Read the latest beer industry financial news and reporting relating to investment, mergers and acquisitions. Explore the biggest deals, as well as what the financial future looks like for breweries in terms of capital availability, deal terms, lending, and the strategic marketplace in order to help shape your planning strategy for the short and medium term.
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Molson Coors has struck a deal to acquire spirits-based, ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktail pioneer Atomic Brands, whose Monaco Cocktails entered the then-nascent space in 2012. The deal should come as no surprise, as it aligns with Molson Coors’ goals to expand its beyond beer portfolio, part of the Horizon 2030 plan CEO Rahul Goyal outlined earlier this year.
A pair of big red network distribution deals were announced in the last 24 hours. Anheuser-Busch InBev has agreed to purchase the distribution rights of its brands, as well as “certain craft/NA brands,” from Advance Beverage Company in Bakersfield, California. Meanwhile, Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits inked a deal for independent A-B distributor Clare Rose on Long Island.
After a three-week sprint to finalize deals to acquire BrewDog’s business on three continents, Tilray Brands’ first order of business is to “stabilize the brand,” Tilray CEO Irwin Simon told Brewbound.
Large regional breweries that fall outside of the BA’s definition of a craft brewer collectively produced more than 8.64 million barrels of beer in 2021, a +2% increase on a comparable basis, according to data provided by the trade organization. The BA excludes companies that are at least 25% owned by a larger brewing company from its craft brewery data set and sets a production ceiling for BA-defined craft brewers at 6 million barrels.
Dallas, Texas-based Bishop Cider has struck a deal to acquire Wild Acre Brewing in Fort Worth, as well as the assets of Legal Draft Beer Co. in Arlington, the 10-year-old cider maker announced Thursday. The planned acquisitions are part of an ambitious expansion plan to open four new entertainment spaces – one each in Dallas, Arlington and two in Fort Worth.
Anheuser-Busch InBev’s beyond beer division is organizing itself around four priorities: hard seltzers, Cutwater Spirits, Nütrl Vodka Seltzer and Ghost Energy, beyond beer business unit president Fabricio Zonzini shared during Beer Marketer’s Insights’ spring conference in Chicago last week.
Sonoma County-based Golden State Cider founders Jolie Devoto and Hunter Wade have sold the 10-year-old business to Christopher and Ariel Jackson, according to The Press Democrat.
Heineken-owned Lagunitas Brewing Company has closed on the sale of its 50% stake in Santa Rosa, California-based Moonlight Brewing Company to Patrick Rue, the founder of Orange County’s The Bruery and owner of Erosion Wine Co. in St. Helena, California.
“We’ll know the future of Modern Times by the end of June, I can confidently say that,” Jennifer Briggs, CEO of the San Diego, California-based brewery, said during a discussion Tuesday with Brewers Association (BA) president and CEO Bob Pease at the Craft Brewers Conference (CBC) in Minneapolis.
PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta was asked just one question about the carbonated soft drink maker’s plans in the beverage alcohol space, during the company’s Q1 2022 earnings call Tuesday.
Anheuser-Busch InBev is in “active discussions” to sell its non-controlling interest in its joint venture in Russia, Efes, to its partner, Turkish brewer Anadolu Efes, the company announced today. Meanwhile, A-B InBev has appointed Ricardo Tadeu to the newly created role of chief growth officer as part of a restructure of the company’s commercial leadership team.
About 30 employees have been let go following the integration of the Bell’s Brewery organization into New Belgium after the latter’s parent company, Kirin-owned Lion Little World Beverages, acquired the former last fall. The layoffs amounted to less than 3% of New Belgium and Bell’s combined workforce.
Hammond Beverage Group (HBG) has struck a deal to acquire North East, Maryland-headquartered Northeast Beverage Corporation. Financial terms of the deal, which is expected to close June 24, were not disclosed.
Another independent canned cocktail maker boarded the “mother ship” last week when Constellation Brands announced the full acquisition of Austin Cocktails. It’s a move that’s in-step with the other global beverage companies picking up fast-growing RTD producers — but observers in the industry caution that the deal may not be the harbinger future RTD acquisitions.
The Reyes Beer Division is adding to its California map with the planned acquisition of Columbia Distributing’s business in Northern California, the companies announced this evening.
Two weeks after a jury sided with Stone Brewing in its trial against Molson Coors, the Escondido, California-headquartered craft brewer is tangled in another trademark infringement lawsuit – this time as the defendant. The founders of Laurelwood Brewing have bought back the distribution and brand rights of the Portland, Oregon-based company from Eugene, Oregon-based Ninkasi Brewing, The Oregonian reported Wednesday.
Constellation Brands’ beer business recorded an +11% increase in net sales growth, to $6.75 billion, for the company’s 2022 full fiscal year. FY 2022 marked the company’s 12th consecutive year of volume growth, with +8.8% shipments (sales to wholesalers) growth and +8.9% depletions (sales to retailers) growth – amounting to an additional 30 million case equivalents, CEO Bill Newlands said during a conference call with investors.
