According to the company, the acquisition of Imperator will place Stock in the “strong number two position in the overall Slovak spirits business, with clear market leadership in the herbal bitters category and a very strong number two position in both fruit distillates and vodka”.

Chris Heath, Stock Spirits Group CEO, said: “We are very pleased to have acquired Imperator as we continue to expand our brand portfolio in Central and Eastern Europe. We are confident that the combination of our existing brands in Stock Slovakia together with the Imperator brands will give us both the scale and coverage to help grow in the market in the future. We are also excited by the new opportunities that this will create to develop our business, the acquisition being firmly in line with our aim of being the leading spirits company regionally.”

Stock has also acquired Novel Ferm, an ethanol manufacturing business located near Rostock in north eastern Germany. The company produces 20million litres of ethanol per year. Its output will be used to supply Stock’s manufacturing plants in Poland and the Czech Republic. The move allows Stock to ensure that it has “strategic control” over the supply of primary raw materials.