Dive Brief:
- British liquor giant Diageo will spend $115 million to build a distillery in Shelby County, KY.
- The state-of-the art facility marks a departure for Diageo in the U.S. The company has not previously distilled bourbon here, but has marketed bourbon made by others.
- Diageo declined to say if if production of Bulliet bourbon will shift to the new facility. That product is believed to be made for Diageo by Kentucky's Four Roses distillery.
Dive Insight:
The amount of cash that Diageo has, and is willing to spend, on boosting market share in markets where it sees growth is substantial. Last month the company offered to pay $1.9 billion -- or a whopping 39 times Ebitda -- for India's United Spirits.
So spending just $115 million to begin distilling bourbon seems like a no-brainer. The Distilled Spirits Council estimates that sales of bourbon and Kentucky whiskeys have risen 26% in the past 10 years.