Kirin

Brand plays a key role in the beer-purchasing process, along with taste, price, special occasion,

     In this paper I will be talking about the U.S. beer industry and in short an overview of the brewing industry worldwide. I will talk about the barriers to entry, economies of scale, government intervention, pricing, current market trends, product differentiation, and imports. The focus being mainly on the U.S. brewing industry oligopoly. The U.S. brewing industry has three major players: Anheuser-Busch, SAB Miller, and Coors/Molson. Anheuser-Busch is currently the largest brewer in the world, producing over 100 million barrels a year. Anheuser-Busch currently owns over 50% of the market in the United States, with Miller trailing behind at 20% and Coors at about 11% with the rest of the market occupied by imports and craft breweries. When analyzing any industry, how easy it is for newcomers to enter the market is a great importance. If there are high barriers to entry

In a world where large, corporate breweries rule the market, craft beer is created to please an audience that applauds the styles, techniques and flavors. Though craft beer can be purchased through several different outlets, the best place to thoroughly enjoy the entire experience of the specially made beer is in the brewery where it was made. The article titled, “In Lean Times, a Stout Dream” in The Wall Street Journal1 states that, despite the hard economic times and consequent consumer cutbacks, sales of craft beer, the industry 's fastest-growing segment, rose

Coca-Cola’s confidence in its domination over the soft drink industry eroded, and its advertising slogans began to recognize industry competition: “No Wonder Coke Tastes the Best”. While Coke’s slogans have always centered on the product, Pepsi’s advertisement emphasized the users of the product. Rather than targeting every market, Pepsi focused on the demographic environment. Pepsi foresaw the mass appeal of the youth generation for soft drinks and in 1961 divulged the successful slogan “Now, It’s Pepsi, for Those Who Think Young”. The campaign was such a success that Pepsi’s sales growth outperformed that of Coca-Cola.

New Belgium is, however, the third-largest craft brewery in the nation, with estimated sales of over $100 million, equaling approximately 700,000 barrels of beer per year. An analysis of the craft beer industry as a whole suggests that there is continued growth potential for New Belgium. Exhibit 5.1 of the New Belgium Brewing (B) case shows that craft beer is the fastest growing segment of the U.S. alcoholic beverage market, with an increase in market share of over 100 percent from 1999-2011. It is also an industry whose customers tend to be extremely loyal, making them less likely to view craft beer as a commodity. Consequently, craft beer has a higher probability of being immune to competition from inferior goods and substitutes. This is particularly applicable to New Belgium’s target market of “beer connoisseurs” that appreciate the high quality and taste of craft beer and who include “executives, lawyers, and accountants” with the continued ability to pay higher prices for craft beer, enabling the craft beer industry to achieve gross margins of up to 30 percent (Clark & Rogler, 2013).

We’re told that craft beer’s share of the market rose 17.6% last year, accounting for 11% of beer volume and $19.6 billion of the beer industry’s $101.5 billion in sales. However, it’s also a market in which the sale of imported beers rose 6.9% in 2014 and where, according to Nielsen, the amount of Mexican beer alone sold in grocery stores within the last year is equal to the amount of all craft beer sold from supermarket and convenience store beer shelves. It’s also a market where, despite advances by both craft and imported beers, one of every five beers sold is a Bud Light. In fact, the 38 million barrels of Bud Light sold last year would not only make it the No. 3 brewer in the U.S. if it split off from Anheuser-Busch InBev BUD, -0.51%

Identifying a new market can be a challenging task. However, when examining the preferred alcoholic beverage of three major age groups, one in particular stands out. Of the three age groups, fifty and older consumers are the age group with the smallest preference for beer. Figure 2 on the following page compares the alcoholic beverage preference for three major age groups.

New Belgium can make its branding and messaging resonate with consumers in different parts of the country through education and advertisement. Initially, the company invested in “beerstreams,” which allowed them to take beer tasting on the road (Ferrell & Hartline, 2014, p. 362). Consumers were able to learn about the beer, the company, and engage in contest that make them “a part” of the company (2014).

Boston Beer Company should then conduct regional market studies to determine potential flavors for each specific region based off existing local craft breweries and popular regional flavor combinations. Each smaller market study should be conducted by local consulting firms who already have an understanding of the demographics and culture of the region they are studying. These studies should be

As we all go about our day, we rush to place to place. Around us there are things for sale, people everywhere trying to make money. As we are rushing around, we all tend to get thirsty as we have a thousand things going on. In America we have dozens of choices when it comes to soft drinks, although the two most widely known are Coca-Cola and Pepsi. Many are often stuck between choosing Coke or Pepsi; even though they are slightly different in appearance, taste, and price it makes a world of difference to the customer.

Competitive brewers will introduce newer styles of beers to meet beer drinkers’ new preferences, more specifically lighter beers. However, both styles will be kept under the same brand

Beer has a long history. In 2000 B.C.E., Sumerians had prepared eight different beer types, ranging from “strong,” “red brown,” and “good dark” (Mauk, 2013). Breweries have created their own recipes, brewed their own beers—some with alcohol, some without. Over the past few years, craft beer gained steady market share away from the national and international breweries (Murray & O 'Neill, 2012). Separating one beer from the next is the product itself, and what the product has to offer. Competition is ferocious due to more informed, sophisticated consumers, as well as globalization and the spread of technology (Murray & O 'Neill, 2012).

Finally, the large brewers were increasingly successful by creating another point of differentiation. They attracted more consumers as the big brewers had the capacity to package beers in different sizes and therefore also appeal to consumers who drank beer in small amounts or slowly as well as packaged in different numbers to cater to the growing population of drinkers who consumed at home.

These two-company’s economic characteristic include their market size and growth rate from the early 2000’s to 2010. Coke and Pepsi have struggled for years in the carbonated and non-alcoholic sector. According to Barbara Murray (2006c) "But as the pop fight has topped out, the industry 's giants have begun relying on new product flavors and looking to noncarbonated beverages for growth.” (Murry, 2006). For instance, Coke boasts in the advertisement as the king of the soft drink; as a consumer of both products, I agree. About 15 years ago, I was selected to participate in a critiquing of Coke and Pepsi products. Additionally, my travel to Africa in 2007 and 2010 provided the same raving review for the Coke Cola products. Apparently, Coke and Pepsi have been rivals for ages locally, regionally, nationally, multinational, and globally, therefore, one expects them to have an on-going rivalry when marketing the high-energy beverages.

Budweiser - The Self Proclaimed, “King of Beers” has been produced by Anheuser-Busch Company Inc., since its introduction in 1876. Anheuser Busch is the largest brewer in the world and produces more than 100 million barrels of beer per year. Budweiser is synonymous with American culture and is known for its significant efforts in promotion. Anheuser -Busch has always put a major focus on marketing and according to Business Insider, “Budweiser was a triumph of marketing over quality, by the 1980’s had become synonymous with American Culture, and is a good part of American Tradition, like going to a baseball game or a college football game” (Business 1). Budweiser has attempted appealing to various audiences with their advertisements. From ratty, to refined, to sporty, to hipster Budweiser has adapted many of its advertisements to its target market of males between 21 and 34 years old, which is the largest population of beer drinkers. They regularly change their look and image through advertising and their commercials to adapt to the current culture. Differences in advertising can clearly be seen in the way Anheuser-Busch has used the changing roles of women from the 1950’s to present, cultural changes in society, and the redirection of their target audience to demonstrate their adaptability to the changing times, but fails to respect women. Anheuser-Busch’s recurring success and continual growth of the their brand is directly related to their ability to adapt to these