Bridgeport Closure Hints at Larger Problems for Gambrinus
Closure of Portland, Oregon’s BridgePort Brewing Co. was a surprise beer fans in the know were long expecting. Having grown into a community icon since opening in 1984, the heritage brewery was a staple for Portland beer lovers. At its height in 2011, it produced almost 51,000 barrels, showcasing itself at the time as one of the more successful regional breweries in the country. It was all downhill from there.
BridgePort shed BBLs at a slow rate until 2015, when the wheels came off. It made about 33,700 that year, then 25,000 in 2016, then 17,500 in 2017, the last year of Brewers Association data. While 2018’s production is unknown—Brewbound reported 10,880 BBLs worth of packaged beer, but Brewers Association figures aren’t public yet—the ending is no mystery: the brewery closed in February.
The failure of the business might not seem too surprising at a time when many other long-tenured breweries have also struggled to keep up with smaller, nimbler competitors, or fast-growing companies aided by the deep pockets of multinational conglomerates. But one lingering factor does seem a bit odd. BridgePort, which was owned by the Texas-based Gambrinus Co., isn’t the only brewery in its portfolio that has suffered. (Good Beer Hunting)
When Will They Learn? Big Mergers Often Fail
I was not surprised by the colossal failure of the Kraft acquisition. Having studied the merger phenomenon for over 40 years, I know that most large acquisitions disappoint. From the spectacular failure of Time Warner’s (NYSE:TWX) acquisition by AOL in 2000, to recent debacles, like Teva’s (TEVA) –the world’s largest generic drug manufacturer — acquisition of Allergen Generics for $40.5 billion in 2016, or General Electric’s (GE) problematic acquisition of Alstom in 2015 for $9.5 billion. (Seeking Alpha)