Dear Client: After a breakout year this past year, in which it grew 563% to 1.3 million cases sold, and put vodka-based hard tea RTDs on the map, Surfside is now making moves to try and own the subsegment it helped create, across the map. Indeed, the brand announced today that it’s expanding distribution to … Continue reading “Surfin’ U.S.A.: Surfside Goes National”
New Jersey InBev distributors (big volume here) received a blow Friday in a hearing as the courts denied them injunctive relief from A-B terminating them later this weekend. The InBev distribs had sued A-B and InBev earlier this week charging violation of New Jersey’s new franchise law. Plus, Crown Imports up big in first month.
Miller’s Tom Long tells CAGNY that it has several initiatives to turn around Big Blue.
Did I hear $70 million for 07 marketing spend? Wow, that’s more than the Bigs spend in year 2 of their big brand rollouts. Plus, a sign that big food disribs aren’t suited to sell heavy beer, and a big grocery combination announced.
The financial press and Wall Street finally reach a consensus on the merger rumor, and it is ironically close to the original report that started it. Plus, Bud Clamato rolls, and the BA seemingly alters official definition of craft beer to exclude big brewer partners.
New beers, new teas, and new RTDs. A-B is looking at getting into everything. Meanwhile, the state AGs are going after A-B on Bud.TV while nary lifting a finger to control sites that actually sell alcohol.
Wondering where your fifteen cents a case is going? Pabst has hired an ad agency for PBR.
And a good year. Plus, more on InBev / A-B rumor.
That’s the rumor in the foreign press.
If anybody has been busy these last 18 months, it’s been Dave Peacock, one of August Busch IV’s chief lieutenants and a key dealmaker in the Anheuser-Busch acquisition machine. But we finally did catch up with Dave this week and pressed him on a few issues that have been burning in my mind. You, my friends, are a fly on the wall.
We grok an interesting article by a Hispanic ad pro. Plus, Jim debuts a new pint glass, and more.
The Coke bottlers settle. This is what it means.
I know this may seem anathema, but sometimes we can find clues to the beer marketplace outside of the beer business. I know, everybody outside of the beer business is an imbecile. But even among imbeciles you can sometimes find a diamond in the mud .
HUSA going with flatter structure. Plus, A-B cuts on-premise deal with Hansen, and January started off strong and ended with a thud.
We are now seeing the second wave of direct shipping lawsuits from wineries, setting up another possible Supreme Court airing. Plus, A-B suing distributors for control of InBev brands.
For the first time in five years, Pabst Brewing Co. is planning to take up pricing on malt liquors and other products. Plus, how is beer faring globally? We take a look.
