Coca-Cola is among the firms considering a bid for GlaxoSmithKline brand Horlicks, The Telegraph has reported.
Kraft Heinz and Nestlé are also thought to be in the running to acquire the malted-drink brand, with owner GSK believed to be looking to offload Horlicks to focus on its growing pharmaceutical business.
According to The Telegraph, quoting sources close to the company, Morgan Stanley, the US investment bank, is advising GSK on the sale.
Founded in the UK in 1873, today most of Horlicks’ sales take place in India, where its portfolio also includes products aimed at boosting nutrition in women and children.
The move to sell the brand comes three months on from GSK saying that it was undertaking a strategic review of its consumer health-care products.
‘GSK expects the outcome of the strategic review to be concluded around the end of 2018,’ the company wrote in March. ‘There can be no assurance that the review process will result in any transaction.’
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
