一場談話如何使巴菲特做起上億美元的烈酒生意
Avion sells majority stake to French beverage giant Pernod Ricard
艾維公司把多數股權賣給了法國飲品巨頭保樂力加集團How did a casual conversation about tequila with Warren Buffett at a poker tournament inspire an entrepreneur to build a multi-million-dollar business? Thankfully what happens in Las Vegas doesn’t always stay there.
在一場撲克比賽中跟沃倫o巴菲特進行的一次關於龍舌蘭酒的隨意交談，如何激發一位企業家創建起一門上億美元的生意？值得慶幸的是，發生在拉斯維加斯的事情並非總是停留在那裏。Avion Spirits LLC, owner of a fairly young but rapidly growing tequila brand, agreed Friday to sell a“significant majority stake” to Pernod Ricard in a deal that could further propel the premium priced tequila in bars and liquor cabinets. The deal is reportedly valued at almost $100 million.
艾維烈酒有限責任公司(Avion Spirits LLC)擁有一個相當年輕，但增勢迅猛的龍舌蘭酒品牌。該公司上週五同意將其“大多數股權”賣給保樂力加集團(PernodRicard)，交易值據說近1億美元。這份協議可能會進一步推動酒吧和酒櫃市場的高價龍舌蘭酒銷量。
“Tequila is in the second inning of its lifecycle, and the global opportunities for Avion are monstrous,” said Ken Austin, Avion’s founder and chairman, in an interview with Fortune. “We are going to be positioned with Pernod Ricard to take advantage of that because of the muscle that they have.”
“龍舌蘭酒正處於其生命週期的第二局，艾維面臨驚人的全球機遇，”艾維公司創始人兼董事長肯o奧斯汀在接受《財富》雜誌(Fortune)採訪時這樣說道。 “我們將與保樂力加集團一起抓住這個機遇，因爲他們擁有強大的實力。”Austin’s “Aha” moment wasn’t a completely random occurrence. As president of Marquis Jet, a company that works with Buffett’s NetJets Aviation Inc., Austin already knew the Oracle of Omaha.
奧斯汀的“啊哈”時刻並不完全是一個隨機事件。作爲馬奎斯飛機公司(Marquis Jet)總裁，他與巴菲特旗下的NetJets航空公司(NetJets Aviation Inc.)存在合作關係。所以，奧斯汀早已熟識這位“奧馬哈先知”。They were at an annual poker tournament several years ago when Buffett reportedly took note of Austin’s tequila order and struck up a conversation about the Mexican-produced spirit. In that conversation, Austin pointed out it was interesting that no clear player challenged market leader Patron among premium tequilas.
幾年前，他們在一年一度的撲克錦標賽相遇。據說，巴菲特當時注意到奧斯汀訂購龍舌蘭酒的消息，隨即主動跟他談論起這種出產自墨西哥的烈酒。在那次談話中，奧斯汀指出一個頗有意思的現象：在高端龍舌蘭酒市場，還沒有涌現出一位足以挑戰Patron公司領導地位的參與者。“Warren said, ‘That’s really interesting that no other player could break through,’” Austin said, relaying the conversation. “That was the moment that I had the epiphany.”
“沃倫說，‘還沒有其他公司脫穎而出，這的確有意思，’”奧斯丁轉述了一下當時的談話。“就在那一刻，我突然開竅了。”Following that conversation, Austin jetted off to Mexico and sought to develop a premium tequila brand. He worked with family that has grown agave, used to produce all tequilas, for five generations.
這次談話結束後，奧斯汀立即飛往墨西哥，尋求開發一個頂級龍舌蘭酒品牌。他的合作對象是一個連續五代人一直種植龍舌蘭的農戶（這種植物是所有龍舌蘭酒的原料）。“I didn’t want an off-the-shelf tequila, I had a vision for how it was going to taste,” Austin said.
