Fiddlehead Brewing Company Continues Its Impressive Growth Trajectory Despite Craft Market Trends

08/15/24

Shelburne, VT - After closing out 2023 as the 28th largest producer of craft beer by volume, Fiddlehead Brewing Company is keeping their momentum going, finishing the first half of 2024 with continued significant growth in both on- and off-premise.

With QI and Q2 complete, Fiddlehead Brewing Company sales depletions are up 20% and overall revenue is up 15%. Maintaining this pace of growth following the 22% growth the independently owned brewery saw during 2023, is notable. At a time when the craft beer segment's growth is significantly slow, Fiddlehead Brewing Company stands out as one of few exceptions in the industry.

According to Northeast Food NIQ Scan Data YTD, Fiddlehead Brewing Company is the #8 Craft brand family, growing 28% in dollar sales and outpacing total Craft in general which is growing at a rate of only 1.6%.  Fiddlehead continues to be the fastest growing brand family among the top 40. Across Northeast Food, Fiddlehead is the #1 largest growth craft brand overall, adding the most dollar sales growth to the segment.

The growth continues to be fueled by the brewery’s widely popular flagship beer, Fiddlehead IPA. Across the Northeast, Fiddlehead IPA jumped to the #2 IPA brand, growing 21% in dollar sales. This growth is driven by IPA 12pks which saw a 34% in percentage of sales over the first half of the year. In addition, IPA 12pks are the #1 12pk-12oz IPA SKU in this region. Nationally, according to Total US NIQ Scan Data YTD of all craft 12pk cans (top 30 brands), Fiddlehead IPA 12pks have the second highest velocity ($/pt of ACV) in the country. In addition to these impressive package numbers, Fiddlehead draft has grown 10% YTD and accounts for 45% of the company’s sales.

The company’s Second Fiddle Double IPA also continues to climb the ranks, now a top 20 IPA brand with +56% increase in dollar sales. In 2023, Fiddlehead released an imperial version of its IPA, adding a third brand to the company’s 19.2 portfolio. All brands of Fiddlehead 19.2’s combined are growing with a 216% increase in dollar sales.

Fiddlehead Brewing Company owner Matt (Matty O) Cohen, is excited about the most recent sales data. “I think what energizes us the most,” says Cohen “is that our brand is competing with and outperforming many national brands despite our limited 10-state footprint. The growth that we are seeing in the first half of the year comes without adding any new markets and without any new SKUs. It shows us that where Fiddlehead is sold, the customer commitment is deep, sustained and growing. We continue to honor that consumer commitment by maintaining our promise to provide cold-stored, fresh beer brewed with the highest quality standards.”

The Vermont based brewery has added an additional 50,000 barrels of capacity providing the infrastructure to continue to support its record growth.

ABOUT

Fiddlehead Brewing Company is a brewer-owned business located in Shelburne, Vermont. The business has a simple approach: make great beer, hire passionate people, and ensure the beer is fresh and available on tap or in a cooler near you.