Chicago brewer Goose Island has been acquired by ABInBev for $38.8m US dollars.
The deal has seen the brewing giant purchase the majority 58% share from Goose Holdings for $22.5m in a move seen by some as ABInBev trying to ‘buy’ craft brewer credibility in the USA in the face of rapidly declining Budweiser sales.
And, as the new majority stakeholder, ABInBev also has an agreement in principal with the Craft Brewers Alliance to buy the remaining 42% share in Goose Island for $16.3m.
As part of the deal, ABInBev has already committed to investing $1.3m in a brewery expansion this summer but, says son of the founder and current brew master Greg Hall, this will not lead to interference from its new owners but will allow for expansion.
“When AB first came to us we turned them down, but they kept coming back, and we said fine our pre-requisites for any deal are everything has to stay in Chicago, we need investment for expansion and a single line of reporting to a senior figure - and they agreed to it all.
“The only reporting structure we will have to the guys in St Louis will be through my father John, who founded the brewery, and he’ll speak directly to AB president David Peacock.”
To stave off the inevitable knee-jerk criticism the sale will provoke from the craft beer community, Hall added: “We thought hard about this deal and there will inevitably be people who say this sucks, but they will be the same people that complained AB was a minority shareholder in the Craft Brewers Alliance when we signed a distribution deal with them five years ago, but if you look at our record since then, we’ve won more medals and made more new beers –this will continue.”
Commenting on why ABInBev was so interested in purchasing a brewery like Goose Island, Peacock adds: “We are very committed to expanding in the high end beer segment and this deal expands our portfolio of brands with high-quality, regional beers.”
