This case is set in December 2012, shortly after the acquisition of Asia Pacific Breweries Limited (APB) by Heineken N.V. APB is one of the largest brewers in Asia Pacific with a market footprint in 14 countries. This made it an attractive acquisition target for suitors such as Heineken, a global brewer with a strong brand, looking to expand its reach to the younger, high growth markets of Asia. Both companies have a strong standing in their respective markets and have built their businesses on a central brand — Tiger (for APB) and Heineken. Although there is apparent synergy between the two companies, they are run very differently. APB is a strong regional player and its growth strategy is to focus on smaller markets in the region, while Heineken is a multinational company with ambitions to enter and establish presence in Asia’s bigger markets, China and India. The two companies are also very different in terms of their business models, organisational structure, growth strategies and corporate culture.
With the acquisition complete, the task at hand for Heineken is to find a way to manage the differences in business strategies and, consequentially, the divergent corporate cultures. This case can be used to discuss a classic question about mergers and acquisitions — how companies deal with different organisational structures, different growth strategies and different corporate cultures. It can also be used to teach a class on growth strategies, where students can compare and contrast two distinct but equally effective growth strategies i.e. a multi-domestic regional strategy that focuses on the small yet dynamic markets versus a global multinational strategy that focuses on large markets with scale.
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Download Information
SMU Faculty/Staff can download the case & teaching note on iNet with your SMU login ID & Password via the following links:
· Teaching Note (SMU-13-0027TN)
For purchase of the case and supplementary materials via The Case Centre, please access the following links:
SMU Faculty/Staff can download the case & teaching note on iNet with your SMU login ID & Password via the following links:
· Teaching Note (SMU-13-0027TN)
For purchase of the case and supplementary materials via The Case Centre, please access the following links:
(Please note you are purchasing the case only.)
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