Henkell & Co and Freixenet to operate as Henkell Freixenet from 2019

Oetker Group’s wine and spirits unit Henkell & Co Sektkellerei and Spanish cava producer Freixenet are to operate under a new name and logo from 1 January next year following their merger.

Back in March, Henkell signed an agreement to purchase 50.67% shares of Freixenet from the Hevia and Bonet families.

When signing the agreement, Freixenet president José Luis Bonet Ferrer said: “Over three generations, we have made Freixenet the world’s leading producer of cava.

“In Henkell, we have found a strong partner with a long-term strategy, which will significantly strengthen Freixenet and help us to maintain our identity and tradition, with an even stronger international presence in the future.”

The deal was approved by the European Commission in July.

The merger of Spanish and German firms is expected to create a leading sparkling wine group and enable the combined entity to gain access to new markets and distribution channels. The company will be known as Henkell Freixenet.

Freixenet’s sparkling wine brand is present in 140 countries, while Henkell Group with its wide portfolio of sparkling wine brands, including Mionetto has a leading position in many countries.

Beginning next year, Henkell and Freixenet will start joint operations in the US and the UK as ‘Freixenet Mionetto’ and ‘Freixenet Copestick’ respectively.

Last year, Henkell Group’s revenues stood at €702m, while Freixenet generated €535m in the past financial year.

Together, Henkell and Freixenet will have a workforce of 4,000 worldwide.