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Suntory Global Spirits

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Suntory Global Spirits
FormerlyBeam Inc.
Beam Suntory, Inc.
Company typePrivate[1]
IndustryDrink industry
PredecessorBeam Global Spirits & Wine
Founded2011; 13 years ago (2011) (as Beam Inc.)
Headquarters
New York City, New York
,
U.S.
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Greg Hughes
(President & CEO)
ProductsAlcoholic beverages
RevenueIncreaseUS$3.1 billion
Number of employees
6,000
ParentSuntory Holdings
Websitesuntoryglobalspirits.com

Suntory Global Spirits, formerly known as Beam Suntory, Inc., is the American subsidiary of the Japanese beverage company Suntory.[2] The company produces alcoholic beverages.

It is the third largest producer of distilled beverages worldwide, behind Diageo and Pernod Ricard. The company's principal products include Bourbon whiskey, Japanese whisky, Scotch whisky, Irish whiskey, Canadian whisky, tequila, vodka, cognac, rum, cordials, and ready-to-drink pre-mixed cocktails.

History

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James Beam began selling barrels of whiskey in 1795. By 1935, his family's business was formally established as the James B. Beam Distilling Company. Ten years later, the Chicago spirits merchant Harry Blum bought the company, and in 1968 sold it to American Brands, Inc.

In 1987, the James B. Beam Distilling Company purchased National Distillers and renamed itself the Jim Beam Brands Company. It was known as Jim Beam Brands Worldwide, Inc. by the time Fortune Brands purchased it in 2005.[3] Fortune Brands also acquired 20 brands from Allied Domecq in 2005, worth $5 billion,[4] which turned Fortune Brands into one of the largest producers of whiskey in the international market.[5]

In 2006, the company was renamed Beam Global Spirits & Wine, Inc. It was split from Fortune Brands to become an independent publicly traded company, Beam Inc., in 2011. Three years later, it was purchased by Suntory Holdings.[6]

As a distinct entity, the company was established as Beam Inc. on October 3, 2011, from the remainder of the Fortune Brands holding company after it sold and divested various other product lines to form a business focused exclusively on spirits and directly related products.[7]

In December 2011, Beam Inc. agreed to buy the only independent Irish whiskey distiller that existed at the time, the Cooley Distillery, for $95 million.[8] On April 23, 2012, Beam announced it would acquire the Pinnacle vodka and Calico Jack rum brands for $600 million.[9]

Previous Beam logo
Logo until May 2024

In January 2014, Suntory announced a deal to buy Beam Inc. for about $13.6 billion.[10] The acquisition was completed in April 2014, for a final cost of about $16 billion, when it was announced that Beam would become a subsidiary named "Beam Suntory."[11][dead link][12] The acquisition created a culture shock within the company, when Japanese managers implied that the American-made Jim Beam whisky could be improved with the kaizen Japanese technique of continual improvement.[5]

In November 2015, the company sold Harveys Bristol Cream sherry, as well as the brandy brands Fundador, Terry Centenario, and Tres Cepas, to Grupo Emperador Spain S.A., part of the Alliance Global Group for €275 million.[13][14][15][16]

In March 2016, the company announced it would move its headquarters to the Merchandise Mart building on Chicago's Near North Side;[17] Beam Suntory is subleasing 110,000 sq. ft on the 16th floor of the Mart from Motorola Mobility.[18]

The Chicago Cubs and Beam Suntory announced a long-term sponsorship deal in January 2017, making Beam the official spirits partner of the Cubs and Wrigley Field.[19]

In 2021, the Kamora and Leroux brands were sold to Minnesota-based Phillips Distilling.[20]

In 2024, Beam Suntory sold Courvoisier Cognac to Italy's Campari Group.[21]

In May 2024, Beam Suntory was re-branded as Suntory Global Spirits including the launch of a new website and visual identity.[22]

Brands

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Suntory Global Spirit beverage brands include:[23]

American whiskey:

Bourbon whiskey: Baker's, Basil Hayden's, Beam's Eight Star, Booker's, Jim Beam, Kessler, Knob Creek, Legent, Maker's Mark, Old Crow, Old Grand-Dad

Rye whiskey: Jim Beam Rye, Knob Creek Rye, Old Overholt

Blended whiskey: Beam's Eight Star, Kessler,

Canadian whisky: Alberta Premium, Canadian Club

Irish whiskey: Connemara, Kilbeggan, The Tyrconnell

Japanese whisky: Chita, Hakushu, Hibiki, Kakubin, Yamazaki

Scotch whisky:

Single malt Scotch: Ardmore, Auchentoshan, Bowmore, Glen Garioch, Laphroaig

Blended Scotch whisky: Teacher's Highland Cream

Spanish whisky: DYC whisky

Gin: Larios, Sipsmith, Roku

Liqueur: DeKuyper, Midori, Sourz

Rum: Cruzan

Tequila: El Tesoro de Don Felipe, Hornitos, Sauza, Tres Generaciones, 100 Años

Vodka: Effen, Haku, Pinnacle, Vox

Chūhai: Strong Zero

In addition to brands produced directly by the company and its subsidiaries, Suntory Global Spirit imports and markets some brands produced by others, such as the DeKuyper cordial and formerly the coffee liqueur Kamora. Beam facilities also produce spirits for brands owned by other companies, such as Calvert Extra blended whiskey, now owned by Luxco.

