In 2024, Athenian Brewery came within a step of reaching €500 million in sales, setting a new record and reaffirming for yet another year that it is among Heineken Group’s “golden” subsidiaries worldwide.

According to the financial statements released by the Group yesterday, Athenian Brewery was one of the leading performers in Europe over the past fiscal year. The prolonged high temperatures and heatwave conditions significantly boosted sales in the beer, soft drinks, and natural mineral water markets.

“Southern and Eastern Europe recorded strong growth, with net revenue increasing by a high single-digit percentage and sales volume by a mid-single-digit percentage. Greece, Croatia, Serbia, and Bulgaria led this growth,” noted Heineken Group’s management in its analysis of the 2024 results. According to the report, the Group’s total revenue reached nearly €36 billion, while net profits stood at €978 million.

“The sales volume of new premium beers grew organically by 0.3% for the year,” the Group’s management stated in the financial report. It further explained: “Premium beer sales volume rose by a mid-single-digit percentage, driven by Heineken, Birra Moretti, and our next-generation brands such as El Águila in Spain and Texels in the Netherlands. Sales in the core beer category also increased by a mid-single-digit percentage, led by Cruzcampo in the UK, Alfa in Greece, and Krušovice in Slovakia. Our non-alcoholic beer and cider portfolio saw double-digit growth, with Heineken 0.0 leading the way, along with Żywiec in Poland, Soproni in Hungary, and Old Mout in the UK.”

Despite these positive trends, the Group’s overall organic sales in Europe, both in value and total volume, were slightly lower than in 2023, primarily due to the completion of its divestment from Russia with the sale of Vrumona. However, operating profits increased organically by 1.6%, supported by the benefits of its supply chain transformation program. The Group also managed to expand its gross profit margins by 35 basis points through price adjustments and strong productivity.

It is worth noting that in its previous financial statements, released last summer, Athenian Brewery reported 2023 sales of €455 million, marking an annual increase of 9.27%. This performance was largely linked to higher sales volumes, including Bacardi products. Net sales—excluding the special consumption tax—rose by 12.6% to €315.13 million. Likewise, pre-tax profits grew by 11.3% to €48.41 million, while post-tax profits reached €37.52 million, up from €33.43 million in 2022.

Athenian Brewery’s strong performance in recent years has resulted in hefty dividend payouts to its Dutch parent company, Heineken. In 2023 alone, Heineken received €36.55 million in dividends, while over the three-year period from 2021 to 2023, total dividends reached €98.2 million.

The success of the Greek subsidiary has also led to the promotion of its CEO, Mr. Alexandros Daniilidis (pictured), to the position of Executive Director for Heineken Group’s “G9 Europe” Cluster, covering Greece, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic. Mr. Daniilidis will continue as President and CEO of Athenian Brewery until the end of March, after which, on April 1st, he will be succeeded by Mr. Sebastian Sanchez. Sanchez, originally from Argentina, currently serves as the head of Heineken’s subsidiary in Panama.

Reports indicate that by then, the company’s business plan for the upcoming tourist season will be fully developed and ready to roll out.