Diageo releases a Q1 trading statement on Wednesday (17 October). Below, we take a look at the highs and lows for the company in the three months to the end of September.
- The quarter started, appropriately enough, with the dawn of a new era for Diageo. The UK-based company launched its first baijiu brand in the UK, hoping that the Chinese white spirit can eventually be regarded in Europe in the same way as other categories such as vodka and whisky.
- A survey released in August showed that Diageo brand Smirnoff vodka was still the top dog in the international spirits world. The annual IWSR chart also had Diageo’s Johnnie Walker whisky at number three and Captain Morgan rum in sixth.
- At the start of September, Diageo announced it had started looking for a site to host a new Scotch distillery. The company announced a big investment in Scotch back in June to capture growing demand in emerging markets.
- Some black fungus in Kentucky held the possibility of a fine for Diageo in September. Residents near the company’s Bourbon warehouses in the US blamed Diageo for the fungus’s accumulation on their houses, though Diageo said the build-up was natural and not harmful.
- The Jose Cuervo saga rolled on, with further speculation over the fate of the Mexican brand once Diageo’s distribution deal runs out next year. In a press conference, Diageo CEO Paul Walsh tried to quell the rumours, though it appears journalists aren’t listening. Others just wish the whole thing would go away.
- The quarter ended with a conclusion, of sorts, to another long-running episode. On 25 September Diageo confirmed it was in talks with India’s UB Group over taking a stake in United Spirits. The two ended previous talks in 2009, though commentators seemed sure that this time the outcome will be more positive for Diageo.