The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business 
Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

THE KALIK beer brand is continuing to grow off a strong 2012 performance, Commonwealth Brewery’s managing director said yesterday, adding that it maintains a strong market foothold after 25 years.

Commonwealth Brewery executives hosted a reception and brewery tour yesterday to mark the Kalik’s 25th anniversary, and Nico Pinotsis said: “Kalik is the largest beer brand in the Bahamas. It has been performing well for the last 25 years.

“Certainly, last year it did extremely well in its performance.

“It has a very strong foothold and it continues to grow.

“If you look at where we are now 25 years later, it is clear that Kalik is the beer of the Bahamas. It is drunk more than any other beer by both Bahamians and tourists.

Khaalis Rolle, minister of state for investments, said Kalik’s success was a symbol of Bahamian innovation and more.

“Kalik symboliss not only Bahamian innovation but the relationship between foreign direct investment, the Government of the Bahamas and the people of the Bahamas.

“When I went into Wal-Mart in Florida and saw Kalik on the shelf I was proud to see that we are now exporting something that is uniquely Bahamian.

“This is a testament that manufacturing can work in the Bahamas, is alive and is doing well.”

Mr Rolle praised Commonwealth Brewery’s for its attention to the environment. “I am advised that more than 50 per cent of all the bottles used by the Brewery are recycled, a clear demonstration that, handled correctly, eco-friendly measures can have tremendous economic benefitss,” he added.

“Clearly, this 150,000 square foot facility with its state-of-the-art brewing and manufacturing equipment, the company’s record of employment providing more than 385 jobs, its care of the environment, its consistent delivery of quality products and the numerous awards those products have earned deserve our recognition. Additionally, this serves as a positive example of what the right foreign direct investment combined with local participation in ownership and operation can achieve.”

Commonwealth Brewery has 70-plus labels, 380 staff, a recycling operation, and brands such as Heineken, Kalik, Guinness and Vitamalt.