Tilaknagar Industries is buying the popular whiskey brand Imperial Blue. The company has signed a final agreement with the Indian arm of French liquor giant Pernod Ricard to purchase the Imperial Blue business for Rs. 4150 crore. Tilaknagar is already well-known for making Mansion House brandy which is the best-selling brandy in India and the second-largest brandy brand in the world. The company said that buying Imperial Blue is a big step toward building its business across India in the IMFL (Indian Made Foreign Liquor) market. According to the company “This deal marks our entry into the Indian whiskey market. With this move we will now be a key player in both major IMFL categories brandy and whiskey.” They also said that the deal will help them grow their premium product range and make their supply network across the country even stronger. What did Pernod Ricard say about the deal?  Pernod Ricard called this deal an important part of reshaping its product lineup. The company said “Selling Imperial Blue will allow us to focus more on premium brands in fast-growing markets like India. This move will also help improve our profit margins and boost our overall sales.” Chairman and CEO Alexandre Ricard said “This deal fits perfectly with our global plan—to focus on faster-growing and more profitable brands. It will also help us grow even stronger in an important market like India.” Deal not yet final some approvals still needed The deal between Tilaknagar Industries and Pernod Ricard is not fully complete yet. It still needs approval from the Competition Commission of India (CCI). The deal is expected to be fully completed in the coming months. Back in December 2023 reports had said that both Tilaknagar and Inbrew Beverages were in the final race to buy Imperial Blue. Global investment firm Goldman Sachs acted as the advisor for Pernod Ricard in this deal. Tilaknagars shares jump After news of the deal came out Tilaknagar Industries’ stock price went up sharply. In the last one month alone the company’s shares have jumped nearly 31 per cent. Tilaknagar already has a range of liquor brands in its portfolio such as Mansion House Gold Barrel whiskey Blue Lagoon gin and Madira Gold Dark XXX rum. Big deals in Indias alcohol industry This is one of the biggest deals in India’s liquor business. Earlier in 2022 United Spirits (the Indian unit of Diageo) sold 32 brands including Haywards Old Tavern and Green Label to Inbrew Beverages for USD 106 million. Before that the biggest deal in the Indian liquor industry happened in 2014 when Diageo bought United Spirits for about USD 1.9 billion.