‘We’re growing mega fast at the moment’: BrewDog
BrewDog valued at £1bn as 23% stake sold to US investor
The £213m ($265m) transaction involves £100m ($124m) to fund BrewDog’s global expansion, and the balance of proceeds will provide for early shareholder liquidity.
With the transaction valuing BrewDog at £1bn ($1.24bn), shares purchased in Equity for Punks I (which closed in February 2010), are now worth 2,765% of their original value. Shares purchased in Equity for Punks IV (April 2016) have increased in value by 177% in the past year.
BrewDog’s 5-year plan includes adding more capacity in Ellon (UK) and Columbus (US) as well as building new breweries in Asia and Australia.
“The deal will enable us to take our business, and our community’s investment in BrewDog, to the next level,” said BrewDog co-founder James Watt.
‘Turbocharge our mission’
BrewDog, the ‘punk’ brewer known for its non-conformist approach to brewing and branding, was founded in 2007 and now employs close to 1,000 people. In 2016 it launched the ‘Equity for Punks USA’ crowdfunding campaign to fund its expansion in the US as part of its global plans.
TSG Consumer Partners has previously invested in brands in the F&B sector such as vitaminwater, thinkThin and popchips.
Blythe Jack, MD, TSG, said: “BrewDog is an ideal fit for our mission, which is to partner with visionary founders building next generation consumer brands. BrewDog is a pioneer & leader in the rapidly emerging international craft beer market. We look forward to working with the brewer as it continues to innovate, expand & harness a unique rebellious energy."
Co-founders James Watt and Martin Dickie say the partnership with TSG is ‘a launch pad for us to turbocharge our mission to make the world as passionate about craft beer as we are’ – as well as validating its crowdfunding model.
“Our Equity Punks now own part of an independent business that has attracted an awesome partner who will help grow their investment even further. Crowdfunding can no longer be viewed as alternative finance; this is the democratisation of finance,” said Watt.
