Kingfisher is an Indian beer brewed by United Breweries Group, Bangalore. The brand was launched in 1978. With a market share of over 36% in India, it is also available in 52 other countries. The Heineken Group holds 42.4% equity shares in United Breweries Ltd. Kingfisher is ranked 74th among India’s most trusted brands according to the Brand Trust Report 2012, a study conducted by Trust Research Advisory. In the Brand Trust Report 2013, Kingfisher was ranked 102nd among India’s most trusted brands and subsequently, according to the Brand Trust Report 2014, Kingfisher was ranked 198th among India’s most trusted brands.
During the years 2009 through 2015, United Spirits (USL) / Diageo exited all non-core investments in United Breweries and sold 850,000 INR shares to Heineken, which will now give it leverage to managing affairs of India’s largest beer producer. USL sold 3.21% shares for Rs 872 crore in a block trade. The shares were sold at Rs 1,030 apiece, a slight premium to Tuesday’s closing price of Rs 1,014.10. As of July 2015, Heineken’s stake in United Breweries (UB) has increased from 39% to 42.1%. This deal will give Heineken an upper hand over Vijay Mallya in running the company.
Kingfisher Beer Europe
Kingfisher Beer Europe Ltd. (KBE) is the European arm of United Breweries with a head office in Maidstone, Kent. In the UK, Kingfisher is brewed under licence by Heineken but to the same recipe as used in India. The company runs independently of Kingfisher World and has its own assets such as website, social media, POS suite & marketing objectives such as the tagline, ‘The Real Taste of India’ which highlights the brand’s genuine heritage and sets it apart from other similar products in the UK & Europe.
KBE sell only one Kingfisher variant; Kingfisher Premium, which is available in four formats; 330 mL (24 x 330 mL cases), 650 mL (12 x 650 mL case), pint or half pint draught and kegs (30 or 50 L).
In November 2016, KBE launched Peacock Cider: a ‘quality apple cider’ created to ‘elegantly complement Asian flavours, providing a burst of apple refreshment to balance aromatic spices.’
In 2017, KBE added two more products to its portfolio – Bintang Beer, ‘Indonesia’s No.1 Beer’ and Pearl River Beer, an ‘Iconic Cantonese Beer’.