Mergers & Acquisitions in the Global Drinks Industry

The large-scale mergers and acquisitions that have taken place in the global drinks industry within the past ten years have consolidated the ownership of some of the worldÆs most significant wine and spirit brands into the hands of a few large companies. This is partly the result of increased globalization in the industry, and partly due to the usual strategy of companies seeking to continue delivering increasing returns to their shareholders as their corporations mature and their growth slows (Arno). However, in spite of the substantial consolidation that has already taken place, merger and acquisition activity in the global wine market is by no means over. A growing number of players want to become global wine producers and capitalize on the increasing demand for wine in developed and emerging markets (Cazin).

Perhaps the most telling evidence of the trend is the merger of MKF Group LLP, the U.S.-based wine business advisors and International Wine Consultants PTY, Ltd, the wine industry merchant bank. This merger was not effected to produce a new wine company, however, but the worldÆs first global wine investment bank, Global Wine Partners (GWP), LLC (Talbert 1). Vic Motto, Chairman and CEO of GWP, explains why a global wine investment bank is needed in todayÆs market. ôThe wine business is growing twice as fast as the general economy,ö he begins, then goes on to explain:

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r choice are variable, depending not only on the efforts of the wine company to preserve them but also on the stores where they will be sold. Conclusion and Personal Commentary Mergers and acquisitions have become a substantial part of the wine industryÆs success in recent years, as evidenced by the creation of the worldÆs first global wine investment bank. This consolidation has affected the way lines are put together, wines are marketed, and wine consumers purchase their goods: There's no question that a seismic shift is occurring at the retail and wholesale level. The number of alcoholic beverage wholesalers in the U.S. has decreased by 75 percent since the 1960s. At the retail level, wine sales are increasingly shifting to supermarkets, wholesale clubs, and the like. For instance, Robert Mondavi now sells 10 percent of its wine in unit terms through Costco (Salls). One of the issues raised by global consolidation is its effect on product innovation and consumer choice. While theoretically, two merging companies can offer a more diverse line than either of them alone, this is not always the practical result. With the move to marketing wines in supermarkets and discount stores like Costco and Wal-Mart, in those venues the sel
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Wine Companies, Design Packaging, Costco Wal-Mart, Re-packaging Re-packaging, Business Monthly, Industry Introduction, Fisher Conclusion, Nordlund Nordlund, APM Inc, CEO GWP,

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Approximate Word count = 4136
Approximate Pages = 17 (250 words per page)

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