India’s Tilaknagar Industries has published sales figures for the month of December to back its claim that recently-purchased whisky Imperial Blue has got off to a “strong kick-off”.
In July, the Delhi-based Indian-Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) group agreed to buy the blended whisky from Pernod Ricard after the latter deemed the brand as surplus to its future requirements. The transaction, valued at INR3.44bn (US$385m) plus a deferred EUR28m (US$24.5m) payment, which will be due in four years, completed at the start of December.
In a statement released today (19 January), Tilaknagar said that the brand’s volumes in December totalled 1.8m nine-litre cases. The rest of the company’s portfolio booked total volumes of 1.3m cases last month.
“The first month of Imperial Blue sales post-acquisition reflects the strength of our execution capabilities and distribution network,” said group sales president Nishant Jain. “This milestone validates our strategic decision to acquire the brand and marks an important step in accelerating Tilaknagar Industries’ growth journey as a pan-India IMFL player.”
Imperial Blue sits alongside the likes of Mansion House and Courrier Napoleon brandies as well as Madiraa rum and Blue Lagoon gin in Tilaknagar’s spirits portfolio.
