Andrew Katz’s Post

As marketers, we know that generating stories about our brands can be challenging. But what if your brand became THE STORY? That's exactly what happened to Athletic Brewing Co., the #1 NA Beer brand in the U.S. As interest in mindful drinking becomes more mainstream, Athletic Brewing Co. has transformed so many people's lives. And it's a story that we're extremely proud to help tell. Check out this video to see what we mean. #AthleticBrewingCo #MindfulDrinking #NAbeer #brandstory

Legendary brands possess the following (Skip to #3): 1. End-to-end brand experiences that never leave audiences hanging. Anywhere. Ever. Always a CTA. An action. An experience fulfilled. 2. A platform agnostic loyal following built on community 3. A frequently executed tangible component #becomelegendary #befarfromtimid #themartinagency #legendarybrands #papajohns

How do you scale from zero to north of $50 million a year in sales? This week on the Business of Drinks podcast, we hear from Bill Shufelt, the co-founder of Athletic Brewing. Bill hasn’t just built a successful drinks company — he’s revolutionized the entire American market for non-alcoholic beer. And he’s done it in just six years. Bill gave up a comfortable life in finance. Why? Because he knew that if he was interested in drinking non-alcoholic beer, other people would be too. But it was an uphill battle, because non-alc beer was such a stigmatized product. He was turned down by almost every brewer he approached, and at times was reduced to approaching strangers in liquor store parking lots to help him sell his product. Today, Athletic Brewing Co. is valued at $500M. Last year, Athletic was ranked as the 26th fastest-growing private company in America by Inc. Magazine and named one of TIME’s “100 Most Influential Companies.” Bill explains how he built the company, and where he sees the market going next, including: - Why non-alc beer is not competing with bev-alc. Instead, it's a major volume saver for retail and on-premise accounts. - How Athletic got its first Whole Foods placement (awesome story!). - How 66 individual investors took Athletic from its Seed Round all the way to Series B. - Why DTC is the best channel for innovation. - What the U.S. non-alc drinks segment can learn from their counterparts in Europe. - The path Athletic sees for the NA segment to grow to 10-20% of all adult beverages. Listen in! https://lnkd.in/ecUK5aTg #nonalcoholic #beerindustry #drinksindustry #beer #beernews #beverageindustry #podcast Felicity Carter Erica Duecy

"Who is my product for?" can be the wrong question to ask when launching a new brand or evaluating a market. Athletic brewing is the perfect example why: Their product is a non-alcoholic beer. If an investor asked "who is the market for this product?" The brand may say it’s for people who are sober, but still want the taste of beer. The potential of this idea is then evaluated around the addressable market of people who are sober but still want the taste of beer, when the reality is, the audience and use case is much broader. I drink athletic brewing from time to time. I also drink alcohol. I have friends who also drink alcohol and athletic brewing. Sometimes we'll drink athletic brewing alongside drinking a beer. How would you describe myself and my friends as a market? I think a better question to ask when evaluating the potential of an idea: What kind of situations is this product for? In Athletic Brewing's case, this could be: - pacing (while drinking) - for weeknights to enjoy the taste of beer with dinner - post-run (long runs often have me craving beer) - at events or bars when you don't want to drink (but don't classify as sober) These 'use case' profiles give a much broader lens through which to think about the potential of a product. Especially with consumables, situations can often times more accurately encompass the potential than simple demographic descriptions. #branding #positioning #marketing

How do you scale from zero to north of $50 million a year in sales? This week on the Business of Drinks podcast, we hear from Bill Shufelt, the co-founder of Athletic Brewing. Bill hasn’t just built a successful drinks company — he’s revolutionized the entire American market for non-alcoholic beer. And he’s done it in just six years. Bill gave up a comfortable life in finance. Why? Because he knew that if he was interested in drinking non-alcoholic beer, other people would be too. But it was an uphill battle, because non-alc beer was such a stigmatized product. He was turned down by almost every brewer he approached, and at times was reduced to approaching strangers in liquor store parking lots to help him sell his product. Today, Athletic Brewing Co. is valued at $500M. Last year, Athletic was ranked as the 26th fastest-growing private company in America by Inc. Magazine and named one of TIME’s “100 Most Influential Companies.” Bill explains how he built the company, and where he sees the market going next, including: - Why non-alc beer is not competing with bev-alc. Instead, it's a major volume saver for retail and on-premise accounts. - How Athletic got its first Whole Foods placement (awesome story!). - How 66 individual investors took Athletic from its Seed Round all the way to Series B. - Why DTC is the best channel for innovation. - What the U.S. non-alc drinks segment can learn from their counterparts in Europe. - The path Athletic sees for the NA segment to grow to 10-20% of all adult beverages. Listen in! https://lnkd.in/ecUK5aTg #nonalcoholic #beerindustry #drinksindustry #beer #beernews #beverageindustry #podcast Felicity Carter

