Leading the charge towards this new 'future with more cheers' is SAB CEO Richard Rivett-Carnac, who says, "our big dream is to contribute meaningfully to the growth of the South African economy, creating jobs and building thriving communities".

Rivett-Carnac adds that a clear and refined strategy has been implemented to help propel SAB to dream big and create a future with more cheers.

This strategy is driven by three central pillars, which are all underpinned by what Rivett-Carnac defines as SAB's most important driver — responsibility. These pillars include:
  • leading the beer category responsibly
  • optimising the business, and
  • both digitising and monetising the customer and consumer experience.

Leading and growing the beer category

To lead the beer category, Rivett-Carnac says that he believes that SAB should continue to focus on the success of its core brands. He adds that this is a proven strategy, given the success of core brands like Carling Black Label experienced a 30% increase in revenue in the third quarter of the year.

Rivett-Carnac says, "Our premium, super premium and Beyond Beer portfolios delivered a double-digit increase in volumes. Our core line of products has always been the heart and soul of our business and will no doubt help us lead the category in this new future."

For him, leading the beer category means scaling innovations and elevating the brand's Beyond Beer Category.

According to the brand, across the world, Ab-InBev's Beyond Beer business grew its revenue by over 10% this quarter. In South Africa, strong contributors include the likes of Brutal Fruit and Flying Fish, which continued to deliver double-digit volume growth.

Digitising and monetising

In this repositioning strategy, Rivett-Carnac says that the power of dreaming big and creating a future with more cheers lies in communities and, in particular, the township economy.

"For us, it is the liquor stores and taverns that are a core part of the reason we do what we do, and we owe it to them to bring them into the economy that will not only help them grow but grow the country," adds Rivett-Carnac.

With the knowledge that every retailer has a smartphone, SAB intends to continue integrating innovative technology and mobility tools to help give retail businesses a competitive advantage.

Rivett-Carnac says that SAB's ground-breaking digital ordering app BEES South Africa drives this integration and helps liquor retailers and tavern owners streamline their businesses and increase their profit margins.

Optimising SAB

"Through investing in organic growth, we will dynamically balance capital allocation to maximise value creation and reinvest capital back into the local market," adds Rivett-Carnac.

Even with positive growth in earnings for the first three quarters of 2022, Rivett-Carnac said SAB was able to commit a R4.5-billion towards the economic recovery and growth of the nation.

SAB says that the R4.5-billion will further ignite the economies of the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal as we have committed R650-million to go into the expansion of SAB's Prospecton Brewery in Durban and R270-million will be committed to upgrading SAB's Ibhayi Brewery in Gqeberha.

Rivett-Carnac adds that this investment alone will provide R3.1-billion additional tax revenue and generate 24 000 jobs throughout the full value chain. This will additionally generate R4.4bn in additional GDP for the KwaZulu-Natal economy.

Rivett-Carnac says, "This all ramps up SAB's total South African investment commitment to R4.5-billion — adding impact to an industry that already contributes 1.3% of the national GDP. And our operations are only going to grow from here."

Responsibility through partnerships

According to the brand, the abovementioned pillars of SAB's new strategic repositioning are all underpinned by a strategic intention to intensify efforts to foster a more responsible nation. SAB intends to be more deliberate in transforming society and trade into responsible champions of responsibility through the SAB Sharp platform and the Responsible Trading Programme.

Rivett-Carnac says that SAB Sharp will enable the brewer to run interventions that can accelerate the curbing of irresponsible consumption.

Rivett-Carnac adds, "This involves focused interventions to encourage South African communities to actively embrace responsible consumption by targeting drink driving, gender-based violence, binge and underage drinking."

However, dreaming big to create a future with more cheers is something the SAB CEO admits the company cannot achieve alone.

"From our relationship with our industry to the bond we share with our government, to our shared purpose with numerous organisations – it is partnerships that we can truly drive our country towards this future," says Rivett-Carnac.

The repositioning allows SAB to communicate who SAB is, its contribution and its impact on the nation.

Rivett-Carnac concludes, "Today, we stand together with our colleagues, our communities, and the entire country to declare a shared purpose. Together, we will demonstrate how we can dream big and propel South Africa towards a future with more cheers."

For more information, visit www.sab.co.za. You can also follow SAB on Facebook, Twitter or on Instagram.