UK – AB InBev’s incubator, operator, and venture capital team ZX Ventures has acquired Atom Group, a company brand of spirits based in the UK for an undisclosed sum.
Atom Group is a drinks company that encompasses production of spirits under the Atom Brands and importation, distribution and brand development via Maverick Drinks; to global online retail at Master of Malt.
The transaction includes three business units; spirits producer Atom Brands, online alcohol retailer Master of Malt and spirits distributor Maverick Drinks.
AB InBev will own the business units but Atom Group will retain its leadership structure and its key business goals.
Atom Brands indicated that the move meant to form a partnership with ZX Ventures that will help drive global growth and innovation.
The company joins a number of early stage beverage companies that have received investment from ZX Ventures a global disruptive growth group, incubator, and venture capital team backed by Anheuser-Busch InBev.
It builds on its growth strategy focused on sourcing and bottling the best whiskies, gins, and other spirits on a worldwide scale, making them easily accessible to customers.
“The implications of this investment in terms of our ability to source and produce the world’s finest spirits really can’t be overstated – the resources, distribution channels and opportunities that are opened up by this deal are simply epic in scale,” said a statement from Atom Brands.
“This deal will give us access to the resources needed to scale up our operations considerably – that means more incredible whisky for TBWC.
It will also allow more brands in the Boutique-y stable, the removal of the constraints around creating ever more exciting new brands, and crucially – the ability to bring all of our portfolio to more people than ever before across the globe.”
ZX Ventures provides great expertise in e-commerce providing online retail for some of its brands.
Through its parent company AB InBev, it acquired two major US homebrew ingredient and supply companies that is, Northern Brewer Homebrew Supply and its sister company, Midwest Supplies.
This closely proceeded AB InBev’s final takeover of SABMiller in 2016, the North Brewer adding it a robust e-commerce business together with its portfolio of malts, hops, yeast and equipment to homebrewers.
