Brewbound Live Winter 2023: How O-I Is Making It Easier To Innovate

Ray Latif [00:12] Hey, folks, I'm Ray Latif and right now I'm sitting down with Matt Graden, who is the sales director for beer at O-I. Matt, great to see you today.

Speaker 2 [00:21] Hey, thanks for having me. Nice to be here. Could

Ray Latif [00:23] you please give our audience a bit of information, a bit of, a brief overview as it were, of O-I?

Speaker 2 [00:29] Absolutely, absolutely. Uh, so O-I Glass, uh, is one of the world's, uh, leaders in glass container glass container manufacturing. Uh, specializing in, in glass from all different industries, uh, beer, food, spirits, wine, uh, non-alcoholic beverages. Uh, we're a relatively old company, been around for about 120 years, uh, with our world headquarters here, uh, in the United States in beautiful Toledo, Ohio, uh, affectionately referred to as, uh, as the Glass City. Um, so yeah, uh, That's, that's, uh, overall, we, uh, are a large global company have, uh, presence in 20 countries worldwide, uh, about 70 factories, and a, and a heavy presence here in North America with 17, uh, plants within the United States and Canada. Uh, we pride ourselves here at OIA being the industry leaders, uh, in terms of technology and innovation as it relates to glass packaging.

Ray Latif [01:25] And you work with a lot of breweries.

Speaker 2 [01:27] A lot of breweries, yes. It's a pretty great job.

Ray Latif [01:31] Matt, as we know, there are 2 primary package types for beer, glass, and can. And I'd love to hear from you what you perceive and what O-I believes to be the benefit of using glass over an aluminum can.

Speaker 2 [01:44] Absolutely. I think glass, uh, overall from, from the beer industry and in total has a lot of very significant benefits, you know, as especially compared to cans. Uh, number one is just the overall quality that glass provides. Uh, you know, it, uh, more so than other package alternatives. It maintains the integrity of the, of the beer and the taste that you're spending so much time, uh, And creating that brew. So, more so than other packaging, there's no seeping into the, uh, into the, into the beer, things like that. It maintains taste integrity, uh, better than other package types. Uh, secondly, is the idea of premiumization, right? Overall, generally, when you're seeing a, a beer in that glass bottle, consumers all agree that it has a much, you know, more inherent premium, uh, Perception in the marketplace. And third is the sustainability of glass, right? I mean, uh, glass is 100% recyclable. It's one of the few products that, you know, when recycled appropriately, can be 100%, uh, you know, remelted and turned right back into another glass bottle. So to me, those are the three kind of key benefits, uh, and, and of using glass as a package form for beer.

Ray Latif [02:51] As we've seen over the past few years, consistent supply of materials, ingredients has become so important to breweries, and I, I'd love to hear from you about how O-I works with craft breweries to support their growth strategies as they are forecasting demand.

Speaker 2 [03:09] No, absolutely, Ray. Uh, you know, I think this is one of our, our strengths at O-I. Uh, we have a world-class planning team, uh, that really works, uh, to develop relationships with those craft brewers, uh, and collaborate with them, understand what their long-term plans, what their growth plans are, and then we complement that also with our, with our market intel, our consumer research to really put together a very comprehensive growth plan and then ensure that Our, our long-term plans are aligned with the growth plans of our craft brewers. Additionally, you know, we have a very expansive network within North America that provides uh lots of different production locations. So when we're working with those craft brewers, it's important to, to make sure that we have multiple sources of supply. So if demand continues to grow, we have the ability to tap into the overall network of supply that we have, uh, within the US and Canada.

Ray Latif [04:03] And that supply includes uh a pretty vast stock program. Uh, I'd love to hear about that program in terms of its availability, accessibility, and cost.

Speaker 2 [04:15] Absolutely. Uh, this has been one of our key focuses at O-I specifically in how to address the craft beer market. Um, you know, what, what our goal has been is how do we make buying glass. For the craft beer market easier. So, as such, we have done a revigoration of our craft stock portfolio. Uh, we've selected our kind of top 10, uh, most relevant market offerings, which includes a wide variety of sizes, shapes, colors, uh, and have set up a stocking program to ensure, uh, product availability of all of these containers, uh, with minimum inventory levels, things like that to ensure, uh, service and availability. So 666 distribution centers throughout the United States and Canada. Uh, we have all of these offerings that are competitively market priced, uh, and have the ability to be ordered with, you know, very reasonable minimum order quantities with as little as, uh, 2 pallets, understanding that we are trying to make glass buying simpler for even the smallest of craft brewers in different markets.

Ray Latif [05:20] That's pretty great to hear given that there is a pretty wide variety of brewers out there from nano and microbreweries to some of the largest in the world. Uh, and everyone, it seems, is trying to create new, innovative, interesting beers for consumers. Um, how does O-I support innovation strategies, particularly as it relates to packaging?

Speaker 2 [05:48] Uh, great question. I mean, I think we, we tackle that a number of different ways, right? I mean, um, firstly, from our stock catalog, I know we have a lot of, you know, very standard kind of hey, 12 ounce long neck beers, heritage style beers, but we also have launched a, uh, pretty disruptive, kind of unique shapes and sizes of stock offerings as well that will take a lot of the risk in design, uh, upfront work kind of off the table, uh, where you have kind of a ready. Ready to go packaging to help drive some of that innovation in the market. Additionally, if you really are trying to, you know, uh, start from scratch, we have a, a world-class design team, uh, that will work very closely with the craft brewers out there, understand their brands, understand the brand strategies, and come with multiple offerings and unique package offerings that will fit the overall demand strategy, I mean, a brand strategy. Uh, ultimately, we, we pair that with a significant consumer research, uh, market insights, and, and can work closely with your team to develop multiple options, uh, to launch a, uh, a new brand and, and, and, in a package offering that fits exactly with the strategy and the, and of, of your brand long term.

Ray Latif [06:59] Can you talk about O-I's partnership with FX Matt, which is a pretty amazing one, and how it benefits emerging brands?

Speaker 2 [07:08] Absolutely. We are very excited uh about the partnership with FX Matt. FX Matt is one of the industry leader, uh, leaders in co-packing, uh, headquartered out of Utica, New York. Uh, O-I has always been very, very good at coming up with, uh, exciting new innovative glass packaging. But in terms of launching some of these, uh, there's significant, you know, risk timing and things involved. What we've done in part in partnering with FX Matt is provided a complete turnkey solution to take a lot of the risk and lead time associated with launching products in glass and kind of, you know, eliminating those constraints. With that, we are launching uh in 2024 with FX Matt, a dedicated drink tainer uh production line. Our drink tainer product is, uh, a variety of sizes that takes all of the positive benefits of glass, meaning, you know, inherent quality. Premiumization. But then with the wider mouth, uh, allows the most optimal drinking experience in terms of being able to have the aromas, things like that, almost mimicking the draft beer experience. This is an, uh, a very innovative market-changing bottle that we are now launching in 2024. And with the partnership in the in FX Matt, it takes a lot of the upfront risk and associated with that off the table. With working with them, you can have a new brand in the market within just 3 to 4 months and, and allows you to really try to innovate and launch new products in glass. Uh, so very, very excited about, uh, Utilizing this partnership with FX Matt to provide a fully uh turnkey solution to launch new brains in glass.

Ray Latif [08:47] Uh, that, like I said, I mean, it sounds pretty amazing what you're doing with FX Matt, and I feel like there's going to be a lot of folks that want to get in touch with you and your team. What is the best way to connect with O-I?

Speaker 2 [08:59] The best way to connect with O-I, uh, is definitely through our website, uh, O-I.com. Uh, please go on that website. We have our full online catalog, includes all the stock, uh, options that we talked here today, uh, and also a very simple way to, to get in contact with us. Shoot us a quick note. We'll be happy to reach out, uh, and look forward to working with, uh, craft brewers to support, uh, your growth in glass needs.

Ray Latif [09:22] Outstanding. Well, Matt, uh, thank you so much for taking the time to sit down with me today. Uh, and let's stay in touch.

Speaker 2 [09:29] Absolutely. Thank you so much for having me.