Heavy Seas Beer, a longtime Baltimore-area craft brewery, is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as founder Hugh Sisson prepares to retire after more than 35 years in the beer business.
The filing is intended to help reorganize the business and potentially facilitate a sale or merger with another brewery, according to CBS News Baltimore. The company is not planning to close and intends to continue brewing and serving customers while it works through the process.
Sisson, 72, founded the company, which has operated in the Baltimore region since 1995. In a social media statement, Heavy Seas said it is working toward a sustainable path forward that would preserve the brand and the jobs it supports.
“For nearly 31 years, we’ve had the privilege of doing what we love: making great, bold-flavored craft beverages and being part of the incredible craft beer community,” the brewery said.
The company acknowledged increasing financial pressures across the craft beer industry, noting that breweries nationwide are facing challenges.
“As any sailor knows, the path is never a straight line,” the statement said. “Over the years, we’ve weathered plenty of storms, adapted, adjusted our sails, and kept moving forward.”
Heavy Seas said it is taking steps to reorganize the business as it explores options for its future, while acknowledging that changes are anticipated down the road.
“Nothing is changing right away, though we do anticipate some changes down the road,” the company said.
The brewery encouraged customers to continue supporting independent breweries during the transition, emphasizing that it remains open and producing beer as it works toward its next chapter.
