Murphy's Irish Stout was founded in 1856 in Cork, Ireland and became a wholly owned subsidiary of Heineken International in 1983. It is primarily available in draft form in pubs in Ireland and launched draughtflow cans in 1992. While Guinness dominates the stout market, Murphy's markets its Irish heritage and origin. It faces competition from Guinness and faces challenges expanding beyond its core Irish market due to its smaller scale advertising. Its strategy focuses on differentiation through its unique packaging and leveraging its relationship with Heineken to expand internationally, targeting markets where demand for authentic Irish beers is growing.

1. Submitted to Dr. M R Suresh
Suubmitted by
Praveen Ben
MURPHY-BREWERY-IRELAND-LIMITED

2. Case Facts
• James J. Murphy and Company Limited was founded in 1856 in Cork
City, Ireland, by the four Murphy brothers-James, William, Jeromd,
and Francis.
• In 1997 Murphy's had become a truly international brand that
maintained a unique identity in Ireland.
• The name Murphy, the most common surname in the entire
country, is recognized internationally for its Irish heritage.
• On July 14, 1982, a Dutch brewing company Heineken committed to
invest 1.6 million pounds in Murphy breweries.
• In 1983, Murphy Brewery Ireland Limited became a wholly owned
subsidiary of Heineken International
• Heineken International is the world's second largest brewer and a
private company present in over 170 countries.

3. Continued……
• Murphy's Irish Stout was available only in draft
form in pubs throughout Ireland and later a
packaging innovation (draughtflow cans) was
launched in October 1992
• A draughtflow bottle is now available, in 500-
milliliter bottle which has a long neck and is dark
brown in color which is used as a powerful unique
differentiating point for the brand
• Guinness and Grand met are the major
competitors of Murphy which are being merged
together
• Guinness has a market share of around 70-90% in
stout category in al markets

4. Marketing Mix
Analysis
Product
Murphy’s Irish Stout
Murphy's Irish Amber/Red Beer
Heineken’s Buckler (Low-alcohol beer)
Price
Company priced its products slightly below the competition
Average price of a Pint Stout – £2.00
US market
MIS - 1.76$ (14.9 ounce can)
MIA – 7.5$

5. Place
• Bars, Pubs, Off-licences and supermarkets
• Ireland & European countries
• United states
Promotion
• The brands' Irish heritage and origin continue to be reinforced
• The company engages in tactical advertising and promotion rather than larger-scale strategic
campaigns
• For example, St. Patrick's Day and Irish music nights
• Advertising theme for UK – “Like the Murphy's, I'm not bifter“ campaign
• Murphy's Irish Open, which was part of the PGA European Golf Tour
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND

6. Internal analysis
Strength
• Murphy name (Most common surname in
Ireland)
• Support by Heineken( 2nd largest market share)
• Unique packaging (Draughtflow cans)
• Knowledge about the industry and market
Weakness
• Small scale advertising and promotional
schemes
• Not able to achieve the growth like they did
overseas
• Less variants in market

7. External
analysis
Opportunities
• Increasing demand in foreign markets
• Potential for high growth
• Gaining popularity for Irish pubs
• Well known for Irish Heritage
Threats
• Brand loyalty towards Guinness
• Merger of Guinness and Grand Met
• Intense competition
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA

8. CAGE
Framework
Cultural distance: when entering new
markets, murphy’s has to look at the
culture of people. This is because the way
people think of beer(hangout or considered
as regular drink). Few countries will be fun
loving and few conscious about growing.
Administrative distance: countries like India
may impose ban on alcohol or rules on
consumption may become strict. So while
entering a new market, need to consider
their administrative motives.
Economic distance: The income of people also
plays a role, where the price can be fixed based
on that.
Few look for value for money and few looks on
the brand image.

9. Brand Architecture
Murphy’s

10. Xavier's Framework
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS
Ireland was one of the fastest growing
economy with young population
Irish Pubs in UK are getting popular
There was a high growth in microbrewery
segment in USA
There was increased demand for speciality
segment
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA

11. MARKET ANALYSIS
In Irish market pubs are the major contributor to the sale of
Murphy
Irish market is highly competitive
UK market is world’s largest stout market in terms of
consumption
Murphy is present in almost all countries in Europe and
anticipating to enter growing Russian market.
US is most lucrative with 270 million consumers and high
standard of living
The company adopted the strategy of slow growth
Company launched Moorthy's Irish Ambar in premium
segment which become highly successful

12. CUSTOMER ANALYSIS
The Irish consumers were brand loyal. The level of
switching was very low
The different customers across the globe have
preference towards authentic Irish Beers
COMPETITOR ANALYSIS
The main competitor for Murphy’s is Guinness which
has its presence in 50 countries
Guinness is targeting continental Europe, Asia and US
for expansion.
The other competitors include Beamish & Crawford,
Anheuser Busch, Miller, Coors, Thomas Hardy,
Newcastle Samuel smith.

