Brooklyn Brewery CEO Eric Ottaway on the Global Craft Landscape and Product Innovation

Dec. 31, 2018 at 10:51 PM

Brooklyn Brewery CEO Eric Ottaway discussed growing consumer interest in low- and no-alcohol products, the overall state of the beer business, his company’s global partnership strategy and the shrinking international opportunities for U.S. craft breweries on Day One of the 2018 Brewbound Live business conference, held in Santa Monica, California, on November 27, 2018.

Brooklyn Brewery is the 11th largest craft brewery in the U.S., and Eric Ottaway has been leading the organization since 2014. Prior to taking over as CEO, he served as chief operating officer of the company. He runs the business alongside his brother, Robin Ottaway, who serves as the brewery’s president. The two have been with the company since the mid-’90s.

The Brooklyn Brewery, founded in 1988, produced 293,000 barrels of beer in 2017. Its beer is sold in 30 states and in more than 30 countries. In 2016, Brooklyn Brewery sold a 24.5 percent minority stake to Japan’s Kirin Brewery. The following year, it acquired minority stakes in California’s 21st Amendment and Colorado’s Funkwerks. The company has also forged several international brewing partnerships.