Heineken, the international premium lager, has established its presence in over 170 countries today.

It sticks by its dictum, Heineken connects you to more unique and memorable experiences and consistently reaches out to the sophisticated set with events like the Heineken Green Room Sessions, THIRST and the World of Music and Dance (WOMAD).

Heineken

, the worlds No. 1 international

premium beer, achieved double-digit growth in all Asia Pacific markets where the brand is produced and distributed by APB. Heineken continued to grow in market share and brand preference in Singapore, Malaysia, New Zealand, Thailand and Vietnam. The brands solid footing was reaffirmed by strong volume growth in FY 02/03. Collectively, these five markets have consistently generated the fastest growth for the Heineken brand worldwide in recent years. As a symbol of commitment to quality and efficiency, Vietnam Brewery received both the Heineken Brewery Award for best individual brewery and Heineken Quality Award for overall excellence in May 2003. Thai Asia Pacific Brewery came in a close second and received a commendation. Excellent technical and commercial results also saw Asia Pacific Breweries Singapore receiving the Heineken Sales and Distribution Award in April 2003. Our efforts to build long-term brand equity in part through excellent advertising and marketing campaigns were well recognised. In Singapore, the brand was awarded two GLOBES at the International GLOBES Awards held in Miami for Best Multi-Discipline Campaign and Most Effective Long-Term Promotion. Heineken also once again won the Gold Award in Asia, and separately in Thailand and Hong Kong in the annual Readers Digest Asias SuperBrands 2003 survey.

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Brand Positioning and Performance As part of the strategy to stay connected with younger consumers in their 20s, Heineken has embarked on an increasingly popular global music initiative called THIRST, which brings cutting-edge deejays and dance-music acts and events to major cities around the world, including, the Asia Pacific. This includes a dance-music event by a world famous deejay in Malaysia and a global dancescene competition for local deejay talents in New Zealand. Such programmes further strengthen the brand building exercise through the on-going It Could Only Be Heineken advertising campaign. In Singapore, Heineken also sponsors exclusive Green Room Sessions with live music acts, lively Groove Parties and global world-music events like WOMAD. The music strategy adopted in the Singapore market has been so successful that it is now used in other markets, such as Malaysia, which also hosts Green Room Sessions. In Thailand, Heineken hosted a string of music events such as the Heineken Indy Music Series and Heineken DJ Spin Party on the beach, as well as the inaugural Heineken Jazz Festival in Hua Hin. Deejay tours and Green Nights by the brand are also gaining popularity in urban Vietnam as they appeal to the younger target audience through cuttingedge music.

Surasak Srison Distribution & Warehouse an American based in Vietnam Manager Jeffrey Alan Tomlinson Brewery Manager,
Hatay Brewery Limited Thai Asia Pacific Brewery Co., Ltd

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The Heineken World of Movies is also gaining ground. In Thailand, The Matrix, was tapped into with Heinekens sponsorship of the premiere of its second installment, Matrix Reloaded . In Malaysia, Heineken was associated with the James Bond blockbuster, Die Another Day, while in Vietnam, the brand was closely associated with another hit movie, The Bourne Identity. Heineken is also a major sponsor of tennis and golf in Thailand and Vietnam. In Vietnam, the broadcast of Wimbledon, the US Open, Australia Open and the Shanghai Open were sponsored by Heineken . Also, the premiere Heineken Challenger Tennis tournament in Asia was hosted to link the brand with the international sport. In Thailand, Heineken World of Golf hosted

the annual Heineken Thailand Amateur Gold Championship. In support of Rugby World Cup 2003, the brand undertook a wide range of promotions in New Zealand where rugby is the No. 1 sport. 30 Heineken bars were converted into prime spectator venues, creating hotspots for the brands target drinkers to gather. The teams branding strategies have been paying off. The brand has continued to show doubledigit growth in volume sales and improvements in market share and brand awareness in all its Asia Pacific markets. For Thailand in particular, it now commands over 77% market share in the premium segment.

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Future Outlook Heineken is well-placed to consolidate its leadership position in the premium segments in markets under the management of APB. The belief is that in the long term, the size of the premium segment in each market will grow and increase in proportion to the total beer market. APB intends to continue its high investment level to maximise the opportunities for the Heineken brand in future years.

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