Bermuda-based liquor company Bacardi is considering an initial public offering (IPO) in a bid to raise extra capital and keep its competitive edge.

According to a report in yesterday's Miami Herald, Bacardi chairman Rub?n Rodr?guez is gearing up for a January shareholders meeting to discuss "a number of options to raise capital, which could include an initial public offering, partnership or private financing".

Bacardi's push for greater "financial flexibility" was said to be part of the company's efforts to hold its place in an industry that is undergoing consolidation and economic change. Bacardi, headquartered in Pitts Bay Road, is ranked fourth in the US and world-wide for liquor sales.

This latest development follows a decade of change for the family-controlled and privately-held company which had traditionally been a rum-only company. But the Herald said Bacardi, which was established in 1862, has been forced to branch out as consumer tastes have broadened: "While Bacardi rum remains the centerpiece of the family-owned business and the world's best-selling spirit, it's no longer the only brand driving sales and profits. After a decade of baby steps, the formerly tradition-bound Bacardi now has its hand in everything from gin to malt beverages and tequila."

In the last year alone, Bacardi reportedly launched or acquired four new products "aimed at filling voids in the portfolio or capitalising on changing consumer tastes", the Herald reported. Mr. Rodr?guez, also president and CEO, told the newspaper: ''It's a very competitive environment and we have to get bigger in order to be able to effectively compete.

"It's important to be the first one in the marketplace giving consumers what they want. If you don't do it, your competition is going to do it for you.''

It is not however the first time the company has considered an IPO as a way to raise capital. The issue came up in the late 1990s but the board axed the idea as it was said to lack shareholder support. But three years later that possibility is back up for discussion. And the company's shareholders have been invited to a January 20 informational meeting in Miami, according to the Miami Herald.

The meeting was said to be part of Mr. Rodriguez's efforts to "plan for the future" but some 400 family members make up the firm's large shareholder base and critics have questioned whether or not a consensus would be reached on the matter.

Eduardo Sardina, president of Bacardi North America and a Bacardi family member by marriage, told the Miami Herald: "Being private hasn't stunted our growth. There's more than one way to skin a cat," he said, and added that "the family will decide to go public only if its necessary".

But some industry analysts have said that Bacardi could be forced to go public if it wants to keep up with the "fast pace of industry consolidation".

Only last year Mr. Rodriguez, in an interview with cited the advantages of being privately-held: "We are a private company and do not have to worry about the ups and downs of the stock market.

"We look at this business on a long term basis so we are not to concerned whether the climate is more favourable now or less favourable now. We are looking at it on a long term basis...."

But in a September letter to shareholders, Mr. Rodriguez had shifted gears: "This needed flexibility may take the form of an exchange of new shares with a potential partner, a public offering or a combination of both.

"A public offering will also provide all shareholders with added liquidity at a fair market price,'' he said.