Diageo Great Britain returned to growth in the six months to 31 December, reporting a net sales increase of 1%, with volume and value share growth for Guinness, net sales of Pimm’s nearly trebling and “signs of improved momentum” for Smirnoff.
Guinness performance was flat in a declining beer market, said Andrew Cowan, country director of Diageo Great Britain. He said Diageo continues to invest behind the brand, the new counter mount, and an on-trade quality accreditation scheme aiming to improve and highlight the quality of Guinness in 18,000 outlets.
He said growth in Pimm’s was driven by the good summer weather and the launch of Pimm’s Blackberry and Elderflower. Captain Morgan performed well, he said, aided by increased media activity from the new “Live like the Captain” campaign.
Net sales in Smirnoff declined by 2% but there are “signs of improved momentum” for the brand, also helped by the launch of a new signature serve, Smirnoff Apple Bite, and Smirnoff Gold.
Diageo’s reserve brand portfolio “performed strongly”, up 24%, driven by the luxury vodka brand, Cîroc and Talisker. “Successful product launches, including Cîroc Red Berry, Smirnoff Gold and Baileys Chocolat Luxe all contributed to outstanding growth in Innovation of 76%,” said Cowan.
He said marketing investment in Baileys increased as the brand launched its first Christmas TV commercial in five years, and the launch of Baileys Chocolat Luxe, which “dramatically outperformed expectations”.
“Strong performance on Johnnie Walker Red Label was delivered by the launch of a new multi-million pound campaign, ‘Where Flavour is King’,” stated Cowan.
Diageo this morning reported a slowing of net sales decline in Western Europe in the six months, which it said helped to absorb some of the challenges in emerging markets.
Western Europe net sales declined by 1%, an improvement on Q1. Overall net sales grew 1.8% in the first half, following growth of 2.2% in Q1.
