Budweiser Budvar Brewery increased its beer sales as well as takings last year

In 2012, Budweiser Budvar, N.C. sold a total of 1,340,000 hectolitres of beer, which is a year-on-year increase of nearly 2%. This represents a better result than the one achieved by the Czech brewing industry last year; according to the current estimate of the Czech Brewers and Maltsters’ Association the rise of Czech beer production amounted to about 1.5 %. The brewery’s flagship product, Budweiser Budvar Premium lager, primarily participated in the sales increase, as its sales increased nearly by 5 %. Furthermore, the sales of Pardál Echt Pale Lager also significantly grew, specifically by 19%. In 2012, the brewery launched the sales of Pardál Echt Pale Yeast Lager and Somersby apple cider on the local market, implemented a lot of innovative consumer packaging, carried out cardinal changes in its marketing communication and finally set up a subsidiary in Slovakia.  

“We did well both at home and abroad,” sums up the results Budweiser Budvar’s business manager Robert Chrt. “Last year we achieved a new historical record in beer export, stabilising our position of Czech No. 2 in export,”  says Robert Chrt. A total of 657,000 hectolitres of Budvar beer headed for customers in 58 countries, which is the most in the brewery’s 117 years long history. “Western Europe remains the key territory for us. Though the beer consumption has been falling there in the long term, our sales have been continually rising. For instance, last year we sold the most beer in the history in Germany, which is our most important export country,” adds Robert Chrt. In the period of 2006 – 2012, Budweiser Budvar Brewery increased the export by 18 %. Domestic sales of the beer brands of Budweiser Budvar and Pardál increased by more than 2 % in 2012.

The brewery’s total receipts for beer increased by about CZK 100 million last year (a year-on-year increase), reaching a volume of CZK 2,100 million.