How SAB turned weaknesses into global strengths
The company that started out selling beer to miners has innovation embedded in its DNA, which is what helped it to become the behemoth it is today, writes John Luiz
On September 28 2016, the shareholders of South African-born international brewer, SABMiller, approved the company’s acquisition by Anheuser-Busch InBev for R1.5-trillion. The deal paved the way for the creation of what is now by far the world’s largest brewing company. For a company that started out selling beer to miners in Johannesburg during the gold rush of the late 1800s, it has been quite a journey. But how did a brewing company from a developing country rise to compete with the multinational brewing behemoths from the developed world? A series of interviews with senior executives and managers who presided over the growth of what was then South African Breweries’ (SAB) rapid expansion during and after the 1990s are revealing. After building up a monopoly-like position in the beer market in SA, the company went in search of new markets. It used its experience in SA in its entry strategies abroad. SAB’s path reflects the differences between multinationals from developed and eme...
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