WINTER 2017 | NOV 29 | SANTA MONICA, CA
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What Goes On at Brewbound Session?

The Pulse of the Beer Business, Presented by Industry Innovators

  • See the big picture. Understand growth opportunities for both the industry and your business. Drive the beer business forward together through new insight and perspectives.
  • Our speakers are leaders of both established and emerging breweries and interesting people from all three tiers of the beer industry.
  • Speakers deliver talks on the state of the industry, growth strategies, best practices, market research, and cases that focus on growing your brewery and the lessons learned along the way

Time to Discover Your Next Partner and Share Stories with Your Peers

  • The beer industry is competitive, but it’s also convivial. Rub elbows with beer’s best and brightest. Collaborate with brewery leaders and the ecosystem of supporting businesses: distributors, investors, lawyers, consultants, retailers and suppliers.
  • We paced the program to allow for fruitful off-stage conversations during breaks. We also make sure there is plenty of time to share battle stories over a couple beers before and after the event.

Your Brewery Showcased on Stage

  • The Startup Brewery Challenge is a showcase for new brewers. This is your opportunity to pitch against the best of the best, get instant feedback from a group of industry expert judges and compete for a cash prize and a trip to Portland, OR.
  • Each brewery acts as a case study and a spark for discussion. Benefit from both the instant feedback on-stage and your brewery being a point of conversation among the audience.
  • Past champions: Border X Brewing, Hopewell Brewing, Appalachian Mountain Brewery, Wynwood Brewing, and Braxton Brewing.

Connect your Products and Services to the Community

  • Brewbound Session is an intimate conference for a select number of beer-specific industry supplier and service companies. It delivers more personalized participation than mega trade shows in an environment fit for in-depth conversations.
  • The Sample Bars are a chance to get your beer in front of other brewers and the people who know your daily challenges. Bond over shared experiences and receive valuable feedback.

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Brewbound Session Winter 2017 Speakers

  • Nikos Ridge, Co-Founder, Ninkasi Brewing Company - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Nikos Ridge

    Co-Founder, Ninkasi Brewing Company

    Nikos Ridge, Co-Founder, Ninkasi Brewing Company - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Nikos Ridge

    Co-Founder, Ninkasi Brewing Company

    Nikos Ridge, grew up in Eugene and moved to the East Coast to pursue an education and career in finance. After graduating from New York University, working on the Stock Exchange floor, and living the hustle-and-bustle of city life, he heard the calling of the Pacific Northwest and returned to his hometown in 2003. In 2006, Ridge met brewer Jamie Floyd over a pint and soon after established Ninkasi Brewing Company. In the early days of Ninkasi, Ridge wore many hats. From drafting the very first business plan to providing a one-man local distribution service – loading up each and every keg and driving it to its final destination in his Ford Ranger – to selling in tap handles, brewing and packaging. Working closely with local restaurateurs and bar owners, Ridge quickly established Ninkasi as a craft beer staple of Eugene. Transitioning from his role of CEO to President in May 2017, Ridge helps lead the strategic direction of Ninkasi.

  • Cheryl  Collins, Former CEO, Ninkasi Brewing Company - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Cheryl Collins

    Former CEO, Ninkasi Brewing Company

    Cheryl  Collins, Former CEO, Ninkasi Brewing Company - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Cheryl Collins

    Former CEO, Ninkasi Brewing Company

    As the former CEO of Ninkasi Brewing Company, Cheryl Collins knows a few things about crafting a strong company culture in an ever-growing and evolving industry. Based right here in Eugene, Collins’ expertise in organizational leadership and development drives Ninkasi Brewing to be a nationally-competitive craft beer brand and a top state employer receiving recognitions like Best Places to Work (OUTSIDE) and 100 Best Places to Work in Oregon (Oregon Business Magazine). Collins’ work at Ninkasi has included spearheading employee recruitment, training and onboarding programs, implementing Continuous Improvement strategies and best practices across brewery operations, fostering teambuilding activities to nurture organizational culture, implementing safety protocols and initiatives, facilitating leadership development, contributing to employer branding, and helping oversee the leadership and implementation of company strategies. Collins was recently honored as Wine Enthusiast’s 40 Under 40 Tastemakers of 2017.

