Newly Appointed Boston Beer Company CEO Dave Burwick will earn a base salary of $750,000 and take home a hefty $1.6 million signing bonus, according to an SEC filing.
Burwick, already a member of Boston Beer’s board of directors since 2005, was announced as the company’s new CEO on Wednesday. He is expected to replace outgoing CEO Martin Roper, who has been with the company for more than 17 years, on April 2, according to the filing.
For the former Peet’s Coffee CEO to receive the $1.6 million signing bonus, he must remain with the country’s sixth largest brewery for at least two years. If he voluntarily terminates his employment within the first year, Burwick will be forced to give back the entire signing bonus. And if he departs the company before his two-year anniversary, he must give back 50 percent of the bonus, the filing notes.
Burwick will also be eligible for various performance bonuses in 2018 and beyond. If Boston Beer hits annual performance targets this year, Burwick could earn up to 100 percent of his $750,000 annual base salary in additional compensation. Should the company achieve annual performance targets in 2019 and beyond, Burwick will receive no less than 100 percent of his base salary in the form of additional bonuses, the filing states.
Additionally, Burwick will be granted two one-time restricted stock awards “for the purposes of recruitment and retention.” He will receive two awards of Class A shares, valued at about $7.75 million and $6 million, respectively. Those stock awards will become fully vested through his third and fourth anniversaries with the company.
Burwick is also eligible to receive annual equity grants of up to $2 million.
The company will also pay up to $600,000 to assist in relocating Burwick from California, including expenses incurred as a result of selling his current residence as well as those for short-term living in Boston.
Departing CEO Martin Roper, who earned a base salary of $783,000 in 2017, will remain with the company until Burwick’s start date in April, and then he will serve as a consultant to Burwick to aid in his transition through May 2018. For March, Roper will receive a gross salary of $250,000 and $65,250 per month for April and May. Boston Beer’s compensation committee awarded Roper a discretionary bonus of $780,000 in addition to a bonus of $229,262 for the company achieving 36.6 percent of its target goals for fiscal year 2017.
The filing also detailed 2017 bonus payouts for founder Jim Koch, Roper and other executives. Koch will earn more than $148,000 in bonuses, while Roper will earn more than $229,000. CFO Frank Smalla and chief sales officer John Geist will each earn $252,729, while CMO Jon Potter will earn more than $200,000 in bonuses.
Also of note, Koch will receive a $415,000 salary in 2017, a 2.5 percent increase over the prior year. The company also shared 2018 salary information for Smalla ($520,000), Geist ($520,000) and Potter ($492,000).