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A surprise decision from The Beer Store to open up its corporate ownership and adopt more craft beer-friendly selling practices is being met with mixed reviews from small beer makers who say the announcement raises more questions than answers.
The Beer Store (TBS), formerly known as Brewers Retail, on Wednesday announced a plan to create three new seats on its board of directors and allow Ontario craft breweries to buy shares in TBS, becoming owners of the chain.
TBS said the decision came after extensive consultations with the province’s booming craft beer industry.
The company is offering to sell a single “class E” share to new breweries producing more than five million litres of beer a year for $1,000, or a “class F” share to breweries producing a smaller volume for $100. TBS would not comment on the number of total shares it has outstanding.
With those shares the microbrewers will be eligible for one of three new seats on TBS’s board of directors. However, the board will maintain five seats for Molson Coors. Another five seats have been set aside for Labatt Brewing Company, which is owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev, the same company that manufacturers beer under the Budweiser brand. An additional two seats will be held for Sleeman Brewery Ltd., owned by Japanese beer giant Sapporo.
TBS spokesman Jeff Newton said the organization structured the offering on a one-share per brewery basis to allow even the smallest brewery to potentially win a seat on the board.
“It will be a big share, a governance share, entitling them to be represented on the board,” he said. “We did it this way to allow small brewers to become owners without large capital costs some could not afford.”
However, being on the board is no guarantee that your voice will be heard, says a professor of finance at the Ivey School of Business at Western University.
“The original three (breweries), they’ll still have control of the board. Ultimately, 12 outweigh three any day of the week. Do I think that this is a bit of window dressing? I sure do,” Rick Robertson said in an interview. “They are under incredible pressure from the government.”
Premier Kathleen Wynne has suggested that TBS could be forced to pay the government franchise fees to continue operating in Ontario. In April, Ed Clark was appointed to lead the Premier’s Advisory Council on Government Assets, which is examining ways to boost the province’s cash flow.
Susie Heath, a spokeswoman for the minister of finance Charles Sousa, said Wednesday that TBS’s sudden announcement will be a part of the council’s review.
Steve Beauchesne, co-owner of Beau’s Brewing Co. in Vankleek Hill, is skeptical about the TBS announcement.
“I’ve got more questions than I do opinions,” he said, adding that TBS did not consult microbrewers on the changes. “It’s certainly better than nothing at all. It’s interesting that we’ve had no communication whatsoever from The Beer Store for the longest time.”
Beauchesne said the deal lowers but does not remove some barriers that microbrewers have complained about. For example, TBS is offering to stock two products on the store shelves of five stores that are, geographically, closest to the brewery. He said for a rural brewery like his, which already ships to dozens of TBS shops across the province, having access to five small stores in towns like Hawkesbury isn’t much benefit.
Similarly, brewers in downtown locations would see their beer appear on TBS shelves in their immediate vicinity, which would cut into more profitable sales at the breweries themselves.
The announcement was panned by Ontario Craft Brewers, an association of 50 microbrewers who have been lobbying for change in the way the province sells alcohol.
“Our goal continues to be fundamental change to Ontario’s beer distribution channels that will result in a doubling or tripling of the jobs currently created by the craft brewers as well as the ability to reach our full share of market potential,” said Cam Heaps, chairman of Ontario Craft Brewers, in a statement. “It certainly does not address our major issue of improving access for consumers.”
vpilieci@ottawacitizen.com
Twitter.com/Vpilieci
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The Beer Store (TBS), formerly known as Brewers Retail, on Wednesday announced a plan to create three new seats on its board of directors and allow Ontario craft breweries to buy shares in TBS, becoming owners of the chain.
TBS said the decision came after extensive consultations with the province’s booming craft beer industry.
The company is offering to sell a single “class E” share to new breweries producing more than five million litres of beer a year for $1,000, or a “class F” share to breweries producing a smaller volume for $100. TBS would not comment on the number of total shares it has outstanding.
With those shares the microbrewers will be eligible for one of three new seats on TBS’s board of directors. However, the board will maintain five seats for Molson Coors. Another five seats have been set aside for Labatt Brewing Company, which is owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev, the same company that manufacturers beer under the Budweiser brand. An additional two seats will be held for Sleeman Brewery Ltd., owned by Japanese beer giant Sapporo.
TBS spokesman Jeff Newton said the organization structured the offering on a one-share per brewery basis to allow even the smallest brewery to potentially win a seat on the board.
“It will be a big share, a governance share, entitling them to be represented on the board,” he said. “We did it this way to allow small brewers to become owners without large capital costs some could not afford.”
However, being on the board is no guarantee that your voice will be heard, says a professor of finance at the Ivey School of Business at Western University.
“The original three (breweries), they’ll still have control of the board. Ultimately, 12 outweigh three any day of the week. Do I think that this is a bit of window dressing? I sure do,” Rick Robertson said in an interview. “They are under incredible pressure from the government.”
Premier Kathleen Wynne has suggested that TBS could be forced to pay the government franchise fees to continue operating in Ontario. In April, Ed Clark was appointed to lead the Premier’s Advisory Council on Government Assets, which is examining ways to boost the province’s cash flow.
Susie Heath, a spokeswoman for the minister of finance Charles Sousa, said Wednesday that TBS’s sudden announcement will be a part of the council’s review.
Steve Beauchesne, co-owner of Beau’s Brewing Co. in Vankleek Hill, is skeptical about the TBS announcement.
“I’ve got more questions than I do opinions,” he said, adding that TBS did not consult microbrewers on the changes. “It’s certainly better than nothing at all. It’s interesting that we’ve had no communication whatsoever from The Beer Store for the longest time.”
Beauchesne said the deal lowers but does not remove some barriers that microbrewers have complained about. For example, TBS is offering to stock two products on the store shelves of five stores that are, geographically, closest to the brewery. He said for a rural brewery like his, which already ships to dozens of TBS shops across the province, having access to five small stores in towns like Hawkesbury isn’t much benefit.
Similarly, brewers in downtown locations would see their beer appear on TBS shelves in their immediate vicinity, which would cut into more profitable sales at the breweries themselves.
The announcement was panned by Ontario Craft Brewers, an association of 50 microbrewers who have been lobbying for change in the way the province sells alcohol.
“Our goal continues to be fundamental change to Ontario’s beer distribution channels that will result in a doubling or tripling of the jobs currently created by the craft brewers as well as the ability to reach our full share of market potential,” said Cam Heaps, chairman of Ontario Craft Brewers, in a statement. “It certainly does not address our major issue of improving access for consumers.”
vpilieci@ottawacitizen.com
Twitter.com/Vpilieci
查看原文...