  • Jim Sabia, Chief Marketing Officer, Constellation Brands - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Jim Sabia

    Chief Marketing Officer, Constellation Brands

    Jim Sabia, Chief Marketing Officer, Constellation Brands - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Jim Sabia

    Chief Marketing Officer, Constellation Brands

    Jim Sabia is the Chief Marketing Officer of Constellation Brands' Beer Division, overseeing a portfolio of powerhouse brands: Corona Extra, Corona Light, Modelo Especial, Modelo Negra, Modelo Chelada, Pacifico, Victoria, Ballast Point, Funky Buddha and Tocayo Brewing Company. During Jim’s 8-year tenure with Constellation, the beer portfolio has been the #1 growth driver for the U.S. beer industry. Under his leadership, Corona launched its iconic “Find Your Beach” campaign and Modelo Especial has grown to be the #2 import in the country. Prior to Constellation, Jim was with Molson Coors Brewing Company for 17 years. As Vice President of Marketing and Media at Molson Coors, he was responsible for U.S. marketing of Coors Light and Coors Banquet. Included among his many accomplishments is leading the development and introduction of the highly successful Blue Moon brand. Jim earned his MBA in marketing strategy from Regis University in Denver, Colorado, and his bachelor’s degree in marketing from Iona College in New Rochelle, N.Y. He currently lives outside of Chicago with his wife and three sons.

  • Justin Robinson, Co-Founder, Drizly - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Justin Robinson

    Co-Founder, Drizly

  • Lindsay Kunkle, Vice President, Kantar Futures - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Lindsay Kunkle

    Vice President, Kantar Futures

    Lindsay Kunkle, Vice President, Kantar Futures - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Lindsay Kunkle

    Vice President, Kantar Futures

    As a Vice President, Lindsay is one of the firm’s leaders of Kantar Futures’ subscription-based consulting business and helps clients develop custom, future-led strategies via futures thinking processes. She oversees client relationships across a range of industries, with a focus in beverage alcohol, as well as retail, consumer health and fitness and fashion. Lindsay serves as one of the company’s experts in Millennials and Centennials, as well as women. Additionally, Lindsay has worked internally to develop forward-thinking perspectives in the health space, as well as consumer loyalty. Lindsay has been with Kantar Futures for over seven years. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Duke University.

  • Marty Birkel, President of Craft & Specialty, Constellation Brands - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Marty Birkel

    President of Craft & Specialty, Constellation Brands

    Marty Birkel, President of Craft & Specialty, Constellation Brands - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Marty Birkel

    President of Craft & Specialty, Constellation Brands

    Marty Birkel is president of Ballast Point Brewing Company and heads up Constellation Brands’ Craft & Specialty Beer Division, which also includes Florida’s Funky Buddha and Chicago’s Tocayo brands. Marty and his team lead the craft portfolio’s strategy and vision, as well as help to strengthen Constellation Brands’ position in the high-end beer industry. Prior to joining the Ballast Point team, Marty was senior vice president and global chief sales officer in the Wine and Spirits division at Constellation Brands, the president of Constellation Spirits and also the executive vice president of national sales for Barton Beers. Marty earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Notre Dame. He currently lives in San Diego.

  • Matt Bardill, Senior Manager, Beer, Total Wine & More - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Matt Bardill

    Senior Manager, Beer, Total Wine & More

    Matt Bardill, Senior Manager, Beer, Total Wine & More - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Matt Bardill

    Senior Manager, Beer, Total Wine & More

    Matt Bardill joined the Total Wine & More team in 2010 as a member of the Import Wine team. While on the wine business, he held various role and drove double digit growth for the import wine category.  In 2014, Matt joined the beer team which accounts for over $400M in annual sales He is now the Senior Manager of the Beer Buying Team, overseeing the Beer Business at Total Wine & More across 21 states and over 170 store locations.  Matt received his undergraduate degree from UNC – Chapel Hill and his MBA from the University of Maryland – College Park

  • Amanda Batchelet, Category Director, Spirits, Total Wine & More - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Amanda Batchelet

    Category Director, Spirits, Total Wine & More

    Amanda Batchelet, Category Director, Spirits, Total Wine & More - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Amanda Batchelet

    Category Director, Spirits, Total Wine & More

    Amanda Batchelet joined Total Wine & More in 2008 as the Senior Buyer for Non-Alcoholic/Food/Accessories. Since then she moved in 2010 to take on responsibility as the Senior Buyer of Beer, at a time when craft beer was exploding and seasonal beers were a fast growing part of the assortment. In 2012 she joined the Spirits team which accounts for over $750M in annual sales. She is now the Director of Spirits Category Management, overseeing the Spirits Business at Total Wine & More across 19 states and over 140 store locations (eligible to sell Spirits).

