Coopers brewery has again reported rising volumes and sales in the 12 months to December despite the declining beer market.
The South Australian beer company sold a record 80.7 million litres, an increase of 4.4 per cent on last year, boosted by strong sales of Coopers Original Pale Ale and Mild Ale 3.5%.
Coopers Original Pale Ale sales rose 3.2 per cent during the year, and the company said it now accounts for 52 per cent of Coopers’ total beer sales.
Mild Ale 3.5% sales rose 13.7 per cent during 2015 and is now Coopers’ third largest product by volume behind Sparkling Ale, which saw growth of 1.8 per cent for the year. Coopers Stout sales rose by 8 per cent for the year.
Managing director, Dr Tim Cooper, said the result came despite the continued overall fall in beer consumption in Australia.
“While Australia’s total beer consumption has fallen almost 10 per cnt in the past six years, despite a growing population, Coopers’ sales have been on a solid growth trajectory for the past 22 years,” he said. “The latest results mean Coopers now has five per cent of the total Australian market."
The eastern states continue to be Coopers’ major area of growth, with total sales in Victoria, NSW and Queensland growing by 7.4 per cent during 2015, while Western Australian sales grew 5.5 per cent.
In South Australia, a far more mature market, sales remained steady and now represent more than 24 per cent of total volume sold, according to Cooper.
Coopers Brewery recently appointed a new sales manager, Floyd O’Toole, in the Northern Territory to help manage ongoing growth in the top end.
Dr Cooper said sales had also been boosted by Coopers’ international beer portfolio, led by sales of Sapporo, which grew by 50 per cent. Carlsberg and Kronenbourg products rose seven per cent during the year, and sales of Thatchers Gold cider rose 37 per cent during the 2015 calendar year.
Coopers is looking forward to achieving 23 years of growth by the end of the current financial year, Cooper said.
