.
Feng Yu would be overjoyed if he can acquire the world’s top beer brand. A smaller company can acquire a bigger company.
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“Manager Feng, did Budweiser agree to let you invest?” Zhong Qingxian asked excitedly.
Lehaha and Jianlibao will benefit greatly if Feng Yu can get a stake in Budweiser. Suppose they can get Budweiser’s sales channels and advanced sales and management experiences. In that case, Lehaha can easily become Asia’s top beverage producer.
“If Budweiser’s shareholders are not stupid, they will agree to let me invest. The pros outweigh the cons. Also, they are not suffering any losses from my offer. Once we cooperate with Heineken or Carlsberg, Budweiser will lose the Chinese market completely. They might even lose the whole Asia market. They cannot afford these losses.”
More importantly, Feng Yu is not asking for a lot of shares. 10% shares will not affect the company’s operation. But he will get a place on the Board of Directors.
“Manager Feng, I remember you do not like foreign brands to enter the Chinese market. Why do you want to enter into a cooperation with Budweiser this time? Is it because of our Lehaha and Jianlibao?” Zhong Qingxian is puzzled.
“This is only temporary cooperation, and it is beneficial to us. Also, with Budweiser’s technologies, Bing City Beer can improve its quality. But it will not be easy for Budweiser to do well in China. Don’t forget that people from different countries have different tastebuds. Budweiser can do well in North America, but Heineken and Carlsberg are selling better than them in Europe. Even in China, other foreign brands are selling better.”
“Budweiser’s biggest competitors are Carlsberg and Heineken. Our Bing City Beer and other traditional breweries will not be affected much. They are targeting the high-end market, and other breweries are targeting other segments. We can target the high-end market, but Budweiser doesn’t know how to produce ordinary beer.”
Zhong Qingxian’s eyes brighten up. That’s right. Although Budweiser’s sales will increase after entering into a cooperation with Bing City Beer, both companies’ competitors are different. Bing City Beer can also enter into Budweiser’s market, but Budweiser cannot do the same to Bing City Beer.
“There are several good breweries in Malaysia, Korea, and Japan, and we can use Budweiser’s brand to start joint ventures with them. Once all these breweries fall into our hands, our market share will be massive. We can also make use of these joint ventures to acquire Budweiser’s shares. If Budweiser becomes one of our subsidiaries in the future, we can earn those foreigners’ money.”
Zhong Qingxian did not expect Feng Yu wants to acquire Budweiser. That is the no. 1 brewery in the world. But Budweiser’s market value is not high, and Feng Yu can easily afford to do this.
But Zhong Qingxian felt it would not be easy to acquire Budweiser.
“Manager Feng, is it possible?”
“It will be impossible if you don’t even dare to think about it. I will increase my Budweiser’s shares slowly, and we will gain control over them when I become the major shareholder!”
Even if Feng Yu cannot acquire Budweiser, he can still buy the shares from other shareholders. Budweiser’s share prices are not high currently, and many shareholders will agree if he increases his offer slightly.
The most difficult part is Budweiser’s parent company, Anheuser-Busch.
It will be boring without some difficulties. Furthermore, Feng Yu’s assets will increase if one of his internet companies got listed in the future. If two or three of his companies got listed, Feng Yu would have the funds to acquire Anheuser-Busch easily!
Anheuser-Busch, including Budweiser, is only worth around 20 billion USD currently.
“Manager Feng, from what you mentioned, it seems Bing City Beer will benefit greatly from this deal.” Zhong Qingxian frowned.
“That’s why I asked you to acquire other breweries. After we acquired them, we can merge with Bing City Beer to get more shares.”
Feng Yu will not help Bing City Beer for free. If they want to expand, they must acquire other breweries. Tai Hua Holdings can increase its Bing City Beer’s shares through mergers.
Tai Hua Holdings also owns Beidacang’s shares, and their influence over Bing City Beer will increase.
Feng Yu’s beverage empire dream is not too far.