  • Jeremy Ragonese, Chief Marketing Officer, Uinta Brewing Company - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Jeremy Ragonese

    Chief Marketing Officer, Uinta Brewing Company

    Jeremy Ragonese, Chief Marketing Officer, Uinta Brewing Company - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Jeremy Ragonese

    Chief Marketing Officer, Uinta Brewing Company

    Jeremy Ragonese joined Utah’s largest craft brewery as Chief Marketing Officer in July 2016. Prior to his move to Salt Lake City, Jeremy had served as the Director of Marketing for Boulevard Brewing Company since 2006, where he led the marketing efforts for one of the craft beer’s most respected brands. Before joining the beer industry, he served in a variety of leadership, strategic, and creative roles within the advertising field, and in 1999 joined three partners to form CHRW Advertising, an award-winning creative agency located in Kansas City, MO. Jeremy is a graduate of Pittsburg State University and holds a Master’s degree from Syracuse University. He has proudly served on the boards of directors for AAF-KC, the AAF-KC Foundation, and the Children’s Mercy Hospital Cancer Center Auxiliary. Jeremy has also served on the Brewers Association’s Marketing and PR Committee, and is the former president and founder of the Boulevardia Festival in Kansas City.

  • Mike Kallenberger, Founder, Tropos Brand Consulting - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Mike Kallenberger

    Founder, Tropos Brand Consulting

    Mike Kallenberger, Founder, Tropos Brand Consulting - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Mike Kallenberger

    Founder, Tropos Brand Consulting

    Mike Kallenberger founded Tropos Brand Consulting in 2010 after many years in Marketing at Miller Brewing Company. Over that period he developed insights and strategies for brands from Miller Lite to Leinenkugel’s, including the 2003 “Good Call” campaign, which enabled Miller Lite to erase half of a 12-year sales decline in just 2 years. At Tropos, his primary focus is the development of positioning, marketing, and communication strategies that connect brand stories to drinker motivations. His clients include Sierra Nevada, Pabst Brewing Company, World of Beer, Heavy Seas, and Flying Fish. A frequent contributor to The New Brewer, Mike is also a six-time speaker at the Craft Brewers Conference. He has an MA in Economics from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee and has taught Consumer Behavior at UW’s Madison campus.

  • Taylor  Burton, VP of Strategic Partnerships, Drizly - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Taylor Burton

    VP of Strategic Partnerships, Drizly

  • Chris Furnari, Editor, Brewbound - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Chris Furnari

    Editor, Brewbound

    Chris Furnari, Editor, Brewbound - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Chris Furnari

    Editor, Brewbound

    Chris Furnari is the editor of Brewbound and focuses exclusively on the beer business. In addition to overseeing daily content, Furnari also plans and executes Brewbound's business networking events -- Brewbound Session and Brew Talks. He is a regular at industry gatherings and has been cited in mainstream media publications such as CNBC, USA Today, The Boston Globe, Mashable and Wired Magazine, among others.

  • Darrell Jursa, Managing Director, Omnicom Media Group - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Darrell Jursa

    Managing Director, Omnicom Media Group

    Darrell Jursa, Managing Director, Omnicom Media Group - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Darrell Jursa

    Managing Director, Omnicom Media Group

    Prior to Resolution Media/Omnicom Media Group, Darrell spent two decades on the client and agency side of the desk creating new and reinvigorating existing image-driven brands at Foote, Cone & Belding, The Coca-Cola Company, The Interpublic Group of Companies and the Goose Island Beer Company. He founded one of the first influencer/word-of-mouth marketing agencies, Liquid Intelligence, where he and a team of people much smarter than him created the most talked-about beverage comeback story in over 50 years: Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer. Hipsters became united the very next day. Most recently, Darrell has managed multiple agency capabilities that integrate search, social, content and analytic services at the scale of a global marketing agency holding company. In his new role, Darrell is responsible for integrating capabilities in the context of commerce and content services. He leads multi-functional communities that contribute to the design, launch and on-going enablement of solutions to solve for clients business challenges; bringing together best of breed talent, partnerships and technology to deliver competitive advantage for Omnicom Media Group and drive results for our clients.

