Wimm-Bill-Dann to up sales 30% this year - Brief Article

Eurofood, Oct 11, 2001

Wimm-Bill-Dann will up its overall sales volume by 25-30% this year, company managing director for dairy production Maxim Bryndin announced at a press conference in Moscow.

The largest share among the company's different trademarks will be represented by the Domik b Derevnye brand (30-35%), Bryndin said. This brand currently commands around 35% of the Moscow market and 21% of the Russian market as a whole.

In addition, Bryndin continued, the company has plans for the next three years that including intensifying regional policy and bringing sales of its brands in Moscow and the regions into equal proportion.

Bryndin emphasised that around 65% of the company's investments will be made in the most developing direction, the "dessert group". This product group, he said, will yield the company the most growth - 20-25% - in overall turnover.

Wimm-Bill-Dann brings together 14 enterprises, and has a product line of around 300 different kinds of dairy products and 150 kinds of juice and juice drinks, as well as upwards often types of canned vegetables.

Last year, the company turned out 660 500 tonnes of dairy product and 250 000t of juice product. It turned US$48m (52.2m [European Dollar]) in net profits last year versus the US$35m it made in 1999. Earnings were US$480m last year and US$403m the year before.

WBD BUYS DAIRY FACTORIES

WBD has also announced the acquisition of Rubtsovsky Dairy Plant and Anninskoye Moloko.

The Rubtsovsky plant was built in 1954 and specialises in the making of hard cheeses. Its production capacity is estimated as being able to process 360t of milk a day, even though it is currently processing 30t.

The Anninskoye plant opened its doors in 1977.

It produces around twenty kinds of dairy product, including ice cream and condensed milk. It is processing no more than 150t of raw material per day at present, but has the capacity to handle 350t.