BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Four generations and 150 years on from the founding father of Heineken (>> HEINEKEN), the Dutch brewing family shows no signs of wanting to relinquish control.
Begun in 1864 by Gerard Adriaan Heineken with the purchase of a brewery in Amsterdam, the company now has more than 165 plants in over 70 countries and is the world's third-largest beer maker - yet his great-granddaughter Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken is still wedded to the firm.
The 60-year-old, the family's leading figure, firmly rebuffed the advance of Heineken's larger rival SABMiller (>> SABMiller plc) last Friday about a possible takeover.
A statement said her family intended to preserve the heritage and identity of Heineken as an independent brewer and expressed confidence that the company would continue to deliver growth and shareholder value.
The Heineken family retains a controlling interest in the brewer, Heineken N.V., via a tiered holding structure.
The family owns 88.67 percent of investment vehicle L'Arche Green, which in turn has 51.709 percent of listed Heineken Holding (>> HEINEKEN HOLDING). That has a 50.005 percent stake in the brewer.
The family therefore controls the group while holding an economic interest of only about 23 percent, itself enough for a 118 million euro (152.4 million) payout in dividends last year.
Comfortable with their ample wealth, their priority is retaining control of the brewer and there is little obvious reason for them to accept a takeover offer from a rival, regardless of price.
SABMiller may have been willing to welcome the Heinekens/Carvalhos as shareholders in a larger SAB/Heineken combination.
However Trevor Stirling, beverage analyst at Bernstein Research in London, estimates that the family would have ended up with about 14 percent of the combined company, leaving them with a lower stake than tobacco group Altria (>> Altria Group Inc) and the loss of effective control of the business.
KIDNAPPED
Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken, whose principal residence is London, does not seek the limelight, rarely talking about her company or her family's wealth. Her own net worth is estimated at $12.2 billion, putting her 99th in the Forbes list of the world's richest people.
She is the daughter of Freddy Heineken, who set up Heineken Holding in 1952 and made Heineken a brand recognized around the world.
He also made headlines around the world when he was kidnapped with his driver and held captive for three weeks in 1983 before he was freed after the payment of a ransom - an ordeal which spawned a 2011 film starring Rutger Hauer: "The Heineken Kidnapping".
The family remains embedded in the company. De Carvalho-Heineken's 29-year-old son Alexander joined the board of Heineken Holding in 2013.
Her British husband, Michel de Carvalho, a banker at Citi, has been on the brewer's supervisory board for the past 18 years.
Michel, 70, is more obviously outgoing than his wife, more readily responding to questions at the opening of Holland Heineken House, a meeting place for Dutch athletes at the 2012 London Olympics, after she had confessed an interest in horse riding.
Michel appeared in three Winter Olympics as a British alpine skier and luger and was once a child actor, playing Farraj in Lawrence of Arabia, an orphan servant shot by Lawrence to save him from being taken by the Turks.
In the 12 years since Freddy Heineken died and his daughter took charge, Heineken has transformed itself into a truly global business, making almost 20 billion liters of beer per year.
With steady expansion in Africa, including Nigeria where it is the leading brewer, a 2010 purchase of the beer business of Mexico's FEMSA and its acquisition of the whole of Asia Pacific Breweries in 2012, it has expanded well beyond its European base, while still being the continent's biggest beer supplier.
The company says it sells two-thirds of its volumes to faster-growing emerging markets, with brands such as Sol and Tiger. Heineken lager is the top-selling international beer brand, the company's cider business is growing and more recent innovations include Desperados, a tequila-flavored beer.
(Editing by Pravin Char)
By Philip Blenkinsop