  • Kit Wanty-Lambert, VP of Marketing, O&W Inc. - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Kit Wanty-Lambert

    VP of Marketing, O&W Inc.

  • Martin Favela, Co-Founder, Border X Brewing - Brewbound Session Winter 2017

    Martin Favela

    Co-Founder, Border X Brewing

Summer 2017 Conference Highlights

Breweries That Have Attended



Request List of Past Attendees

Venue

Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel

1700 Ocean Avenue

Santa Monica, CA

Directions & Discount Hotel Rooms

Recent Announcements

Novo Brazil Crowned Winner of Startup Brewery Challenge 9

Chula Vista, California-based Novo Brazil Brewing was named the winner of Startup Brewery Challenge 9, a business pitch competition sponsored by Craft Brew Alliance. Held during Wednesday’s Brewbound Session conference in Santa Monica, California, the competition featured five brewery entrepreneurs, who were given four minutes to showcase their beers and business plans in front of a panel of industry judges.

Startup Brewery Challenge 9: Meet the Players

The next round of Brewbound’s Startup Brewery Challenge goes down in less than 48 hours, and it’s time to meet the players taking part in this one-of-a-kind business pitch competition. Presented by Craft Brew Alliance, Startup Brewery Challenge 9 will give five emerging brewery entrepreneurs the opportunity to showcase their beers and business plans on stage at Wednesday’s Brewbound Session.

Brewbound Session: Discuss the Future of Beer with Constellation, Uinta Brewing and Total Wine & More

The Brewbound Session is just five days away, and there’s still time to reserve your seat for a front row look at the future of marketing and selling beer in an ever-expanding high-end marketplace.

In 1 Week, the Beer Industry Converges on Santa Monica

In just six days, Brewbound Session’s official Welcome Reception will bring together some of the brightest minds in beer for casual conversation before the big show. Conference attendees will have the opportunity to share stories and advice with fellow beer industry professionals over a couple locally crafted beers.

Examine E-Commerce, Gen Z Consumers at Brewbound Session Winter 2017

We’re just three weeks away from our next Brewbound Session, happening on Wednesday, November 29 in Santa Monica, Calif., and we’re excited to show off a first look at the agenda. Featuring multiple presentations and panel discussions with the alcohol industry’s top thought leaders, we’ve designed the Winter 2017 event specifically to help serious beer industry professionals better understand and capitalize on the future of the category.

Brewbound Session: Go Under the Hood with Ninkasi’s Nikos Ridge and Cheryl Collins

Earlier this year, Ninkasi Brewing co-founder Nikos Ridge stepped back from his role as CEO, naming then-COO Cheryl Collins as his replacement. The pair will speak at the upcoming Brewbound Session, which takes place on Wednesday, November 29, at the Lowes Hotel in Santa Monica, California. Together, Ridge and Collins will share lessons learned from growing into one of the largest U.S. craft breweries in just 10 years.

Brewbound Session: First Wave of Speakers Announced

Brewbound Session, the business conference for serious beer industry professionals, is announcing the first wave of speakers for the full-day event that will take place at the Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel on Wednesday, November 29. Joining the winter conference -- which will examine the future of beer brewing, distributing and retailing -- will be top executives from Constellation Brands, Ninkasi Brewing, Drizly, Total Wine & More and Uinta Brewing.

Startup Brewery Challenge 9: Compete for $5,000 and a Trip to Beervana

The ninth installment of the Startup Brewery Challenge, sponsored by Craft Brew Alliance, will take place during the Brewbound Session on November 29 in Santa Monica, Calif. The one-of-a-kind business pitch competition gives brewery entrepreneurs an opportunity to present their beers and business plans to a panel of respected industry judges, while competing for a chance to win $5,000 and an all-expenses-paid trip to Portland, Oregon.

Brewbound Session Migrates to Santa Monica in November

After five amazing years in sunny San Diego, California, Brewbound today announced that it has relocated its full-day business conference, the Brewbound Session, to another beachside locale with a vibrant and emerging craft beer scene: Santa Monica. The 2017 Winter Brewbound Session will take place on Wednesday, November 29, at the Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel (1700 Ocean Ave., Santa Monica, California).

Questions?

If you have questions about the conference, or would like to submit a speaker, please contact us! A Brewbound team member will respond shortly with the requested information.

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