Minneapolis’ Fulton Beer has struck a deal with Artisanal Imports that will enable the company to broaden its distribution footprint throughout the Midwest and along the East Coast.
As part of the new partnership, Artisanal, an Austin, Texas-based beer and cider importer, will help broker distribution deals in five states — Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Florida and New York — in 2017 and look to expand distribution of Fulton products to additional markets in the future.
The brewery’s products are currently sold in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and the Dakotas, and Fulton Beer co-founder Ryan Petz told Brewbound that conversations with potential wholesalers in new markets are just beginning.
Once those deals are signed, however, Artisanal will provide sales support to Fulton in those markets, he said.
“They will serve as a brokered sales force for Fulton in each of the markets,” said Petz, who co-founded Fulton Beer with Brian Hoffman, Peter Grande and James Diley in 2009. “They’ll give us street-level account representation.”
Negotiations with Artisanal started about a year ago and were finalized last week, Petz said. Initially, Petz wasn’t sure if Artisanal would be interested in working with a domestic craft brewery given its history as an importer.
“It’s definitely a new thing for them,” Petz said. “They’ve always sold imported beer. They haven’t had this as a crutch. They’re also accustomed to selling a product portfolio that’s more expensive.”
Nevertheless, Artisanal brings invaluable, longstanding relationships with wholesalers and retail accounts, Petz said, noting that those connections have been built over time and without “the advantage of being the local guy.”
“The craft beer market is so competitive and so crowded that it’s more difficult for any brewery to stand out the farther you get from home,” Petz said. “As we undertake this, we didn’t want to go out there blind and without a good sales strategy of how to execute in those markets and continue to support them after launch.”
To support the company’s expanded geographical reach, Fulton, which produced more than 26,000 barrels of beer last year, plans to increase its annual maximum capacity to 45,000 barrels by adding two 160-barrel fermentation tanks, which will be installed in May.
This year, Fulton expects to produce “in the mid-30,000” barrel range, Petz said, with much of the production focused on the brewery’s No. 1 seller, Lonely Blonde ale.
Additionally, Fulton has purchased and will install a new canning line at its 51,000 sq. ft. production facility in northeast Minneapolis.