Shifting Lanes: How Craft Breweries Are Changing Business Structures

Times are tough for craft beer. Once the darling of the tap walls and shelf sets, double-digit sales growth and taprooms springing up on every street corner like that green and white coffee giant. Things seemed like good times would never end, but every party has a pooper, and 2024 is looking like one of the most brutal years so far for craft brewery brands since 2020.

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Rough Draft: Challenges In On-Premise Craft Beer Sales

Amongst the revelry of craft beer fans that descended upon Denver in late September for the annual Great American Beer Festival, a smaller group of beer enthusiasts gathered at Cervantes Masterpiece in Five Points for the last Brewbound BrewTalks industry event of 2023. While GABF is mainly a consumer-facing event, there are a small number of industry insider, business-focused events that occur that same week and BrewTalks is one of them.

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All Grown Up | Craft Beer is Now a Mature Market

On August 10, 2023, the Brewers Association issued a press release summarizing the craft beer industry midyear update from the Chief Economist, Bart Watson, where he expressed that things are still not great for craft beer, but also not quite as bad as they have been.

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You Can’t Spell Union Without U and I

On January 17th, 2023, the nearly 100 current employees of Creature Comforts Brewing in Athens, GA filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to unionize under a brand new independent labor banner — BUG or the Brewery Union of Georgia. This does not mean that Creature Comforts has officially unionized their labor force, as a formal election process amongst employees must take place to solidify the new structure and then head to the bargaining table, but BUG organizers are optimistic about the vote. The discussion about unionization began earlier last summer and progressed quickly as many employees cited feeling neglected, overburdened, and unsupported by upper management, who have been busy planning the expansion of a new Creature Comforts facility in Los Angeles. BUG also believes that unionization embraces Creature Comforts’ overarching company values such as ‘“existing to foster human connection” and “building a balanced team of authentic and professional individuals.” 

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The BA Publishes the 2021 Craft Beer Industry Review

Every year, the Brewers Association publishes its Industry Review issue of The New Brewer magazine, which gives craft beer industry members a snapshot of how each brewery segment of the industry has performed over the past year in terms of production and sales levels. This edition never fails to disappoint with a plethora of juicy statistics for beer data nerds to chew on and brewery ownership to postulate about the future of the craft beer market landscape. This year was not without its share of surprises, with the likes of a non-alcoholic beer brand entering the mix and even more appearances by well-known breweries now functioning as “beverage” companies enjoying success with products that go beyond the typical ale or lager. And while that sexy 8% overall segment growth rate gets industry folks all excited, it’s not without some fine print. It’s one thing to take these rankings on the nose and pass judgment on where the craft beer industry is heading, but there are some really interesting finds in this data if you learn to read between the lines.

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The Return on Investment of CBC 2022

For a vast number of current and aspiring beer professionals, the annual Craft Brewers Conference hosted by the Brewers Association is THE go-to industry conference for all things beer-related. It’s four full days of seminars, workshops, and social networking events, plus a seemingly endless trade show floor ripe with vendors enthusiastically waiting to sell you everything from gaskets and exotic hops to insurance and glycol systems. Most attendees return home with swag bags full of branded goodies and heads full of ideas. But what’s the true return on investment (ROI) of attending the Craft Brewers Conference when it comes to growing the bottom line of your brewery business? If you or your team didn’t attend the conference, this will give you some insight into what was missed and for those that did attend, some ideas for how to revisit sessions and take advantage of all that was offered to help you optimize the business side of your brewery.

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State of the Craft Beer Industry Report

After surviving a dismal Q1 of 2022, the craft beer industry can finally breathe a sigh of relief and look forward to more sunny skies for the remainder of 2022. A recent smattering of craft beer industry updates from trade associations, allied trade partners, and data aggregates are providing craft breweries more light at the end of their pandemic market tunnel. The general consensus is optimistic, whether it’s Bart Watson from the Brewers Association relaying his confidence about 2022 for craft brewers or 76% of craft brewers themselves waxing positive about sales growth this year in the 2022 Brewing Growth Trends Report from Arryved. It’s time to break out your sunglasses beer folks, let’s take a look at the brighter state of the craft beer industry (with some occasional clouds) heading into the remainder of 2022.

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Anderson Valley Brewing Company Sold to the McGee Family

The holiday shopping season is underway, and it seems that breweries are a hot item. In a matter of weeks, we’ve witnessed the acquisition of New Belgium Brewing by Kirin’s … Read More

Corporate Beer is Not Going to Like This

Last week, the Brewers Association sent out a press release announcing that more than “3,000 craft brewing companies—representing more than 6,000 craft brewing locations in the U.S.—have signed on to use the independent craft brewer seal.”

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Cigar City Set to Begin Chicago Distribution

Chicago beer drinkers, whose only hope of grabbing a Cigar City Jai Alai IPA involved a flight to Florida, can now save themselves a trip when the brewery begins Chicago distribution February 19.

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