The evolution of Karoulias into a strong force in alcoholic beverages, wine and coffee

Karoulias, one of the leading wine and spirits companies in Greece, has been in business for over 70 years, and during this time, it has evolved, transformed, and has now become one of the most significant companies in the alcoholic beverage trading sector, with a wide portfolio of products.

Beer, alcoholic beverages, drinks such as coffee and herbal teas, and of course, wine, are part of the range of available products that Karoulias distributes in the Greek market. Last January, they took over the distribution of Ekaterra beverages, specifically the distribution of Lipton, Pukka Herbs, and PG Tips products in the Greek market.

It is worth noting that Ekaterra is a company that produces tea and other herbal beverages. It was created in 2021 as a separate division within Unilever as part of a plan to divest the majority of its tea production activities. In addition, in February of last year, they entered into a strategic collaboration by adding the Ultra Premium Natural Mineral Water Avaton to their portfolio.

The termination of cooperation with ABInBev

An important development occurred at the end of 2022 when the cooperation with the world's largest beer group, ABInBev, and one of the main suppliers of Karoulias, was terminated. At that time, there were rumors in the market that Karoulias requested the discontinuation of the distribution of other competing beers such as Paulaner and Estrella in order to continue the collaboration between the two parties. The agreement with Anheuser-Busch InBev (ABInBev) for the representation and distribution of iconic beer brands like Corona, Stella Artois, and Bud brought significant economic benefits to Karoulias in recent years. However, starting from January 1, 2023, the distribution was taken over by Coca-Cola Tria Epsilon.

One of the most recent collaborations this year was the distribution partnership with Coolvit, a vitamin water company owned by the Vardinogiannis Group, which was announced in early June.

Strong sales and profitability

Regarding the company's financial performance, the sales during the fiscal year from April 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022, showed significant growth compared to the previous year. The sales value reached 70.35 million euros, compared to 49.3 million euros in the previous twelve-month period. Additionally, there was a 59.52% increase in gross profits, from 12.57 million euros to 20.05 million euros. EBITDA profits recorded an impressive increase of 93.79%, from 2.88 million euros to 5.58 million euros. The company's pre-tax profits nearly multiplied, reaching 3.88 million euros compared to 440.5 thousand euros in the previous year. In terms of net profits after taxes, the company reported profits of 3.3 million euros in the last fiscal year, compared to 325 thousand euros in the previous one.

Historical background

The company's history begins with Vlasis Karoulias, a Greek diaspora entrepreneur who, in the 1940s, decided to continue the family tradition in trade and beverages, which his grandfather had started, from the region of Eastern Romylia. Vlasis Karoulias founded his first family-owned general trading business in the center of Athens.

In the 1960s, Vlasis Karoulias started his first beverage business based in Kolonaki, importing internationally renowned products, including Cutty Sark. A decade later, the company had significantly grown, acquiring distribution rights in Greece for some of the most famous drinks of the time. Some of the well-known brands distributed by the company are Chivas Regal, Cutty Sark, Bacardi, Smirnoff, Tia Maria, Cointreau, Remy Martin.

In 1992, the British company Berry Bros & Rudd, owner of Cutty Sark, acquired the majority of the shares of V.S. Karoulias after the death of the founder Vlasis Karoulias on August 2, 1989. Several years later, Berry Bros & Rudd, after selling Cutty Sark, decided in 2011 to separate from the distribution company in Greece. Christos Argyrou, the CEO of the company for many years, through the company IMA S.A., acquired Karoulias.