William Grant buys up Irish brands in £250m deal

Published: 01 July, 2010

William Grant & Sons Ltd is the new owner of a portfolio of Irish spirits and liqueur brands, following the £250m acquisition of C&C's spirits.

The brands include; Tullamore Dew Irish Whiskey, Carolans, Frangelico and Irish Mist.

The newly acquired business will operate as William Grant & Sons Irish Brands Ltd and a total of 63 employees plus other support from C&C will join the new company including 42 employees from Clonmel and 15 from Dublin.

As a result of the deal, Tullamore Dew, which at 600,000 cases is the world's second largest Irish whiskey brand, will become William Grant & Sons' sixth core brand in a portfolio which also includes Glenfiddich and The Balvenie Single Malt Scotch Whiskies, Grant's Scotch Whisky, Hendrick's Gin and Sailor Jerry spiced rum.

William Grant & Sons' chief executive, Stella David, said: "Today is an historic day for William Grant & Sons as this acquisition provides us with a complementary portfolio of brands and a unique opportunity to accelerate our growth in non-Scotch and enter the dynamic Irish whiskey category.

"We shall invest significantly in the Irish operations and are committed to building a strong business in Ireland and to maintaining and developing current operations here in Clonmel."

William Grant & Sons Irish Brands Ltd will be based in Dublin and Clonmel.

Printer friendly version