GSK first announced its intention to sell off the two top-selling brands in February, confirming the news in April.
The deal fits with Suntory’s bid to expand overseas to counter a shrinking domestic market and is expected to complete by the end of the year.
Energy drink Lucozade and the Ribena juice brand would help Suntory’s food and beverage unit move closer to hitting a 2 trillion yen (£12.76bn) annual sales target in 2020, the company said.
In a statement, the company said: “In our international business, we are expanding our business in emerging markets and strengthening our business platform in order to improve profitability by further developing our existing brands and growing our production and sales.”
Suntory is Japan’s second-largest drinks maker and it has plenty of funds after an initial public offering in June that raised £2.55bn.
As the company looks to expand its reach in Europe, this move follows Suntory’s purchase of the Orangina Schweppes drinks brand for more than £1.92bn in 2009 – which gave it a significant presence in France and Spain.
Lucozade and Ribena have combined annual sales of just over £500m a year. Ahead of the sale, and as part of a wider restructure of its consumer healthcare division, at the end of August GSK announced that it had consolidated its Ribena and Lucozade brands into a single business unit ‘to ensure a smooth and swift transition’ for the planned sale of the brands.
Source: Suntory/FoodBev Media
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