Coronado Brewing Awarded Grant to Grow International Business

San Diego, CA — Coronado Brewing Company is pleased to announce it has been selected to take part in MetroConnect 2017, an export assistance program run by the World Trade Center San Diego (WTC) and designed to help San Diego companies accelerate their global growth. The announcement was made yesterday by San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and WTC San Diego. This program will allow Coronado Brewing Company to expand its international export business through increased travel, trade show attendance, and exploring new markets.

“Our international sales have steadily grown over the past five years and this grant will allow us to fund additional trips overseas to meet with new and potential partners,” says Brandon Richards, COO, Coronado Brewing Company. “Coronado Brewing has built a strong international brand presence, and we’re excited to work with MetroConnect to strengthen our position in several emerging craft beer markets.”

As the flagship export assistance program of World Trade Center San Diego, MetroConnect seeks to cultivate a pipeline of export-ready firms to elevate San Diego’s global reach. Now in its third year, program participants will receive a $10,000 grant, presented by JPMorgan Chase & Co., and a suite of programmatic support services to assist with international expansion strategies. Program participants will have access to a dedicated staff manager at WTC San Diego, and will receive guidance on export compliance, financing and fundraising, among other international support services.

“We applaud Coronado Brewing Company for taking the next step in going global,”said Nikia Clarke, executive director of World Trade Center San Diego. “With SMEs like this at the forefront, San Diego must continue to increase its export capacity and boost the region’s global identity. MetroConnect is equipping these companies with the resources necessary to do just that.”

The MetroConnect program is highly competitive, with just 15 companies selected based on a variety of criteria, including interest in new markets, interest in targeted metro markets, assessed impact of funds, current international traction and more. Applicants were assessed by a panel of judges, including representatives from Qualcomm Ventures, Biocom, UC San Diego, Rough Draft Brewing, San Diego State University, Tech San Diego, U.S. Department of Commerce, UC San Diego, San Diego Regional EDC and WTC San Diego.

Coronado Brewing Company joins a cohort of 14 other companies representing a unique cross-section of San Diego’s industries, from cleantech to maritime to craft brewing and life sciences – each with plans to take San Diego innovation globally. Participating companies will also be considered for the program’s MetroConnect Grand Prize Pitchfest in May 2018, which will provide an additional $35,000 to help one or two companies further advance their global agendas.

MetroConnect is underwritten by JPMorgan Chase & Co., with additional support provided by Air Canada, CDC Small Business Finance, Japan Airlines, Japan External Trade Organization, Qualcomm, SYSTRAN, Taylor Guitars and others. For more information about Coronado Brewing Company, visit www.coronadobrewing.com. Stay Coastal. Cheers.

About Coronado Brewing Company

In 1996, when craft beer was still a foreign term and San Diego County was home to only a handful of breweries, the Chapman brothers Ron and Rick opened a brewpub in their hometown of Coronado. Today CBC stays true to their San Diego roots, brewing abundantly hoppy West Coast-style ales, which are available today in 16 US states and twelve countries. In addition to the long-established pub in Coronado, the company opened a tasting room inside its San Diego production facility in 2013, and a tasting room and restaurant in Imperial Beach, California in 2014. Coronado Brewing Company was honored in 2014 with one of the brewing industry’s most prestigious awards-World Beer Cup Champion Brewery and Brewmaster for a Mid-Size Brewing Company.

About World Trade Center San Diego

World Trade Center San Diego operates as an affiliate of San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation. WTC San Diego works to further San Diego’s global competitiveness by building an export pipeline, attracting and retaining foreign investment and increasing San Diego’s global profile abroad. sandiegobusiness.org/wtcsd