Bavarian Brewery
Cervecería Bavaria is a Colombian beverage company headquartered in Bogotá, Colombia. It was founded on April 4, 1889 by the German immigrant Leo Siegfried Kopp. Today it belongs to the multinational Anheuser-Busch InBev.
History
Beginnings
In 1876 the German brothers Leo Siegfried and Emil Kopp arrived in Santander in search of business opportunities. In 1879, together with the brothers Santiago and Carlos Arturo Castello, they formed the company Kopp y Castello in Bogotá, dedicated to trading and importing goods.
On April 4, 1889, the acquisition of a lot for the construction of a brewery was registered in Bogotá. In 1890, the company Kopp and Castello was dissolved and the company Bavaria Kopp's Deutsche Bierbrauerei was created, which on April 22, 1891 registered the German imperial eagle as a factory image, and on May 28 inaugurated its headquarters in San Diego, in the center of Bogotá.
In December 1911, during the centenary of Independence, they used the figure of Policarpa Salavarrieta in their brand La Pola.
Growth
In 1930, Bavaria bought the companies Handel en Industrie Maatschappij and the Continental Brewery of Medellín and created the Consorcio de Cervecerías Bavaria, which later incorporated the Colombiana de Cervezas de Manizales and its brand Poker, as well as other breweries in Santa Marta, Cali, Pereira and Honda.
Nationalization
Cervecería Bavaria became the only Colombian company to survive the 19th century. In 1943, as a result of Colombia's declaration of war against the German Reich, all German companies in Colombia were nationalized. By then, its founder had died in 1927 and his son Guillermo Kopp Castello had taken over the brewery. The company with the production facilities was acquired by the wealthiest family in Colombia, Santo Domingo, with the Colombian businessman Julio Mario Santo Domingo. It is not known if the Kopp family was ever compensated and there are no records.
Post-war period
After the construction of the Duitama plant (1943) and the purchase of the Cúcuta Brewery (1944), the construction of new factories began in Bucaramanga, Girardot, Buga, Villavicencio, Neiva, Ibagué and Armenia, which entered in operation between 1948 and early 1950s
In 1953 and in 1954 it launched Pony Malta and Costeñita, the second in a 175 cm³ container. In 1958, with the acquisition of the Clausen de Floridablanca brewery and with the inauguration of the Nariño brewery (in 1962) the expansion program started in the 1940s culminated.
In the early 1960s, the company renewed its corporate image. A new logo simplified the emblematic Águila Imperial and the Club 60 beer gave way to Club Colombia. In 1967, Bavaria, in exchange for its own shares, became the owner of the assets of the Barranquilla and Bolívar breweries. Thus, he created the company Cervecería Águila S.A..
In 1972, he began the purchase of shares in the Antioquian company Cervecería Unión, which he came to control in 1995. On January 31, 1973, he inaugurated the Complejo Industrial de Techo plant in Bogotá and closed the San Diego factory, where today there is the Bavaria Central Park.
Beginning in the 1980s, the company launched the first Clausen Export canned beer and entered the Ecuadorian market with the acquisition of the Latin Development Corporation, which controlled the Andina de Quito brewery and Cervecería Nacional S.A. From Guayaquil. In 1988, the company moved its administrative offices to a new headquarters in the El Chicó neighborhood of Bogotá.
In 1993, the company debuted in the non-alcoholic beverage market through its brands Refrescos Bavaria and Jugos Bavaria, with Brisa brand bottled water , opening several bottling plants throughout the country. In 2000, the company closed the Refrescos Bavaria bottling plants; in 2006, it sold the Bavaria Juices plant to Postobón and; Finally, in 2008, it sold Brisa to The Coca-Cola Company and Coca-Cola FEMSA.
2000s
In 2000, it bought 44.1% of the shares of Cervecería Leona and in 2001, the National Brewery of Panama. Thus, Bavaria reorganized its factories and suspended operations in various production plants. In May 2002, it launched Águila Light and entered the Peruvian market by acquiring UCP Backus & Johnston, the Compañía Cervecera del Sur and the Cervecería San Juan, as well as the purchase of the Corporación Boliviana de Bebidas.
In 2004, it acquired an additional 9.2% stake and gained full control of Leona.
In October 2005 G.E.B and its largest shareholder, Julio Mario Santo Domingo (owner of 71.8% of Bavaria's shares) merged the company with the Anglo-South African brewing giant SABMiller. At this time, Bavaria modernized the Bucaramanga Brewery, sold its juice division and launched the Pony Malta PET container.
In 2008, SABMiller inaugurated Cervecería del Valle S.A. in Yumbo. In 2009, it sold the water business. A year later, he launched Club Colombia Roja.
2010s
In 2011 it launched Club Colombia Negra and beer presentations in 750 cm³ returnable containers. On July 29, 2013, the company gave the service its new administrative headquarters in Niza, north of Bogotá. In October 2016, Bavaria was purchased by AB Inbev.
Bottling companies and brands
Its products are produced in six breweries located in different cities of Colombia, such as Barranquilla, Bucaramanga, Tibasosa, Medellín, Tocancipá and Yumbo. In addition, it has two malt factories, one in Cartagena and another in Tibitó via Zipaquirá-Briceño, two label factories and one tapas factory.
The national beers produced by Bavaria are: Águila Original, Águila 0.0, Águila Light, Águila Fusión Limón, Póker, Póker Pura Malta, Póker Roja, Costeña, Costeña Bacana, Costeñita, Club Colombia Dorada, Club Colombia Roja, Club Colombia Negra, Club Colombia Trigo, Club Colombia Oktoberfest, Club Colombia Siembra, Club Colombia Double Malta, Bahía, Azteca, Nativa, Redd's and Pilsen. The imported ones that it distributes are: Corona, Budweiser, Michelob Ultra, Busch Light, Beck's and Stella Artois. Its Hard Alcohol Based drinks are marketed as MIKE'S and Corona Tropical. Its non-alcoholic beverages are marketed as Pony Malta, Pony Malta Mini, Pony Malta Pix, Pony Malta Bit, Pony Malta Vital, Malta Leona, Agua Zalva Cola & Pola, Cola & Pola Coconut Lemonade and Cola & Pola Lulo.
Awards and recognitions
- Superior Taste Award Club Colombia and Pony Malta receive international quality award. The Monde Selection Institute in Brussels, Belgium, which rewards drinks with the highest quality in the world, recognized two of the main brands of the Bavaria portfolio: Club Colombia and Pony Malta. With these, Bavaria reached 28 awards awarded to its brands.
- Superior Taste Award 2011 with two golden stars to Club Colombia Roja and with three golden stars to Águila and Club Colombia, awarded by the International Taste & Quality Institute in Brussels.
- Superior Taste Award 2012 with 1 golden star to Águila Light, with two golden stars to Club Colombia Roja and Club Colombia Negra; and with 3 golden stars to Club Colombia and Águila, awarded by the International Taste & Quality Institute in Brussels.