Acquisition of Wilderness Trail Distillery

Bourbon primed to become Campari Group's second major leg

31 October 2022

Deal Highlights

Business overview

Strategic rationale

Deal structure

Conclusion

  • Acquisition of an initial 70% stake, and in 2031 the remaining 30% interest via call/put option, in Wilderness Trail Distillery
    • skilfully handcrafted and fast-growing super premium bourbon and rye whiskey brand leveraging one of the fastest growing spirit categories in the core US market
    • industry-leadingcapabilities in the engineering, research and development for best-in-class bourbon crafting driven by science
    • state-of-the-artproduction infrastructure (100k barrels capacity) and warehousing capacity in place to scale
  • Bourbon primed to become Campari Group's second major leg after the aperitifs
  • Enterprise value of USD600 million (€600 million)(1) for 100% of outstanding capital, on a cash free/debt free basis
  • Value enhancing acquisition: gross margin and EPS accretive
  1. Converted at the current exchange rate of EUR/USD of 1.0

Deal Highlights

Business overview

Strategic rationale

Deal structure

Conclusion

Wilderness Trail super premium bourbon and rye whiskey range to further

strengthen Campari Group's brand portfolio

  • Located in Danville, Kentucky, USA, the distillery was launched in 2012 as a 'premium craft distillery' with a clear focus on making the highest quality bourbon and rye whiskey
  • Two expertly handcrafted and super/ultra premium brands were launched in 2018: Wilderness Trail Bourbon and
    Rye Whiskey
  • The product range currently includes two bottled-in-bond wheat small grain and rye small grain bourbon brands, one rye whiskey brand, a silver label 6-years and 8-years bourbon line for a deeper and mature flavor
  • Average selling prices range from USD55 for the 75cl Wilderness Trail Bourbon to USD75+ for the 6- & 8-year- old bourbon expressions
  • Widespread distribution across key US states via independent wholesalers/distributors, helping grow brand awareness

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  1. To qualify as a Heritage Member, a distillery must have 25,000 barrels of distilled spirits aging in its warehouse
  2. Source: IWSR

Deal Highlights

Business overview

Strategic rationale

Deal structure

Conclusion

Campari Group's bourbon premiumization journey

$110+

$90-$110

Limited Edition

$55-$90

$32 - $55

High-end

mixology &

sipping

Entry level

Flavoured

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Deal Highlights

Business overview

Strategic rationale

Deal structure

Conclusion

Fine bourbon crafting through a blend of innovation and tradition, enabling Campari Group to accelerate and significantly expand its innovation platform

  • Co-foundersShane Baker and Dr. Pat Heist with more than 20 years' experience in the production of whiskey are recognized as pioneers in fermentation and distilling activities with immense technical and product development understanding to produce superior whiskey
  • The distillery's proprietary infusion mashing process and sweet mash technique have a highly flexible output driven by the multiple mash bills and yeast strains, crafting bourbons and rye whiskeys with distinctive flavours
  • Careful selection of locally-sourced premium seed grade corn, wheat and rye varietals, the pioneering use of chemical- free steam in the boiler or the lowest proof entry into the barrel of its rye whiskeys to magnify the taste

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Davide Campari - Milano NV published this content on 31 October 2022 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 28 November 2022 11:04:07 UTC.