13. Company analysis
Murphy’s is an Irish company established in 1856 and present
in 66 countries
The company believes in aggressive marketing campaign
especially in Irish and other European markets
The company improved its performance globally after
acquired by Heineken International
Marketing Mix analysis
The products of the company include Murphy’s Irish Stout,
Murphy's Irish Amber/Red Beer, Heineken’s Buckler.
The company follows competitive prizing strategy .
The Place includes Ireland, United states and Europe
The company prefers different advertising strategy for different
markets based on market conditions

14. STRATEGY
Company introduced innovation by introduction of draughtflow cans.
In Ireland Murphy’s adopted aggressive advertisement campaign
Where the demand is low, Murphy’s introduced 3/5 keg to ensure that product is reaching all corners
The company supplied in reduced price to pubs so that they can get higher margin
Strong distribution network across Europe helped them in success
They launched ad campaign in UK ie “Like the Murphy’s, I'm not bitter”
In USA the company adopted slow growth strategy.
Targeted Eastern coast and South Florida
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC

15. 3 C FRAMEWORK
Company
 Murphy’s is an Irish based company which is present in 66
counties
The company uses Irish heritage as its competitive
advantage
Customers
 The company is having different customer base in different
countries.
Competitors
 The competitors for Murphy include Guinness, Beamish &
Crawford, Anheuser Busch, Miller, Coors, Thomas Hardy,
Newcastle Samuel smith.

16. Product/ Market Strategy
Formulation (USA)
• Historical Performance:
• From 20 countries in 1992 to 63
countries in 1997.
• Grew in USA by 163%.
• Both Irish Stout and Irish Amber
have met their expectations.
• Access to 5000 pubs in the
country.
• Momentum would be steady
based on the historical
performance till 2000.
• Forecasting the Market Environment:
• The USA market is flat for certain
span of time.
• Advent of microbreweries.
• Although the market is flat, MIS
grew significantly.
• Speciality segment is growing
significantly.

17. SWOT in
relation to
competition:
Murphy’s
• Strengths
• Experience in brewing.
• The capabilities of Heineken.
• Expertise in a certain
segment.
• Weaknesses
• Lagging in terms of market
share.
• Less prominence.
• Limited production capacity
Guinness
• Strengths
• Experience in brewing.
• Expertise in a certain
segment.
• Market Leader in stout.
(Often synonymous).
• Marketing campaigns.
• Global Expanse.
• Weaknesses
• Failure in ventures other
than brewing beer.

18. • Opportunities
• Speciality segment is growing worldwide.
• Rise of micro-breweries.
• Threats:
• Presence of strong competitors.
• Other brands under Heineken.
• Flattening market.
• Opportunities
• Growth opportunities in other segment
(Sophistication)
• Rise of microbreweries .
• Speciality segment is growing worldwide.
• Threats:
• Threats by emerging competitors.
• Flattening market.
• Threats by new entrants from elsewhere.
Difference in marketing strategy
Murphy’s:
• They followed a gradual marketing approach.
• Innovation in bottling.
Guinness:
• Rigorous marketing approach was done.
• No proper innovation in bottling.

19. Features of strategy that can produce favorable impact
• Endorsement by the customers.
• Bottling and packaging ( draughtflow bottles, rich green and red package for Amber).
• Leveraging the capabilities of Heineken.
• The targeting of certain communities.
Proposing Alternate Strategies:
• Using the Irish diaspora.
• Entering the sophistication segment.
• Increased communication and promotion.
• Establishing facilities in USA.

20. Maturity of the product-market under review
• The product is lagging behind the major competitors present in the market of USA.
Product Performance related to competition
• The beer market is mature.
• However the speciality and microbrewery segments are growing. (> 20 percent).
• There is substantial scope for growth in the US market in the above-mentioned segments.
Market Segmentation
Is there scope for growth?
• Geographic and demographic – Eastern frontier ( High Irish population) and Florida ( British
tourists).
• Microbreweries.

