Scottish Courage

Who are they? The British brewing division of Scottish & Newcastle, which recently put its 1,450 pub estate up for sale. Courage is the giant of the UK brewing scene, owning seven breweries including the Tyne Brewery in Newcastle, Theakston's in Masham and John Smith's in Tadcaster, and producing some of the best known beer brands in the world. The question now on everyone's lips is how S&N will invest the expected £2.5bn it will raise from its retail business to expand its brewing interests, in Britain and abroad. The company has already bought Bulmers, full control of Portuguese brewer Sociedade Central de Cervejas, East European brewer Baltica Beverages and is paying £18m for Ak-Nar brewery in Kazakhstan, where beer sales are soaring. Main brands: The brewer's portfolio reads like a Who's Who of beer. It includes Foster's, Kronenbourg, Beck's, John Smith's, Courage Best, Newcastle Brown Ale and Theakston's. Employees: 6,500 Turnover: £2.002bn in 2002, compared to £1.977bn the year before. Future plans: The sale of S&N's pubs and hotels will enable it to take part in a huge mergers and acquisitions programme. Scottish Courage intends to carry on rolling out its HIT dispense system for Foster's, and launch new television advertising for the lager. There will be an active year ahead for Kronenbourg, with new additions to the range including Deco and Premier Cru and sponsorship of the Open Golf championship. "Elsewhere, Scottish & Newcastle expects to complete the purchase of the HP Bulmer business, integrating it with Scottish Courage and adding Strongbow and other leading cider brands to an already dominant drinks range," said a spokesman.