The rise of BrewDog in the early 2010s was a celebratory moment for craft beer and it quickly earned a reputation for innovation. BrewDog offered something new, beyond mass-market beers, to appeal to customers’ sense of identity with anarchic, entertaining and individualistic beer.
At its heart BrewDog had one great big, exciting, fresh idea when it launched. Something truly unordinary. Its ‘punk’ ethos meant it stood out from the crowd. It had personality, attitude, and it approached business in an unconventional way – creating equity punks is a prime example. It suggested a beer made by the people, for the people – a business that would rebel against ‘the system’. And, unlike many brands looking to be rebellious, it actually took real action, like delisting Camden Hells in its bars when it was sold to AB InBev.
New launches have failed to embody the original ethos of the brand
Its branding was loud and provocative, solidifying its position as a ‘punk’ beer brand to rapidly grab people’s attention and injecting some excitement into a category that was often more worthy than cool. In 2010, its extremely limited run (only 12 bottles) of The End of History – a 55% ABV beer – was promoted with each bottle inserted into taxidermy roadkill and ranging in price, from £500 to £700 each. The following year, it celebrated the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton by launching The Royal Virility Performance beer, which was laced with Viagra.
The brand knew how to get people talking. It was unapologetic, brave and did something we genuinely hadn’t seen before in craft beer. A branding masterclass to learn from; its antics generated a loyal fan base and built global fame alongside its 72 bars around the world and roughly 1,400 employees.
At its peak, it appeared unstoppable. But it didn’t last. Since those heady early years, BrewDog has increasingly made headlines for controversy rather than creativity. Allegations of a toxic internal culture defined by fear, tone-deaf campaigns such as its “Pink Beer for girls” and the prospect of its equity punk investors losing out while private equity backers stood to profit have all chipped away at the brand’s credibility. What once felt rebellious and authentic began to look careless, and, to many, hypocritical.
Can BrewDog bounce back?
The news of a potential sale is not entirely surprising. There is no doubt that some of BrewDog’s issues stem from challenges at the business level – competition in craft beers has massively intensified, and rival businesses have been backed by the huge expertise that comes from the big breweries. Businesses in many industries are facing a volatile economy and a cost-of-living crisis, but the critical factor in BrewDog’s case is a brand problem.
The prospect of a sale comes as little surprise. Some of BrewDog’s struggles reflect wider business pressures: competition in craft beer has intensified, with rivals bolstered by the scale, capital and expertise of major brewing groups. Like many companies, it is also contending with a volatile economy and cost-of-living squeeze. But BrewDog’s deeper challenge is not merely operational. It is above all, a brand problem.
At its peak, BrewDog was the disruptor. But as the craft beer market matured, disruption became the norm, and BrewDog began to look like the incumbent it once challenged. Newer players, such as Beavertown Brewery, Camden Town Brewery and Anspach & Hobday, have captured the energy and cultural relevance that BrewDog once owned. While the category evolved, BrewDog’s identity stagnated. A string of controversies and a defensive posture toward criticism have further eroded its edge, leaving the brand feeling less like a punk insurgent and more like an establishment relic.
There is still life in the old (Brew)dog yet
Ultimately, BrewDog got cocky and forgot that any successful brand still needs to be nurtured. New launches have failed to embody the original ethos of the brand – the Mello variant, for example, just doesn’t scream punk. Early success gave way to a cascade of missteps and public apologies. No matter how charismatic a brand once was, audiences’ patience wears thin, and with it, credibility and trust erode.
Moving forward, a confident sense of leadership is required to steer this ship after a succession of CEOs in the past few years. It is rumoured that the original founder might try to buy the brand back, which is often a powerful move as the passion and sheer brand intuition of the founder is harnessed once again – think Beautycounter’s Gregg Renfrew or Steve Jobs coming back as Apple’s CEO. What needs to be considered here is whether the issues that caused him to resign can be overcome.
Despite its erratic brand history and last year’s £37m decline in turnover, there is much to attract potential buyers. BrewDog’s once infamous brand identity still lingers in people’s minds, and it has the potential to return to, and reinvigorate, its punk identity.
For BrewDog to thrive now, it needs to refresh its unordinary idea; taking the brand DNA of what it meant to be a punk brand in 2007 and refreshing it for today’s culture. But more importantly, it needs to actively manage the brand and live by its values in how it expresses itself, how it is experienced, how it treats its employees and how it runs its business.
There is still life in the old (Brew)dog yet. While sales aren’t currently looking very promising, with the right investment, an unordinary idea for today and brand love, a prospective buyer could give a much-needed boost to one of the most innovative brands to have launched in the UK market.
Vicky Bullen is the CEO at the design agency Coley Porter Belll.
The rise of BrewDog in the early 2010s was a celebratory moment for craft beer and it quickly earned a reputation for innovation. BrewDog offered something new, beyond mass-market beers, to appeal to customers’ sense of identity with anarchic, entertaining and individualistic beer.
At its heart BrewDog had one great big, exciting, fresh idea when it launched. Something truly unordinary. Its ‘punk’ ethos meant it stood out from the crowd. It had personality, attitude, and it approached business in an unconventional way – creating equity punks is a prime example. It suggested a beer made by the people, for the people – a business that would rebel against 'the system’. And, unlike many brands looking to be rebellious, it actually took real action, like delisting Camden Hells in its bars when it was sold to AB InBev.
New launches have failed to embody the original ethos of the brand
