By Mark Baber
September 28 – Arsenal have announced a new partnership with the Ethiopian Dashen Brewery in a deal described by Dashen’s CEO as a win for Arsenal, for the brewery and for Ethiopia.
Under the terms of the three-year deal Arsenal Football Club becomes the first Premier League side to secure a regional partnership in Ethiopia with the Dashen Brewery as its Official Beer Partner and with the club supporting Dashen Brewery’s community based initiatives with coaches from the club taking part in grassroots football development projects.
Speaking to www.arsenal.com Arsenal chief commercial officer Vinai Venkatesham said: “Arsenal has a huge fanbase across Africa, and our support in Ethiopia stands out as particularly strong. We are delighted to be partnering with Dashen Brewery, together creating the first regional partnership for a Premier League club, in this rapidly growing and developing territory.”
Dashen Brewery chief executive officer Devlin Hainsworth commented: “We are truly excited about this partnership. Dashen & Arsenal share common values with community being at the heart of both brands. This partnership will see Dashen invest both in grassroots football while at the same time supporting our commitment to creating meaningful consumer experiences.”
In a video presentation Hainsworth emphasises that: “Firstly this is good for football development in Ethiopia. We will be bringing coaches six times a year to work at the grassroots level and we all know that Arsenal play a very pure form of football so those direct coaching interventions will be of great benefit to football development in Ethiopia.”
According to Hainsworth, the two brands have much in common “in terms of quality and in terms of community and helping communities”, and the deal “is a win, win, win for the two brands and ultimately for Ethiopia.”
Dashen is one of the leading breweries in Ethiopia, originally owned by Tiret Corporate, an Ethiopian endowment charity mandated to support the sustainable development of the Amhara region and its people. In 2012 it received an equity investment of $90 million to develop its business with London-based Duet Capital (working in conjunction with DEG and Vasari Global) taking a 51% stake. The company has recently opened a second state of the art brewery, which produces beer adhering to the German Reinheitsgebot allowing only water, barley and hops to be used as ingredients.
With the opening of the second production plant, Dashen will be increasing output considerably and looking to sell its products throughout Ethiopia. With a long football tradition, the tie-up with the North London club will allow the brewery to directly engage with supporters in Ethiopia through the club’s digital platforms, promotional activities and marketing initiatives featuring Arsenal first-team players and club legends.
The deal was welcomed on social media by supporters of the Dashen Beer Football Club which plays in the Ethiopian Premier League.
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