🍺 What trends are guiding growth in the craft beer industry? Partnerships, partnerships, partnerships. Craft breweries are connecting with (and expanding) their target audience by appealing to the trusted and familiar: Celebrity endorsements and collaborations with local businesses. But, finding the right partnership means deeply understanding your consumer (market research, market research, market research.) 🤝What partnerships has your CPG brand found success with? Which ones have you responded to on a personal level? Tell us! https://hubs.la/Q028myfy0

#Summer isn't over until #LaborDay weekend, and neither is our Opinion Party. Just in time, we have insights from BAV Group's Kathy Shen on how #beer brands can stand out in a crowded market. Kathy pops open how beer brands are using strategic #partnerships to brew up #brand differentiation and keep consumers coming back for more. Give it a read, let us know what you think and what you drink! #wearevml https://lnkd.in/eyDWjc2M

Food is an integral part of the game day experience. Whether it's the classic hot dogs, nachos piled high with cheese, or a cold beverage in hand, there's something special about the culinary side of sports events. For many, the taste of their favorite stadium snack is as much a part of the excitement as the game itself. So, I'm curious: What are your favorite parts about sports event food? Is it the shared experience with friends and family? The unique stadium offerings you can’t get anywhere else? Or perhaps the nostalgic flavors that take you back to your first game? #sportsevents #concessionsfood #gamedayeats

I’m Beerconomy’s futurist in the beer industry, specifically, the Craft Beer industry. So how does someone who’s role of a ’futurist’ effect or impact your future in beer or the entire beer industry overall? “On the first part of the journey I was looking at all the life There were plants and birds and rocks and things There was sand and hills and rings …” — the band ‘America’ As far as future impacts, there’s Faith Popcorn. Faith is a futurist, author, and founder and CEO of the marketing consulting firm — BrainReserve. Her worldwide acclaimed book, ‘The Popcorn Report: Faith Popcorn on the Future of Your Company, Your World, Your Life’, simply, changed my approach. Towards everything. For example, Faith advocated these notions: ▶️ She coined terms like "cocooning" ("the impulse to stay inside when the outside gets too tough and scary", such as turning a home into a nest) ▶️ The demand for exercising "brain fitness", possibly manifesting itself in "brain trainers.” It happened. This was — and still is — huge. Heck, why do you think I had avocado and eggs on whole grain toast for breakfast? ▶️ Also, she said that "second hand nostalgia" would become a trend. It’s been — still is — booming for way more than two decades. And it’s still on rocket-ship like trajectory. With all of that … Morning has broken in America on Monday, April 29th. Are you in control of YOUR future — today, this week, next month, the balance of this year, as you springboard into 2025, and the balance or the decade? It’s not a rhetorical question. I’ll guarantee this: In three years, most will echo this, “What was I thinking?” I merely lead a horse to water. I cannot make it drink. Your future is now. And it starts today. “You see, I’ve been through the desert on a horse with no name It felt good to be out of the rain In the desert you can't remember your name 'Cause there ain't no one for to give you no pain …” — the band ‘America’ Source: Beerconomy #FutureTrends #FaithPopcorn #BrainReserve #ConsumerBehavior #BrandAwareness #EmergingTrends #BusinessIntelligence #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #DeepLearning #Beer #CraftBeer #NonAlcoholicBeer #Cider Slàinte☘️! ✦✦✦ Stephen Carter King Chief of Growth and Marketing and Strategy and ‘The Beerconomist’ + CEO of Beerconomy ✦ Market Analyst ✦ Speaker ✦ Futurist & Author ✦ with beer market trends, insights, data and forecasts Publisher: The Beerconomist

With out a doubt, the beer industry is facing considerable change. Our underlying economic environment is shifting, consumer preferences are changing and its unclear what the ‘post craft world’ means for independent brewers. This presents significant challenges but also the opportunity to lean into the innovation and creativity that sparked so much of the ‘craft revolution’ over the last decade. The IBA is facing these challenges head on – we are being dynamic, changing our own strategy, structure and operations, advocating more than we ever have and trying hard to address the systemic issues in the beer industry. All while keeping our eye on the prize of a vibrant and high-quality beer industry for years to come. We’re not going to lie – it’s a complex time but you can be a part of this as a Board Director. You would play a key role in helping us navigate these complexities and to set the scene for the next phase of our evolution. We think it’s exciting and we hope you do to! Find out more - https://bit.ly/boardnoms24