CAMPARI TO ACQUIRE GRAND MARNIER

Italian distiller Davide Campari-Milano SpA, has agreed to buy French cognac maker Grand Marnier Group in a deal that values the family-owned company at 684 million euros (US$76O million), adding more high-end spirits to its portfolio. The acquisition is the first for Campari since 2O14, and the biggest since CEO Robert Kunze-Concewitz took the helm in 2OO7. The maker of Wild Turkey bourbon and Skyy vodka also entered an agreement to be the worldwide exclusive distributor of Grand Marnier’s spirits, effective in July. Grand Marnier produces cognac, Armagnac and wines and gets more than half of its sales from the US, currently enjoying success with the younger drinking demographic. Campari said the purchase will add to profit immediately on a pro-forma, full-year basis. The Italian company said the price implies an enterprise value that’s 13.7 times Grand Marnier’s adjusted 2O15 operating profit. Campari said it may sell a villa surrounded by botanical gardens that Grand Marnier owns in Saint Jean Cap Ferrat, a peninsular town east of Nice, on the Mediterranean coast. The house, known as Villa les Cedres, was built in the 18OOs and acquired in 19O4 by King Leopold II of Belgium, according to a regional government website. Louis-Alexandre Marnier-Lapostolle bought the property in the 192Os.