The CEO of Diageo, Debra Crew, has told investors the company remains confident in a return to growth despite the “challenging global environment”.
Ahead of the company’s annual general meeting (AGM), which took place yesterday in London (26 September), Crew released a statement to reassure investors that the company expects a return to growth once the consumer environment improves, and that it is well positioned to outperform the market.
The full statement read: “Our expectations are unchanged from when we reported our fiscal 24 preliminary results on 30 July 2024. The global environment remains challenging for both our industry and Diageo.
“While consumers continue to be cautious in this environment, we are focused on strengthening the resilience of our business through operational excellence, productivity and strategic investments to win quality market share. We have made good progress on our strategic initiatives, including our US route-to-market enhancements, and in Nigeria we are progressing well towards completion of the agreement to restructure our business model there.
“I believe that the fundamentals for global TBA [total beverage alcohol], and particularly the spirits industry, remain strong and am confident that when the consumer environment improves, growth will return and the actions we are taking will position us well to outperform the market.”
In Diageo’s results for the year ending 30 June 2024, organic sales were flat with Scotch declining by 10%. The world’s biggest-selling Scotch brand, Johnnie Walker, fell by 6%.
At a briefing at the group’s London headquarters after the results were revealed in July, Crew highlighted to journalists that the US was a more positive market for the category, compared to Latin America where there is a lack of demand for premium products in fiscal 2024.
Crew had said: “We feel good about Johnnie Walker, in particular – we are gaining share. This is the magic of having the same brand that covers Red [Label] to Black to Blue. We are certainly seeing some switching around, but Black [Label] is still doing well in the US.”
Diageo has just made a new Johnnie Walker blend called Black Ruby, which will debut in global travel retail in 2025.
This week, the drinks giant added Ritual Zero Proof to its stable of non-alcoholic brands, and revealed its 2024 Special Releases.
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Author: Rupert Hohwieler
