Emperador posts P1B in Jan.-Sept. net income

Emperador Distillers Inc., the liquor unit of Andrew Tan-led Alliance Global Group Inc., said Monday its bottom line rose to P1.061 billion in the first nine months of the year, up 89 percent year-on-year. Its strong performance reflected the improved consumer confidence and spending as well as the company’s ability to innovate and control cost, Emperador Distillers president Winston Co said in a statement. Emperador is the country’s largest brandy manufacturer, Emperador Brandy its flagship brand. Co said Emperador Distillers sees 2010 as a banner year for revenues and net income. “This goes down as the highest income that we have ever achieved for a nine-month period, and it’s already 86-percent higher than that for the whole year of 2009," he said. “We are confident that our net income this year will be the highest in the history of Emperador," he pointed out. Co said that to capture new profit and growth opportunities, Emperador Distillers last year launched its first flavored vodka and gin — The BAR. The product successfully penetrated all segments of the socioeconomic market from A to D, selling 50 million bottles in the first 12 months. Before the end of 2010, Emperador Distillers will launch two new beverages. “The two new products are the result of a long, careful market study and research that Emperador has undertaken. They represent the latest innovations that we are bringing into the mainstream of the liquor industry," Co pointed out. “We expect them to create a new demand and generate additional revenue for Emperador in the coming years," he added. — JE/VS, GMANews.TV