Stone/Sapporo Restructures Distributor Management Team, Cuts 1% of Workforce

As the 1-year anniversary of Sapporo’s acquisition of Stone Brewing approaches, the combined company has restructured its distributor management team, which led to a 1% workforce reduction, a spokesperson confirmed to Brewbound.

Word of the job cuts began to spread Wednesday evening.

Sapporo and Stone chief revenue officer Tom McReavy shared that the restructuring affected members of the company’s distributor management team where roles and responsibilities overlapped following the integration of the teams. Employees of both Stone and Sapporo were affected, although members of the national chain team were not affected.

“Since day one of Sapporo U.S.A. acquiring Stone Brewing, we have had the intention of becoming one organization. In the process of our integration, we have thoughtfully aligned our Sapporo/Stone sales team structure to support our combined company strategy and continue our momentum in both craft and the import segments,” McReavy said in a statement shared with the media.

“Today, we have made the decision to realign our distributor management team to better align with our long-term strategy as a combined Sapporo/Stone sales team, which is to continue to invest in the off- and on-premise chain business and focus on key markets and cities where we have the right to win,” he continued.

The Sapporo/Stone sales team has 13 open roles, and the overall company will be adding more than 100 new team members over the next year, mostly on the production side, “to accommodate the expected growth of both Stone and Sapporo,” McReavy added.

“We never take any decisions that affect our team members lightly,” he wrote. “We are focused on building a sales structure that is aligned to the strategic growth objectives of the company.”

The internal restructuring follows improved trends for Stone, which ranked as the seventh largest Brewers Association-defined craft brewery in 2022. The Escondido, California-based craft brewery increased production +3%, to 376,347 barrels. The company gained 0.05% share of the craft beer market, holding 1.55% share of the craft segment last year.

Year-to-date through April 23, Sapporo USA ranked as the 21st largest beer category vendor in off-premise retailers tracked by market research firm Circana (formerly known as IRI). Off-premise dollar sales of the Sapporo USA portfolio have increased +0.6%, to more than $30.1 million, in multi-outlet and convenience stores, the firm reported. Volume, measured in case sales, have also increased +0.3% through the first four months of 2023.

Sapporo announced the $165 million acquisition of Stone on June 24, 2022, and closed on August 31, 2022. The transaction gave Sapporo a top 10 craft brewery and bicoastal production at its facilities in Escondido, California, and Richmond, Virginia. Production of Sapporo’s beers at the East Coast facility is expected to begin later this year.