Ursus Breweries

Timisoreana, one of the main brands of Ursus Breweries
Ursus Breweries
Industry Alcoholic beverage
Products Beer
Production output
 6 million hectolitres [1]
Owner SABMiller
Website ursus.ro

Ursus Breweries, a subsidiary of SABMiller plc, is one of the top brewers in Romania. The company is based in Bucharest and owns 4 breweries in Cluj-Napoca, Timișoara, Buzău and Brașov, employing over 1,700 people.[2] Ursus Breweries’ brands are: Ursus, Timișoreana, Ciucaș, Azuga, Stejar, Redd's, Peroni Nastro Azzurro, Pilsner Urquell and Miller.

Ursus is one of the best-selling beers in Romania. The beer is advertised under the slogan Regele berii în România ("The King of Beers in Romania"). It is brewed in Buzău.

The company had been owned by SABMiller since 1996. As part of the agreements made with regulators before Anheuser-Busch InBev was allowed to acquire SABMiller in October 2016, Ursus was sold to Asahi Breweries of Japan on December 13, 2016; the deal is expected to close during the first half of 2017.[3][4][5][6]

History

The first legal predecessor of the company was founded in 1878 in Mănăștur, which is now part of Cluj-Napoca. The company and the beer gained its name in 1927 when it demerged from Frigyes Czell si Fiii Grupa Dr. Wilhelm Czell SA, a large brewery group at the time. The brewery was nationalised in 1948, but privatised again during the 1990s, when SABMiller gained full control over the company.

In 1996 South African Breweries (SABMiller) purchased Vulturul Buzău and, in 1997, Pitber Pitești and URSUS S.A. Cluj-Napoca. In 1998 Vulturul and Pitber became URSUS S.A. In 2001 URSUS S.A. purchased Bere Timișoreana S.A. In 2005 the company changed its name to Ursus Breweries S.A. In 2009 Ursus Breweries S.A. purchased Bere Azuga S.A.

After slowly removing the 'Cluj' name from the Ursus beer label, Ursus Breweries announced on November 18, 2010 that it will close the Ursus brewery in Cluj-Napoca due to high costs and lower demand. The Cluj-Napoca brewery is the place where Ursus has been bottled for more than 100 years.[7]

In 2016, Ursus Breweries was sold to Asahi Breweries of Japan.

Sponsorship

In 2003, Ursus sponsored a Romanian Everest Expedition.

Ursus was the main sponsor of the Romanian top football league between December 19, 1998 and the end of the 2003/2004 season.[8]

Starting with the 2006/2007 season, Ursus Breweries became the main sponsor of Cupa României and changed the cup name to promote their Timișoreana beer brand.[9]

New label

In 2009 SABMiller, owners of Ursus, started replacing the name of the city "Cluj" with "Premium" on their beer labels. Cluj will still be mentioned on the back of the premium bottle. Ursus Breweries representatives say that the label was changed after research studies made in Cluj showed that the most important visual element for consumers is the beer's description, which in Ursus's case is premium, black, or non-alcoholic.[10]

Timișoreana

Timisoreana brewery

The Timișoreana brewery was built in 1718 in Timișoara. In 2001 Ursus Breweries bought it.[11] The main brand is Timișoreana, a 5% abv pale lager.[12]

In 2005 the company sponsored the city of Timișoara with 60,000 dollars for the renovation of three historic buildings in the Timișoara Square of Trajan.[13] In September 2006 Timisoreana became a sponsor of Cupa României.[14]

References

  1. ↑ http://www.wall-street.ro/articol/Companii/80437/Ursus-Breweries-Dupa-un-an-de-alegeri-mediul-de-afaceri-are-nevoie-de-stabilitate.html
  2. ↑ http://www.wall-street.ro/articol/Companii/80437/Ursus-Breweries-Dupa-un-an-de-alegeri-mediul-de-afaceri-are-nevoie-de-stabilitate.html
  3. ↑ "Asahi Group to buy InBev beer brands for $7.8bn". Financier Worldwide. Financier Worldwide. February 2017. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  4. ↑ "Anheuser-Busch InBev to Sell Former SABMiller’s Central and Eastern European Business to Asahi". Bloomberg News. Bloomberg. 21 December 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  5. ↑ Asahi Forks Over $7.8 Billion for 5 of AB InBev’s Beer Brands], Fortune, url=http://fortune.com/2016/12/13/asahi-ab-inbev-beer-deal/, 2016-12-13, Asahi Forks Over $7.8 Billion for 5 of AB InBev’s Beer Brands], Fortune, access date=February 3, 2017
  6. ↑ Wells, Peter (December 13, 2016). "Asahi buys SABMiller’s eastern European brands". FT. The Financial Times Ltd. Retrieved February 3, 2017. A figure of more than €5bn ($5.32) for SABMiller’s eastern European brands had been floating around in recent weeks as a likely price tag.
  7. ↑ Ursus closing original Cluj-Napoca factory - Note: Page in Romanian language
  8. ↑ "Un milion de dolari pentru fotbalul romanesc". Ziua (in Romanian). December 20, 1998. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  9. ↑ "Cum au ajuns Bergenbier, Timisoreana si Burger titulari pe terenul de fotbal". Ziarul Financiar (in Romanian). June 4, 2007. Archived from the original on 2008-05-11. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  10. ↑ Ursus, not a Cluj brand anymore?
  11. ↑ http://www.beretimisoreana.ro/timisoreana
  12. ↑ "Timisoreana - 8 at RateBeer". ratebeer.com. 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  13. ↑ http://www.primariatm.ro/monitorul/index.php?meniuId=1&viewCat=5&viewItem=1507
  14. ↑ http://www.zf.ro/articol_126922/cum_au_ajuns_bergenbier__timisoreana_si_burger_titulari_pe_terenul_de_fotbal_.html

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