The merger of SABMiller and Anheuser-Busch InBev is the world's largest merger of beer. It costed $104 billion to achieve and has consolidated the world's number 1 and 2 into one mega booze company. This new company will now be responsible for one third of the entire world's beer. There are a few reasons for this massive merger, such as the classic implementation of economies of scale and scope and larger market share, according to Newsweek.
However, the expensive merger is just one building block of a loftier and much grander plan: the destruction of the craft beer industry. Where craft beers have enjoyed double-digit growth in the past years, "macro" beers have either flat lined or declined. Here is how big beer plans on destroying competition:
Step one of the merger is to create quasi-craft beer brands. The best example comes from the report by Time: Blue Moon. Craft beer lovers will not find in the website, label, and even the brewery of Blue Moon that it is actually owned by MillerCoors, a subsidiary of SABMiller, and therefore a part of biggest beer conglomerate in the world.
The second step is to buy out craft breweries that are willing to sell out. This tactic has so far worked for Anheuser-Busch on a few noteworthy craft beer brands like Goose Island, Elysian, 10 Barrel, Golden Road, and Blue Point. While former owners and management of these brands claim that their commitment to the craft beer philosophy is intact, purists will flat-out disagree.
Step three involves advertising and marketing: promotion of big beer and bashing of craft beer. This step has so far seemed sketchy and can easily backfire on big beer. The best example of step three's implementation (and possible failure) is the Budweiser commercial in the 2015 Super Bowl which proclaimed it is a "Proudly a Macro Beer" and poked fun at hipster-types and their pumpkin peach ales.
Step four is controlling distribution. America's beer distribution uses a three-tier system with brewers and importers at tier 1, distributors at tier 2, and stores and restaurants at tier 3. Independent distributors help small brewers get their products out there and are key players in the explosion of craft beer popularity. The thing is that not all distributors are independent and Anheuser-Busch InBev has been busy buying out distributors around the country, including craft beer capital Colorado.
This step, however, has a legal obstacle. Reuters reported that the Justice Department is looking into Anheuser-Busch InBev for violating antitrust regulations as critics believe that owning more than one tier in the distribution network causes an imbalance. Where craft beer is not served, big beer is.
The last step is the merger and overwhelming of the market. The consolidation of SABMiller and Anheuser-Busch InBev may not make Coors Light more saleable given radically changed consumer tastes, but consolidation makes its bleak sales look good on paper. Always a pleasing thing to see if you are an investor.
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