OREANDA-NEWS. January 15, 2008. Four of the Baltika Company’s brands - Baltika, Arsenalnoye, Yarpivo and Nevskoye - have been included in the list of the "50 best russian brands" published in the January issue of Forbes, the press service of the company repoted. According to the magazine, Baltika brand sales amounted to 50.3 billion rubles, while sales of Arsenalnoye came to 14.1 billion, Yarpivo had 9.2 billion, and Nevskoye sales were 8.5 billion rubles.

Marcho Kuyumdzhiev, Vice President for Marketing at Baltika Breweries commented as follows on the results: "The list of "50 best Russian brands" issued by such an authoritative magazine as Forbes has reconfirmed our own estimates of the prospects of the Company’s brands. I would like to note that the sales amounts given in the research coincide with the Company’s internal data. In 2007 our major efforts were primarily focused on development of the Baltika brand. The brand is unique in its history and architecture. It is the only brand simultaneously present in the mainstream and premium segments. Its success has been ensured by both a correct portfolio strategy and effective marketing communications. We expect it to rise to the top position in Europe in terms of sales volume in the years to come."

This year the Baltika brand figures on several lists as the undisputed leader of the FMCG sector. According to Millward Brown Optimor, the Baltika brand is among the most attractive assets on the world beer market, with the highest potential for further growth. According to the International Interbrand Group of marketing consultants, Baltika is the leading Russian brand in the consumer goods category and holds the third ranking position, just after two telecommunications brands. In 2007, the brand grew by 15% compared to 2006 and its value reached to 2.2 bln. USD (59,301 mln rubles). Moreover, positions 11 and 18 are taken by other Baltika Breweries’ brands: Arsenalnoye and Yarpivo, respectively, which entered the long-list of the most valuable Russian brands for the first time.

The Forbes list of "50 best Russian brands" was compiled based on the retail sales volumes of Russian brands between July 2006 and June 2007. It includes 50 brands of products made in Russia or for the Russian market. According to the magazine, the sales volumes shown in the rating are journalists’ and experts’ estimate, and they do not always coincide with the revenues of the producers since they include the markups of intermediaries, re-sellers and additional taxes. It also notes that the sales volume data were aggregated if there were several kinds of goods or sub-brands produced under one umbrella brand. The estimate was based on data provided by the companies themselves, industrial associations, research companies, including "Business Anaylitica", Nielsen, IDC, Most Marketing as well as information from the Federal Statistics Service and the Federal Tax Service provided by the "System of professional analysis of markets and companies" (SPARK) of Interfax.