The National Beer Wholesaler Association’s (NBWA) annual legislative conference reconvened, albeit virtually, a year after the pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 event.
NBWA president and CEO Craig Purser and chairman Patrick Blach stressed the importance of their members meeting with elected officials — especially the nearly 70 new members of Congress — to educate them about the work of beer distributors.
The relationship built by members of the NBWA, one of the most powerful lobbying groups in Washington, D.C., was crucial last year in helping beer distributors gain an “essential” designation and continue operations throughout the pandemic, Purser said.
Purser touched on the drastic changes over the last year, from the election of President Joe Biden to the January 6 insurrection attempt by Trump supporters at the Capitol.
“Now more than ever, we have a duty to engage in the democratic process responsibly, rather than fuel the flames of partisan division and violence,” he said. “Participating in this conference demonstrates to members of Congress and their staffs, regardless of their party or their position, that democracy cannot be derailed.”
Purser provided a brief overview of NBWA’s priorities in 20201, including:
- Alcohol regulation in the U.S., primarily “the importance of a strong, independent three-tiered system of alcohol distribution, and how it works to benefit producers, retailers and consumers;”
- Federal tax policy, stressing “this is not the time to raise taxes;”
- CDL workforce development, getting more truck drivers trained to address the national driver shortage;
- Opposing alcohol shipping by the U.S. Postal Service, with Purser saying “your letter carrier should not be your bartender;”
- Federal cannabis policy, ensuring CBD and THC products are “regulated effectively” and “if it’s legalized or decriminalized, making sure that alcohol regulation isn’t weakened.”
- Targeted COVID-19 relief, including a tax credit for expired food and beverage, namely out-of-code beer.
As more Americans get vaccinated and “venues reopen, travel and hospitality restarts, and as kids get back in the classroom,” there is a growing sense of optimism, Purser said. He added that those aspirations are dependent on policies that benefit businesses such as independent beer wholesalers. And that gets back to the importance of virtual meetings with lawmakers.
“Ask them to support policies that benefit this industry,” Purser said. “Your ability to keep your doors open, trucks on the road and your employees on the payroll all come back to advocacy” and building goodwill.
Beer’s Lost Occasions and the Fix
NBWA chief economist Lester Jones offered a state of the industry overview, rehashing some of his Fintech webinar from last week. Jones’ presentation dovetailed with an update on the Beer Growth Initiative (BGI), the brand agnostic, pro-beer campaign supported by the NBWA, Beer Institute and Brewers Association, as well as several beer companies, in an attempt to win back market share from spirits and wine.
“We didn’t win last year; we lost,” Jones said. “The liquor industry grew by 5% last year. Beer was lucky if it was up about a half of 1% in terms of volume. But what that means is we lost share of ethanol. We lost occasions.”
Over the last 20 years, beer has lost share of total ethanol consumed per capita. After holding a 58% share of the total alcohol market in 2000, beer’s share was whittled down to 46% in 2020, Jones said. Meanwhile, liquor’s share has increased from 29% in 2000, to 38% in 2020. Wine’s share has increased more modestly, from 13% in 2000, to 15% in 2020.
And that’s why efforts such as the Beer Growth Initiative are so important to the industry.
Purser said wholesalers will be the “linchpin” to the success of the nationwide campaign, which has been funded by the NBWA, Anheuser-Busch, Constellation Brands, and Boston Beer Company, which tripled its investment last year. Diageo Beer Company, Molson Coors and Heineken have recently authorized branded point-of-sale items, he added.
Purser said the effort targets “a more female skewed occasional beer drinker between the ages of 21 and 29, identifying and inspiring incremental consumption, encouraging consumers to make beer a part of non-traditional everyday moment.”
The national rollout of the campaign generated 69.2 million overall impressions, 4.4 million engagements and reached 20 million young legal-drinking-age consumers (21-24 year olds).
Mike Barnes, BGI chair and chief revenue officer of Andrews Distributing, said the push is for wholesalers and brewers to include the bottle cap logo, which he called the industry’s “Nike swoosh,” and #BeersToThat hashtag, as well as a QR code that directs to the effort’s website, on point-of-sale items.
Thus far, 154 wholesalers have signed on to take part in the program, Barnes said.
Dogfish Head co-founder Sam Calagione, who joined the BGI steering committee last year, said it’s “time for all four tiers, including the consumer, to get together and help us return to growth.”
Calagione called on other craft brewers to join the effort, noting the recent addition of Odell Brewing.
Calagione is also upping his own involvement, appearing in a series of consumer-facing videos, and leveraging Dogfish Head’s 1.1 million social media followers to promote the effort.
“This is where we beat spirits day in and day out, how many styles we get to play with” Calagione said. “There isn’t a food that doesn’t go well with a beer.”
Calagione called the return of bars and restaurants the beer industry’s “wheelhouse” and that’s giving him optimism. He analogized the on-premise and off-premise to the chambers of the human heart, with the on-premise beer’s “power muscle.”
“We own that draft occasion, and that fresh occasion, and spirits and wine cannot come at that,” he said.
As for the off-premise, Calagione pointed to the cold box as beer’s strength in the channel, one that needs defending.
“As we’re promoting everything we love about beer, we also need to protect everything we love about beer,” he said. “This is a pivotal moment because there’s never been a moment … when spirits and wine have come after the cold box as much as they are right now. Whether it’s talking about equivalency, whether it’s talking about channel jamming, this is a critical moment.”
SBA To Begin Accepting Restaurant Revitalization Fund Applications Next Week
U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin joined the program to discuss his support for the filibuster, the Biden administration’s infrastructure plan and tax rates. Manchin also mentioned that the U.S. Small Business Administration will begin accepting applications for grants within the $29 billion Restaurant Revitalization Fund, starting May 3 at noon ET.
The program, which was part of the Biden administration’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 aid package that passed in March, is aimed at providing aid to restaurants, bars, breweries, food trucks, snack bars, bakeries, wineries, distilleries, caterers, cafes, and inns.
Businesses can begin creating accounts on the portal starting April 30 at 9 a.m. ET. Recipients will be eligible to receive funding equivalent to pandemic-related revenue losses, up to $10 million per business, and no more than $5 million per physical location.
The grants can go toward payroll costs (including sick leave), payments on any business mortgage obligation, rent payments (but not prepayment of rent), debt service, utilities, maintenance, construction of outdoor seating, business supplies, raw material costs, supplier costs, and operating expenses, according to the SBA website.
“Recipients are not required to repay the funding as long as funds are used for eligible uses no later than March 11, 2023,” according to the SBA website.
For the first three weeks of the program, the SBA will prioritize “small businesses owned by women, veterans, or socially and economically disadvantaged individuals,” the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported.