ANHEUSER-BUSCH SELLS CRAFT BEER BRANDS TO CANNABIS FIRM
Buyer Tilray Brands promises to reinvigorate the craft beer industry
Anheuser-Busch said last week it would sell several craft beer brands to a marijuana company, a deal experts said hinted at larger troubles inside craft brewers and beer giants alike.
The marijuana company, New York-based Tilray Brands, announced the deal, promising to reinvigorate the craft beer industry.
“Tilray is fully committed to invest in and champion the future of the U.S. craft beer industry by fueling new innovation that excites and further accelerates the growth of its consumer base,” Tilray CEO Irwin Simon said in a statement.
Benj Steinman, editor at Beer Marketer’s Insights, said the Tilray and A-B deal is an indicator that things for both the craft beer industry and A-B have become more difficult.
“It’s a different moment for craft beer,” Steinman said. “It’s not
the shiny new toy, not the growth engine it once was. It’s not as attractive of a (market) segment.”
Sales of A-B products have been wavering, and the Belgiumbased beer maker recently reported lower North American sales during its second quarter earnings. Craft breweries have also struggled with economic hardships and continue to grap
ple with post-pandemic recovery efforts.
The deal, which is expected to close at the end of the year, includes Shock Top, Breckenridge Brewery, Blue Point Brewing Co., 10 Barrel Brewing Co., Redhook Brewery, Widmer Brothers Brewing, Square Mile Cider Co. and HiBall Energy.
The acquisition will move
Tilray Brands, a packaged goods company, up from the ninth-largest craft beer business in the U.S. to the fifth, according to a company statement. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Andy Thomas, president of premium and specialty brands at A-B, said Tilray reached out at the beginning of the year with interest in buying the brands and breweries.
“Winning in craft remains a key pillar of our strategy to lead and develop the premium segment,” Thomas said in an email to the Post-Dispatch. “We remain committed to the amazing craft brewery partners in our portfolio and focused on working with them to lead growth in the segment.”
A-B kept the vast majority of its craft brands and key beers, as the eight brands within the deal make up less than 1 percent of AB’s craft volume and are some of the company’s “less stellar-performing assets,” said Steinman, of Beer Marketer’s Insights.
“Both companies stand to gain from this,” he said.