Siam Winery expands
Siam Winery Trading Plus Co Ltd, the local producer of Monsoon Valley Wines, Spy Wine Cooler and Sabai Wine, hopes to become the biggest wine-maker in Asia by 2012.
Daniel Schwalb, marketing and sales director, said yesterday the company was already the biggest wine producer in Southeast Asia with a production capacity of 35 million tonnes a year.But capacity would have to be at least doubled to become the top player in the region in six years. The company already exports Monsoon Valley to 22 countries, Spy to eight countries and Sabai to five. It plans to penetrate Scandinavia, Taiwan and Indonesia this year and China and India next year. In the global arena, it fights with giant makers in countries such as China and India, whose governments support the industry with favourable tax structures. Exports account for only 10 per cent of the company's sales, which Schwalb declined to reveal. Spy's first-half sales grew 5 per cent year on year while the overall domestic market showed no expansion. Monsoon Valley sales were up by 27 per cent. Exports were 125 per cent ahead of last year. This year, the company targets to export three million bottles of Spy, 1.6 million bottles of Sabai and 320,000 bottles of Monsoon Valley. Marketing has been budgeted this year at Bt135 million, up 5 per cent from last year. Nitida Asawanipont, The Nation
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