Coopers pulls in higher sales but profits fall

Coopers Brewery has boosted its beer sales by 8 per cent in the 2013-14 financial year, but its profits have fallen due to a consumer shift to bottles in favour of keg beer.

The company says beer sales shifting from kegs to less profitable packaged beer formats, and costs associated with the installation of a second bottling line, led to a 9.1 per cent fall in profit from $30.8 million to $28.0 million.

Coopers managing director, Dr Tim Cooper, said total bulk or kegged beer sales fell 1.5 per cent during the year, while packaged beer sales were up 10.3 per cent.

“Total beer sales in 2013-14 grew 8.1 per cent to 75.3 million litres, continuing the steady growth Coopers has enjoyed since 1994.

“Turnover for the year reached a record $231 million, 6.9 per cent better than the $216 million in 2012-13,” he said.

Overall, Coopers now represents just under five per cent of the total Australian beer volume, according to Cooper, however, total Australian sales for 2013-14 fell about 1 per cent, the fifth year in a row total volume has fallen.

Cooper said the company's sales in South Australia fell 0.8 per cent during the year, but it remained Coopers’ largest market accounting for 26.8 per cent of total beer sales. Sales in NSW grew 8.2 per cent in the same period and it now accounts for 26.0 per cent of Coopers’ volume.

Exports, which account for 2.4 per cent of total sales, were up 16.6 per cent.

Sales on the international beers Coopers distributes such as Sapporo, Carlsberg, Kronenbourg 1664, Kronenbourg Blanc and Mythos rose 44 per cent in volume and now represent 9.8 per cent of Coopers total beer volume.

Dr Cooper said Coopers planned to spend more than $4.5 million in the next few months to streamline truck movements around the brewery and install four more fermenters to cope with ongoing growth.

The new fermenters will be installed in early 2015, taking the total number at the brewery to 28.

Dr Cooper said that installing the new fermenters required changes to internal roads within the brewery and this work had already commenced.

The works will also streamline truck movements within the brewery and enable up to 60 semi-trailers to be loaded each day.