Big news in the craft-beer industry is becoming a regular Friday feature these days, but even a sense of routine couldn’t diffuse the impact of today’s news that North County’s Stone Brewing is going to be acquired by Japanese beermaker Sapporo USA for $168 million. That informational bomb was dropped in the dark of night and is sending shockwaves through the craft-beer community. With the future of the company, the specifics of the deal (which is expected to close in August) and concern for employees in mind, we conducted an early-morning interview with Stone CEO Maria Stipp, to get some initial questions answered.
What made this acquisition attractive to Stone Brewing given its staunch stance on independence through the years?
Stone Brewing is a strong brand and a global brand with two breweries in Escondido and Richmond. Richmond, in particular, was built to take on more capacity than we currently have for it, and it’s always been our ambition to maximize what we can do in Escondido. Sapporo came to us. They’d done their own set of research looking for a partner to help them brew high-quality, fresh beer in the US. Through a series of meetings and months of work, it became very obvious to both sides that this would be a perfect deal where everybody will get their needs met. Their goal was to work with a premium, iconic beer brand with a well established team.
Had Stone been exploring other merger or acquisition possibilities?
We had been talking with others about some co-packaging opportunities, but from the beginning, Sapporo was such a perfect fit in what they were looking to do and what we wanted to do. This will be a homebase of sorts for Sapporo. We’ve seen a lot of beer acquisitions through the year. The reason I love this one so much is that we are a perfect compliment to each other. It’s not an IPA house with another IPA house. And they really see the talent at Stone and want to continue to work with us. This is a marriage and you have to be able to work together when looking to double the size of your brewing capacity.
What will be the situation with current employees? Are their jobs safe or could there be reorganizations that lead to contraction?
It’s all hands on deck. You don’t double capacity and take on a marriage like this without everyone having a role to play. Having a well established, high-performing team [is crucial], and our team is valued. None of this was possible without Team Stone the strength of our team and the quality of the beer.
Speaking of Stone employees, what will this mean for company co-founders Greg Koch and Steve Wagner?
This is another chapter for Stone. [Greg and Steve] are taking an opportunity to step back from the day-to-day; a well deserved break. They’re not retiring from business pursuits. They won’t be on the Stone Brewing side, but they’re keeping their ownership stakes in Stone Distribution Co.
What potential opportunities will this acquisition present for Stone?
What we learned is that they have a lot to gain by working with us. We have a big opportunity in on-premise with restaurants, where Saporro thrives. Between the both of us, we’ll both benefit long-term. Sapporo is committed to protecting Stone’s values, while also adding resources that will allow for Stone’s growth. Leveraging our total company costs will allow for more investment in people, sales and marketing, which will ultimately enhance the experience for fans.