StarBev eyes international expansion for Staropramen

StarBev has announced ‘significant investments’ in its Staropramen brand, as it eyes international expansion.

The company has invested €1.2m in a new visitor centre at its Staropramen brewery in Prague, Czech Republic.

The company has also launched its first international television commercial for the brand, called Prague Legends.

StarBev CEO Alain Beyens said this is part of the company’s ambition to become the “number one Czech premium beer in key international markets”.

Staropramen is currently available in 30 markets and it most recently launched in Romania at the beginning of July.

The new visitor centre features a holographic image and video of Josef Paspa, a famous brewmaster from Staropramen’s history, who guides visitors through the brewing process and down to bespoke a Staropramen bar, which the company hopes to replicate in other markets.

The Prague Legends advertising campaign begins with Princess Libuse’s prophecy of the birth of Prague and charts the city’s history through eight centuries.

Beyens said: “The appetite for Czech beer has never been stronger and our focus for the next 12 months is to gain market share in the Czech beer segment internationally. We will continue to focus on building the brand through investments and innovation and we will look to forge and strengthen strategic partnerships that will help bring Staropramen to new markets.”

The company recently signed distribution deals with Spaten in the US and Carlsberg in the UK.

There are currently three types of Staropramen available to the international market – lager, dark beer and Paspa’s original recipe Granat.

In the Czech market, StarBev has recently launched Staropramen Cool Lemon – a 2% abv lemon-flavoured beer, as well as a wheat beer.

The central European brewing group was established in 2009, following the sale of ABInBev’s breweries across central Europe to CVC.

StarBev has operations in nine countries and breweries in seven – including Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro. Local brands include Borsodi, Kamenitza and Bergenbier.