The impact of lost duty-free sales continued to hit sales of Irish Distillers' Jameson and Bushmills whiskey brands in the first half of the year, Pernod Ricard joint chief executive Mr Richard Burrows has said.
The loss of EU duty-free sales was the main reason why Jameson volumes grew only 2 per cent in the first half, and that when duty-free was excluded Jameson volumes actually grew 15 per cent, Mr Burrows said. The loss of duty-free sales and depressed conditions in Northern Ireland meant that Bushmills volumes fell 14 per cent.
Overall, Pernod Ricard has reported strong growth in the six months to the end of June, with sales up more than 25 per cent to €2.04 billion (£1.61 billion), while pre-tax profits were 7.7 per cent higher on €147 million (£116 million).
BWG, the group's grocery division, which has the Mace franchise in Leinster and Northern Ireland, the Spar franchise in the Republic and southern England, and a distribution division, increased its sales by 43 per cent. BWG operating profits were up almost 35 per cent to €19.3 million (£15.2 million).
Commenting on suggestions that Pernod might be forced to sell BWG if its joint bid with Diageo for Seagrams were successful, Mr Burrows said Pernod would not be forced to sell any assets to fund a Seagrams bid. However, he said that BWG was not part of Pernod's core spirits business.