“我不想要一種現成的龍舌蘭酒。對於龍舌蘭酒的口感，我有自己的構想，”奧斯汀說。Avion was launched in July 2010 but quickly generated interest from some major alcoholic beverage makers. Pernod Ricard acquired a minority stake of the Avion Spirits joint venture in 2011. Other early investors included AOL Chief Executive Tim Armstrong and YouTube co-founder Chad Hurley.
艾維龍舌蘭酒於2010年7月正式推出，但很快就引起一些主流烈酒製造商的興趣。2011年，保樂力加集團收購了艾維烈酒合資公司的少數股權。其他的早期投資者包括美國在線公司(AOL)首席執行官蒂姆o阿姆斯特朗和YouTube聯合創始人查德o赫爾利。“I was an early investor in Avion for two reasons – the leadership team and the innovative use of media to build a global brand,” Armstrong said in an e-mail toFortune. “I looked at Avion as the Red Bull of spirits.”
“我是艾維公司的早期投資人之一，這樣做有兩個原因——領導團隊，以及創新性地利用媒體來打造一個全球性品牌這種做法，”阿姆斯特朗在發給《財富》的一封電子郵件中寫道。 “我把艾維視爲烈酒領域的紅牛 (Red Bull) 。”The brand got a free boost of publicity, as it was featured series plotline in the hit HBO show “Entourage.” That product placement was free, due to a friendship between Austin and “Entourage” creator Doug Ellin, though the publicity created some problems as some consumers thought the brand wasn’t real.
家庭影院電視臺(HBO)劇集《明星夥伴》(Entourage) 的熱播，讓這一品牌的知名度獲得免費提升。由於奧斯汀與《明星夥伴》創作者道格o葉林是好朋友，這款植入式廣告是免費的，但鑑於一些消費者認爲它是虛構品牌，這種宣傳也造成了一些問題。Avion’s sales growth suggests it is the real deal. Sales have climbed in the high double- to triple-digits since launch, and Austin says it is the fastest growing ultrapremium tequila in the world.
不斷增長的銷量表明，艾維是實打實的烈酒品牌。自推出以來，這款龍舌蘭酒的銷量一直以兩位數到三位數的增速急劇攀升。奧斯汀說，艾維是世界上增長最快的高端龍舌蘭酒。At stake is a booming tequila market that has seen rapid consumer interest in the U.S. as Avion, Patron and other manufacturers focus more on the quality of the agave and the distillation process. Patron this year is launching a line of pricey drinks as part of the largest product launch in the company’s 25-year history. Justin Timberlake, George Clooney and Sean “Diddy” Combs have all jumped on the tequila bandwagon. The growth over the past decade has been strongest on the higher end.
隨着艾維、Patron和其他製造商更專注於龍舌蘭的質量和蒸餾過程，龍舌蘭酒市場呈現出一派蓬勃發展的景象，美國消費者對這種烈酒的興趣與日俱增。作爲該公司成立25年以來規模最大的產品發佈活動的組成部分，Patron今年將推出一個高價龍舌蘭酒系列。賈斯汀o汀布萊克、喬治o克魯尼和說唱歌手吹牛老爹也紛紛加入龍舌蘭酒的投資人行列。在過去十年，高端龍舌蘭酒市場見證了有史以來增速最快的一段時期。Avion generally sells for between $40 to $60 a bottle, so it is considered a premium-priced spirit, though Austin says the price is an “affordable luxury” for consumers.
一瓶艾維龍舌蘭酒的售價通常在40到60美元之間，所以它被視爲高價烈酒，但奧斯汀堅稱，它是“買得起的奢侈品”，消費者完全能夠承受這種價位。And while Avion’s prime audience is generally between the ages of 25 to 40, Austin said the tequila has broad appeal.
雖然艾維主要面向25至40歲之間的消費羣體，但奧斯汀堅稱，這款龍舌蘭酒具有廣泛的吸引力。“If they are 21 and they have a mouth, I’m interested in them,” Austin said.
“如果你21歲，而且長着一張嘴，我也會對你感興趣的，”奧斯汀說。
