We now know who will lead the next chapter of New Belgium Brewing. Chief marketing officer Shaun Belongie has been named the next CEO of New Belgium, effective immediately, taking the spot left vacant by Steve Fechheimer earlier this year.
News broke late yesterday that New Belgium has named Rebecca Dye Yonushonis as the company’s next CMO, filling the vacancy left by Shaun Belongie when he was appointed CEO last fall.
New Belgium shuttered its San Francisco taproom today, after nearly three years in business, the company announced.
Los Angeles-based Open Brewing has begun rolling its lager out in Southern California thanks in part to a business partnership with New Belgium Brewing. In addition to a minority investment, New Belgium contract brews Open’s beer, consults the brewery’s team and offers other “shared resources,” a New Belgium spokesperson told Brewbound.
Industry executives gathered for Beer Business Daily’s annual Beer Industry Summit in Coronado, California, earlier this week. New Belgium continued to dominate craft scans in 2023, led by its Voodoo Ranger brand family, which claimed six spots in Circana’s list of the top 30 craft brands by dollar sales in tracked off-premise channels. As the company faces the comps – including multiple double-digit gains – New Belgium will not rest on its laurels, new CEO Shaun Belongie said on stage Sunday.
Bell’s Brewery flagship Two Hearted IPA is getting some company on shelves. The Comstock, Michigan-headquartered brewery has elevated Hazy Hearted IPA (7.5% ABV) to nationwide distribution and Big Hearted IPA (9.5% ABV) to year-round distribution in select markets.
New Belgium’s Voodoo Ranger Imperial IPA (Voodoo Ranger) is now the No. 1 craft beer by dollar sales in the convenience channel, passing Molson Coors’ Blue Moon Belgian White (Blue Moon), according to data firm Circana’s monthly beer report. Voodoo Ranger has increased c-store dollar sales +14.8%, to more than $81 million year-to-date (YTD), ending November 5. The IPA now has 5.84% share of total craft beer dollar sales in the channel.
One-third of the top 30 craft brands recorded gains in both dollar sales and volume in Circana-tracked multi-outlet grocery and convenience stores in the 12-week period ending September 10, which includes the bulk of the summer selling season.
Steve Fechheimer, who led New Belgium Brewing Company to unprecedented growth, will depart the company in August after six years to “explore new challenges.”
Production at craft breweries falling outside of the Brewers Association’s (BA) craft brewer definition collectively declined -4% on a comparable basis, to more than 8.68 million barrels in 2022, according to data shared by the trade group in the May/June edition of the New Brewer Magazine.
Expect more Voodoo Ranger beers to flood the market. New Belgium Brewing has struck an agreement to acquire the Daleville, Virginia-based production facility Constellation Brands built in 2017.
2022 marked a record year for New Belgium Brewing Company, as the Fort Collins, Colorado-headquartered craft brewery’s volume topped 1.2 million barrels (+15% year-over-year), driven by the continued success of the Voodoo Ranger IPA portfolio, New Belgium CEO Steve Fechheimer shared. Meanwhile, Bell’s Brewery declined around -8%, to just shy of 450,000 barrels.
New Belgium’s Voodoo Ranger Juice Force is the No. 1 craft beer launch ever, New Belgium CEO Steve Fechheimer shared during a recent update following the company’s wholesaler meetings. Along with Voodoo Ranger, New Belgium’s core four for 2023 includes Fat Tire, Bell’s Two Hearted Ale and Oberon.
New Belgium Brewing, in partnership with HospitableMe, a firm specializing in diversity, equity and inclusion training, will launch the Poured For All Initiative this fall, a free safety and inclusion training program for all bars and restaurants aimed at welcoming underrepresented communities into craft beer.
New Belgium Brewing Company is making its biggest investment yet behind a Voodoo Ranger brand with the launch of Juice Force, a year-round hazy imperial IPA. Dave Knospe, Voodoo Ranger brand manager, told Brewbound that New Belgium is investing more than $1 million in media for Juice Force (9.5% ABV), which is rolling out now.
