Bacardi Ltd. has agreed to acquire Grey Goose vodka, filling a major gap in the company’s portfolio and fulfilling a long-stated goal to become a serious player in the vodka category.
Terms of the deal between Bacardi and Sidney Frank Importing Co. were not disclosed, however one news source estimated the price to be about $2 billion.
“Grey Goose is a top selling premium vodka brand in the United States,” said Javier Ferran, president and CEO of Bacardi, in a statement. “It is a perfect fit with the Bacardi portfolio of premium brands and fills a significant category gap.”
The Grey Goose brand will be managed by Bacardi U.S.A. in Miami.
Bacardi, a privately-held company, produces and markets such brands as Bacardi rum, Martini and Rossi vermouth, Dewar’s scotch whisky and Bombay Sapphire gin.
Grey Goose is distilled and bottled in Cognac, France and is available in Original, L’Orange, Le Citron and La Vanille. Industry sources said that Grey Goose had sales of 275,000 cases in 2000, soaring to 1.4 million in 2003.
Bacardi launched Turi in 2002, a superpremium vodka, but has sold only about 20,000 cases in an already crowded category.
The sale is expected to be completed in the next few months.
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