Abstract
Pernod Ricard is the second largest group on the wines and spirits' market. For the financial year 2007/2008 the Group generated €6.589 billion in sales (95 million cases) with a net profit of €840 million. Pernod Ricard manufactures and distributes a wide range of alcoholic beverages.
The Group was created in 1975 after the merger of two of the biggest French producers of alcohol and it took the name of Pernod Ricard SA. Some of the most famous brands of Pernod are the following: Ballantine's, Chivas Regal, Jameson, ABSOLUT, Beefeater, Havana Club and Ricard. There is a steady increase of the sales from one year to another as we can clearly see in the chart on the left.
Currently, Pernod Ricard is number 1 in Europe and Asia and number 2 on the American continent after his biggest rival, the British group Diageo. Since the end of 1990's the group has widely diversified its portfolio by making numerous acquisitions of other famous alcoholic brands. In 2001 it acquired a share in Seagram, in 2005 the Allied Domecq Company and in 2008 Pernod bought the Swedish company Vin&Spirits (Absolut vodka).
The alcoholic beverage industry is composed of three major types of beverages: spirits, wine and beer. But we will consider only the first two, as Pernod Ricard does not produce beer.
First of all the spirits market is the one with the highest growth during the recent years. The demand of the European, Asian and American consumers for whisky and vodka has grown up. Surprisingly, there is positive effect of the high prices on the demand which is explained by the strategies undertaken by the leading companies.
