By Jamie Barrie K eurig Green Mountain, which is owned by German investment firm JAB Holding Company, announced it plans to buy Dr Pepper Snapple. This latest deal will see the company continue to build its business and market share as the deal will create a new beverage giant, Keurig Dr Pepper, with $11 billion in sales and combines the Dr Pepper, 7UP and Keurig’s single-serve coffee brands. JAB also owns Panera, Caribou Coffee and other breakfast and coffee concepts. The deal which is expected to close in the second quarter will see the company remaining small in comparison to PepsiCo at $63 billion in sales and Coca-Cola at $41 billion in sales, but will pave the way for JAB to be an acquirer and major distributor of drinks in the U.S. The deal also gives Keurig access to Dr Pepper’s drink dis- tribution network, one of the country’s major three. It there- fore creates an option down the road for Keurig to shuffle its coffee and other products through its pipeline. Keurig will also gain access to Dr Pepper’s allied brands, a portfolio of healthy and upstart drinks it has invested in and distributes through its network. These brands include Fiji Water and Vita Coco. Bai was an allied brand until Dr Pepper acquired it for $1.7 billion last year. It has been said that Keurig will continue to be run out of Waterbury, Vermont and that Dr Pepper Snapple will continue to operate out of their current location in Plano, Texas.
Although the deal is in place the acquisition must still be approved by shareholders of Dr Pepper Snapple.
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SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • FEBRUARY 2018
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