Australia’s Coopers breweries sees sales rise during lockdown
Australia | Adelaide-based Coopers brewery is crediting a consumer trend towards local beer brands, and its shrewd move to more canned products, for a 3.9 percent rise in volume sales in its 2019-20 financial year, ended 30 June.
Total beer sales rose to 798,000 hl, up from 768,000 hl the year before, but still down from its record high of 840,000 hl in 2017.
Profit-wise, Coopers reported earnings before tax of AUD 34.3 million (USD 25 million), similar to the level recorded in the 2018 financial year, and a strong recovery from the AUD 23.1 million reported in 2019.
Brewing and drinking at home
Homebrewers also did their bit to boost Coopers’ bottom line during the covid-19 lockdown. DIY beer concentrate sales rose 6 percent to 2,757 tonnes, from 2,600 tonnes last year.
Coopers own maltings raised its production 30 percent to 57,900 tonnes, reflecting a growing demand across Asia for high-quality malt. Malt now represents about 10 percent of Coopers’ revenue, providing a boost for the company since opening its new maltings in Adelaide in November 2017.
Buy local
However, with consumers buying more local beers during the coronavirus crisis, international beer brands are believed to have suffered in sales this year. Coopers is no exception. Its international beer brands, including Carlsberg, Kronenbourg and Sapporo, fell 2.5 percent during the financial year, while keg sales fell 24.4 percent following the first national lockdown, which kept patrons away from pubs for almost all of the quarter ended June.
“In a time of such uncertainty, Australian beer drinkers appear to be choosing brands they feel they can trust,” Dr Tim Cooper, Managing Director, commented. “To have emerged in an overall strong position is testament to the loyalty of beer drinkers, the sheer resilience of hoteliers and publicans and the determination of our team at Coopers Brewery. “We’re looking to the year ahead with cautious optimism.”
Dividend cut
Its caution is being reflected in a reduction in dividends. Coopers will pay AUD 12 (USD 8.70) per share, down from AUD 13 last year. It is the first time Coopers has declared a reduced dividend since 1994 and this shows its board’s conservative position in times of uncertainty.
Still, Australia’s largest family-owned brewery managed to pay down about AUD 20.7 million in debt during the year.
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