21. Strategy
selection
• The strategy should be a blend of product leadership and customer
intimacy.
• The authenticity of the product, the innovative bottling, the lesser
settling time and the less bitterness should be focused on and
communicated.
• The aspects of the Irish personality can be reflected in the brand
through proper promotion.
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA

22. STRATEGIC THRUST
• Ireland and England
• Market maturity stage - Mature
• Competitive Position - Strong
• Necessary Steps –
• Attain cost leadership – Lower trade price.
• Differentiate – Draughtflow bottle, Less settling time, 3/5 keg barrel for quality.
• Grow with industry- limiting efforts to those necessary to maintain market share.
• USA
• Market Maturity stage – Mature
• Competitive Position – Favorable
• Necessary Steps-
• Differentiate – Authenticity, bottling, pricing slightly lower pricing.
• Hang in- Prolong the existence US market.
• Renew – Increased communication.

23. Is Murphy’s destined to be a
“niche” product forever? Will
these brands ever reach a place
where they command
substantial market share?

24. • Murphy’s would need significant time and effort to move out of the “niche”
category.
• But they might not be able to gain absolutely high market share due to
presence of strong competitors.
• The speciality segment is small but growing steadily which implies they might
gain significant gain in long run.
• The differentiation based on the bottling, identity and taste.
• Leveraging the capabilities of the parent, Heineken.

25. Should the brand continue to make the two brands only at the Cork
brewery for the lucrative US market or should they consider making
the product in that country?

26. • The company is in a dearth of capacity for the increased demands.
• It can utilize the efficiency of Heineken for establishing the facilities.
• The Irish authenticity is attached to the brand. The essence of the
Ireland embedded with the brand should be kept intact.
• The establishment should be done by keeping this unaffected which
can be done by mooring the production with the Irish diaspora of
USA.

27. Will Murphy’s ever be able to achieve the status of other
products that are famous for the Irish heritage such as
Guinness, Bailey’s Irish Cream, Jameson Irish Whiskey,
Waterford Crystal and Belleck China?

28. • In the segment of Murphy’s the status of Irish heritage has already
been captured by the leading brands.
• They can establish this status if they venture into the newer markets
rather than the current ones.
• Significant investments should be made in communicating the aura of
Irish heritage associated with the brand.

29. Analysis Of Enterprise Responses In Host Country Regulatory Environment
Prof. Suresh Proposed Model (Class Of 2010)

30. Cultural
dimensions
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31. How important is the strong showing in Irish domestic market for
Murphy’s?
• It’s highly important as Irish is the country of origin of stout.
• Ireland is the lead market for the stout market.
• The quality of the beer will be assessed by its performance in Ireland.
Should Murphy’s employ global rather than local
marketing strategy?
• The company should adopt a local strategy.
• Different aspects of the brand is emphasized at different places.
• The marketing strategy should create significant impact on the targeted
segment based on their worldviews.

32. Is Murphy’s destined to be a
“niche” product forever? Will
these brands ever reach a place
where they command
substantial market share?

33. • Murphy’s would find it hard to move out of the niche category in
near future
• Due to the less share volatility and entrenched market shares.
• But they might not be able to gain absolutely high market share due
to presence of strong competitors.
• The speciality segment is small but growing steadily which implies
they might gain significant gain in long run.
• The differentiation based on the bottling, identity and taste.
• Leveraging the capabilities of the parent, Heineken.

34. Should the brand continue to make the two brands only at the Cork
brewery for the lucrative US market or should they consider making
the product in that country?

35. • The company is in a dearth of capacity for the increased demands.
• It can utilize the efficiency of Heineken for establishing the facilities.
• The Irish authenticity is attached to the brand. The essence of the
Ireland embedded with the brand should be kept intact.
• The establishment should be done by keeping this unaffected which can
be done by mooring the production with the Irish diaspora of USA.

36. Will Murphy’s ever be able to achieve the status of other
products that are famous for the Irish heritage such as
Guinness, Bailey’s Irish Cream, Jameson Irish Whiskey,
Waterford Crystal and Belleck China?

37. • In the segment of Murphy’s the status of Irish heritage has already
been captured by the leading brands.
• They can establish this status if they venture into the newer markets
rather than the current ones.
• Significant investments should be made in communicating the aura of
Irish heritage associated with the brand.

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40. THANK
YOU