Hays acquires Wachovia’s Milwaukee office
The Milwaukee office of Hays Companies has acquired the employee benefits practice of the Milwaukee office of Wachovia.
The acquisition resulted in the transfer of nearly 30 clients from Wachovia to Hays. In addition, four employees – Gwen Snyder, Greg Hubley, Dan Robinson, and Michael Sebastian – joined the employee benefits team at Hays’ Milwaukee office.
The acquisition continues the growth of Hays’ Milwaukee office, which was founded in March 1999. In addition to an employee benefits practice, Hays also provides risk management and commercial insurance services, personal home and auto insurance, customized insurance and affinity programs.
“Employee benefits are a very important part of our Milwaukee business,” said Bob Heaps, executive vice president of Minneapolis-based Hays Companies. “We look forward to working with our new clients and showing them the Hays service model- all the benefits of a national presence and expertise combined with local ownership and service delivery.”
SABMiller to acquire Russian brewer
SABMiller plc, the parent company of Milwaukee-based Miller Brewing Co., announced that it has agreed to acquire the Russian brewer LLC Vladpivo.
Vladpivo, the largest brewer in the Russian far east Primorie region, is located near the city of Vladivostok. The value of the gross assets to be acquired is approximately $69 million.
The Russian Far East represents approximately 7.6 percent of the Russian beer market and is projected to grow faster than the total Russian beer market from 2007 to 2013.
James Wilson, managing director of SABMiller RUS, said, “The acquisition of Vladpivo complements our existing capability and will allow us to expand the presence of our worthmore brands, by providing us with a more competitive logistics configuration and better access to our consumers in this important and attractive region.”
Vladpivo will become SABMiller’s third production facility in the country, in addition to its main brewery in Kaluga and the site in Ulyanovsk which is currently under construction and expected to be commissioned in early 2009.
SABMiller also today announced that its South African subsidiary, SAB Ltd, is launching Grolsch, the group’s premium Dutch beer brand.
Ronald van Amerongen, international brand director for Grolsch, said, “The launch of Grolsch in South Africa is an exciting first step in SABMiller’s global ambition for the brand. South Africa is the original homemarket of SABMiller and is a fast-growing consumer market for premium beer. This launch is the first of many, as we continue to develop Grolsch’s presence around the world.”
