During a December 2025 cover story interview with Bart Watson of the Brewers Association, the longtime industry economist and current BA CEO pointed to a simple but difficult concept that continues to separate outperforming breweries from those struggling in a flat market: knowing the customers you have and consistently delivering for them.
Watson credited Matt Brewing’s Fred Matt for a philosophy that still resonates.
“He says the No. 1 rule of their brewery is to delight the customer,” Watson said.
According to Watson, breweries that outperform tend to understand exactly who they are, who their customers are, and how the two connect. Those businesses, Watson said, focus on consistently delivering what guests expect and working to elevate that experience over time.
“The breweries who know who they are, know who their customer is, and then understand how that marriage works … those are the breweries that are succeeding the most,” told BREWER.
That approach, he added, extends well beyond the beer itself.
“It’s not always about the beer,” Watson said. “It’s about the experience, the brand, the space that you’re welcoming people into.”
Watson also noted that some breweries struggle when they chase new audiences instead of maintaining loyalty with their core customer base. Staying focused, he said, can be difficult but is often key to consistent performance.
“It’s really hard to … consistently delight customers and not get distracted,” Watson said.
Watson also highlighted one metric he believes receives too much attention: the total number of breweries in the United States.
“The number of breweries, if it is not connected with how much beer they make, is meaningless,” Watson said.
He explained that many people still think of breweries as large manufacturing facilities, but that assumption no longer reflects today’s market reality. Roughly 75% of breweries produce 1,000 barrels or less annually, meaning their business models rely heavily on taproom traffic and local customers.
“Their business model really relies on their four walls and the people who walk through it,” Watson said.
Instead of focusing on how many breweries exist, Watson encouraged owners and brewery managers to consider scale, business model and customer engagement. All of those factors can often matter more than overall industry count.
READ MORE: By the Numbers & Beyond: How Bart Watson Looks to Lead the Brewers Association In Maturing Market
“The number of breweries is somewhat irrelevant when you don’t consider how much beer they’re making,” Watson said.
In a stagnant and maturing market, Watson’s message shows that breweries that stay disciplined, customer-focused and realistic about their business model are the ones most likely to outperform their competitors.
1 Trackback / Pingback
Comments are closed.