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In the 2003 Sofia Coppola movie Lost in Translation, actor Bill Murray goes to Japan to shoot a commercial for the Suntory whisky and drops the now famous slogan, "For relaxing times, make it Suntory time."[24]

FCPA Violation

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In October, 2020, Beam Suntory Inc. agreed to pay a criminal monetary penalty of $19,572,885 to resolve a United States department's investigation into violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). The resolution arose in part out of Beam's scheme to pay a bribe to an Indian government official in exchange for approval of a license to bottle a line of products that Beam sought to market and sell in India, and related internal controls and books and records violations, which included efforts by a then-member of Beam's legal department to affirmatively avoid uncovering information related to improper activities and practices by third-parties engaged by Beam in India that presented corruption risks. Beam entered into a three-year deferred prosecution agreement with the Criminal Division's Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois in connection with criminal information unsealed in the Northern District of Illinois charging Beam with one count of conspiracy to violate the anti-bribery, internal controls, and books and records provisions of the FCPA.[25]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Wohl, Jessica Wohl, By Jessica. "Beam Suntory, now private, focuses on 'long game'". chicagotribune.com.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ "SUNTORY HOLDINGS COMPLETES ACQUISITION OF BEAM INC". Suntory Holdings Limited. Retrieved 2021-04-03.
  3. ^ "Jim Beam parent to buy Maker's Mark owner". Louisville Business First. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  4. ^ "Beam Suntory | Scotch Whisky". scotchwhisky.com. Retrieved 2019-06-19.
  5. ^ a b Kana Inagaki (14 June 2016). "Beam Suntory: A volatile Japanese-US blend". Ft.com. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  6. ^ "History". (slideshow) Beam Suntory. Archived from the original on July 7, 2017. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  7. ^ "Beam Inc. Begins Life as a Pure-Play Spirits Industry Leader". TheStreet.com. October 4, 2011. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  8. ^ (December 16, 2011). "Cooley Distillery Sold for $95M". Irish Examiner. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  9. ^ "Beam buys Pinnacle Vodka and Calico Jack rum from White Rock". USA Today. Associated Press. April 23, 2012. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  10. ^ Horovitz, Bruce (January 13, 2014). "Suntory buys spirits maker Beam for $13.6B". USA Today.
  11. ^ Beam Suntory completes acquisition of Beam Inc, Suntory.com, 30 April 2014.
  12. ^ Pfanner, Eric (May 15, 2014). "Suntory Still has M&A Thirst". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved March 1, 2016.
  13. ^ Arceo-Dumlao, Tina (December 1, 2015). "Andrew Tan's Emperador buys Spain's Fundador". Philippine Daily Inquirer.
  14. ^ Eads, Lauren (November 30, 2015). "Beam Suntory Sells Sherry and Brandy Business for €275 million". The Drinks Business. London, England: Union Press Ltd. Archived from the original on December 12, 2015.
  15. ^ "Beam Suntory vende por 275 millones sus negocios de brandy y jerez en España al grupo dueño de Torre Espacio". Eleconomista.es (in Spanish). 30 November 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  16. ^ "UPDATE 1-Philippines' group to buy Beam Suntory brands for 275 mln euros". Reuters.com. 30 November 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  17. ^ Frost, Peter (February 29, 2016). "Beam Suntory moving HQ to Merchandise Mart". Crain's Chicago Business.
  18. ^ Beam Suntory opens Merchandise Mart headquarters Chicago Tribune December 5, 2016
  19. ^ Cubs strike long-term sponsorship deal with Beam Suntory Chicago Tribune January 12, 2017
  20. ^ Carruthers, Nicola (2021-11-02). "Phillips Distilling buys liqueur brands from Beam Suntory". The Spirits Business. Retrieved 2022-02-03.
  21. ^ Carruthers, Nicola (2024-05-01). "Campari completes Courvoisier purchase". The Spirits Business. Retrieved 2024-05-01.
  22. ^ Hurt, Jeanette. "Beam Suntory Rebrands As Suntory Global Spirits". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-05-01.
  23. ^ "Brands Page". Beamsuntory. Retrieved 2023-11-04.
  24. ^ John Kell (6 April 2015). "Suntory hopes it's now 'Suntory time' in America". Fortune.com. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  25. ^ "Beam Suntory Inc. Agrees to Pay over $19 Million to Resolve Criminal Foreign Bribery Case". 27 October 2020.
[edit]
  • Media related to Beam Suntory at Wikimedia Commons
  • Official website
    • Historical business data for Beam Suntory Inc.:
    • SEC filings
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