Heineken is one of the world's leading brewers. Its flagship brands are the eponymous Heineken and Amstel, with the former accounting for around 20% of volume sales. Europe is Heineken's main market, accounting for an estimated 40% of profits. The company is the regional leader in beer, with Germany, France, Spain and Italy key markets. The US is another major sales area as is Nigeria. Overall, the company is active in over 170 countries worldwide.
Heineken NV: Key Facts
Company name & status: Heineken NV
Headquarters: Netherlands
Sector involvement (2004): Dark beer, Lager by origin, Lager by price platform, Non-/low-alcohol, Stout
Region involvement (2004): Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, Latin America, Asia Pacific, Australasia, Africa and Middle East
World ranking (2004): 4.0
World % share (2004): 5.7
Source: Euromonitor International from company reports
Brief history of Heineken
In 1864 Gerard Adriaan Heineken (he was 22 years old) bought a brewery in the centre of Amsterdam, and this is the starting point of the History of Heineken, that is now one of the most famous beer in the world. Since the first years we can see in Heineken's history the wish to increase its market and to spread its activity in foreign countries (right now it sells beer in over 170 countries).
The company's philosophy was to get a high quality product with low price, and with this key points it has become, leader in beer market. Different prizes has been gained by Heineken for the quality of its product and the most prestigious are the gold medals at the Paris Expo in 1875 and 1889, that allowed Heineken to became the beer suppliers of Eiffel tower restaurant.
In spite of the France market, gained in the first twenty years of activity, it is only in the late twenties of 1900 that Heineken has become a truly international company starting construction of breweries in Dutch East Indies (actually Indonesia), and developing