Diageo to top up stake in baijiu maker Shuijingfang

Alcoholic spirits producer Diageo Plc said it has proposed increasing its stake in Chinese baijiu maker Sichuan Shuijingfang Co Ltd to up to 60 percent through a partial tender offer.

Diageo offered 62 yuan ($9.44) per share of Shuijingfang, the company said in a statement. It currently holds a 39.71 percent stake in the Chinese distiller.

The British maker of Johnnie Walker Scotch whisky and Smirnoff vodka offered close to a 25 percent premium on Shuijingfang's closing share price of 49.6 yuan on Monday.

Shuijingfang said Diageo would pay a maximum of 6.15 billion yuan and it would fund the deal on its own. The Chinese company said it would not delist if the deal goes through.

China currently represents a relatively small part of Diageo's business. The British distiller's exposure to the world's most populous country largely relates to its Scotch brands, as well as its investment in Shuijingfang Swellfun, a premium brand of baijiu, which means "white liquor".

After Fan Xiangfu took over as the company's general manager in 2015, Shuijingfang has recovered from its previously lackluster performance. In 2016, its revenue grew 37.6 percent year-on-year to 1.17 billion yuan and net profits rose 155.5 percent to 225 million yuan.

Thanks to the market for medium and high-end liquors picking up in 2017, its revenue exceeded 2 billion yuan with growth of 74 percent year-on-year, and its net profit hit 335 million yuan, increasing 49 percent.

The company said it aims to achieve further growth of 40 percent in revenue and net profits in 2018.

Zhang Jing, manager of Shuijingfang's marketing department, said earlier that the company has achieved the results through expanding cooperation with banks, major carmakers, high-end clubs, and other industries and companies that attract wealthy individuals. The cooperation involved promoting its high-end liquor brand Forest Green, which is priced at 1,699 yuan a bottle.

According to Euromonitor International, total annual liquor sales in China reached 5.68 trillion liters this year, and are estimated to reach 5.92 trillion liters by 2022.

Zhu Danpeng, an independent food and beverage expert, said Shuijingfang's strategy of focusing on premium products is a step in the right direction, as high-profit products align with demand from local distributors. However, selling high-priced liquor when brand awareness is not high will be a critical issue for the company going forward, he said.

Reuters contributed to the story.