The world’s largest brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev) is looking to expand in Asia’s key markets, including Vietnam, CNBC reported.
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″(AB InBev) is still not among the top 10 players in the Southeast Asian region in 2018 due to the dominance of local beer players,” Neubronner was quoted as saying. “In order to grow further, the company needs to make a breakthrough in Southeast Asia countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines.”
However, Budweiser-maker is facing challenges as some players have already done so by acquiring domestic brands in these markets.
Thai Beverage, for instance, bought over Vietnam’s largest beer company Sabeco (Saigon Beer Alcohol Beverage Corp) in a US$4.8 billion deal in 2017. ”(That) immediately catapulted Thai Beverage to become the number one beer player by volume in Southeast Asia,” said Neubronner.
Across Asia-Pacific, the company, which is listed in Singapore, ranked sixth in 2018 in terms of market share at 3.9%, according to Euromonitor.
“Many leading beer players in Southeast Asia are local players with strong local knowledge and distribution networks, so acquisitions of local beer companies is possible if AB InBev wishes to increase its market share in the region and tap on the expertise from established local players,” Neubronner said.
