Suntory Snaps Up Jim Beam for $16 Billion In a unanimous decision by its board of directors, the maker of Maker's Mark, Laphroaig Scotch whisky and Courvoisier is selling to Japanese beverage company Suntory.

By Brian Patrick Eha

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

movieclips

For Jim Beam, it's Suntory time. The privately owned Japanese drinks company announced today its intent to purchase the maker of Maker's Mark, Laphroaig Scotch whisky and Courvoisier for $13.6 billion.

Suntory will buy out all existing shares of Jim Beam stock at $83.50 a share, a 25 percent premium on its Jan. 10 closing price. At 11:11 a.m. EST on Jan. 13, Jim Beam's stock was up $16.20 on the news, a gain of more than 24 percent.

The Japanese food and beverage conglomerate will also assume Jim Beam's outstanding debt, bringing the total value of the deal to $16 billion.

Known to most Americans as the company pitched by Bill Murray in the 2003 film Lost in Translation, and to the discerning few as the company behind Japanese single-malt whiskies Yamazaki and Hibiki, Suntory was founded in 1899 in Osaka and created Japan's first native whisky a quarter-century later.

"I believe this combination will create a spirits business with a product portfolio unmatched throughout the world and allow us to achieve further global growth," Nobutada Saji, president and chairman of Suntory's board of directors, said in a statement.

Both Beam's and Suntory's boards approved the deal unanimously. Suntory expects the deal to close in the second quarter of 2014, and says it will create "a stronger global player in premium spirits" with more than $4.3 billion in annual combined sales of spirits.

Matt Shattock, Beam's president and chief executive, will continue to run the U.S spirits maker along with his existing management team.

Related: Report: U.S. Business Mergers at Highest Level Since 2001

Brian Patrick Eha is a freelance journalist and former assistant editor at Entrepreneur.com. He is writing a book about the global phenomenon of Bitcoin for Portfolio, an imprint of Penguin Random House. It will be published in 2015.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Buying / Investing in Business

Former Zillow Execs Target $1.3T Market

Co-ownership is creating big opportunities for entrepreneurs.

Starting a Business

I Had 'Too Much Experience' to Find a Job. So I Used Facebook to Start a Small Business That's Making About $500,000 a Year.

After Amber Starling moved to Manhattan, Kansas, a frustrating job search led to a life-changing business opportunity.

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Thought Leaders

Why Your Startup's First Hires Matter More Than Your Big Idea

Startup success depends less on ideas and more on assembling a strong, strategically aligned early team that can execute, adapt and scale.

Business News

Apple Is Reportedly Developing AI Smart Glasses to Compete with Meta and Google

Apple's AI glasses are set to launch by the end of next year and will function like Meta's Ray-Bans.

Side Hustle

She Started a Creative Side Hustle While Working 'Dead-End' Jobs — Then Grew It From $10,000 to Over $50,000 a Month: '[It] Became Magnetic'

Alyssa O'Toole, 35, juggled "mismatched uniforms and odd hours" to turn her passion into a business.