The good news for Hi-Wire Brewing is that the Asheville, North Carolina brewery has not run out of cans or had to look for new suppliers. The flip side of that coin?
“Our printed can partner has stopped accepting new items and has double lead times, so we have had to push some of our can volume into wrapped cans, which are more than twice the price,” said co-founder Chris Frosaker, who added that although costs are up, on the ‘bright side, we’re still able to make and sell beer.’
It can be a struggle right now to have your brewery perform as usual and even a brewery the size of Hi-Wire has found new ways to create revenue and sell volume.
“Everything is on the table these days,” Frosaker said. “We have started selling kegs out of our four taprooms to try and continue to move volume, which is something we have never done before.”
Migration offers keg sales through its pubs and Brand Manager Avery Harris said the Portland, Oregon brewery is looking to grow this program.
“We really focus on 12oz cans rather than 16oz,” she said about some slight shifts this year due to the pandemic. “We have previously been packaging one of our beers in 19.2oz cans that we are now shifting to 12oz six-packs.”
While some breweries recently have shied away from glass in favor of canning, bottling beer is an integral part of Garage Brewing‘s business plan. The Temecula, California’s Digital Marketing Manager told Brewer it currently has a growing amount of bottle format SKUs, which gives it a need for a relatively large quantity of bottles.
”We believe that this topic is all about the value proposition,” he said. ”As a company, we have found that customers are just as interested in bottles when the price is right.
”Therefore, bottles are still very much included in our upcoming plans for the future.”
Stoup Brewing co-owner Brad Benson agrees.
”We will still bottle mixed culture beers and big barrel-aged Stouts [in glass],” he said of the Seattle brewery. “We feel glass still has its place depending on the style.
“Lay it down (glass) versus bring it home and drink it (can).”
Stoup’s can supply is a constant battle Benson said.
”We get notifications of delivery delays only days before [an] order is set to ship,” he said. ”We work with a number of great alternative vendors other than the main can manufacturers but these intermediaries between us and the manufacturer does come at increased costs.”
Migration’s vendors have confirmed that its inventory is in place and protected, but anything can happen, Harris noted.
”We’re hopeful that remains the case,” she said.
Gotuzzo said that Garage’s can supply is ‘rich and better than ever.’
“Our advice on the issue – plan ahead,” he said. “Know the climate of the industry and how your company can utilize its resources to gain a suitable outcome for you.”
Be the first to comment