Scottish beer company BrewDog will kick off its Asia Pacific presence by teaming up with Budweiser China to open a new bar in Hong Kong’s vibrant Lan Kwai Fong district.
This collaboration with Budweiser China represents a significant step in BrewDog’s plan to triple its bar count, as they aim for an additional 200 venues in key locations within seven years.
The Hong Kong bar, set to open this autumn, will offer a selection of classic BrewDog beers on tap and feature its signature food menu.
Beyond this initial venture, the long-term partnership with Budweiser China is geared toward expanding the BrewDog brand across Greater China, capitalizing on the nation’s rapidly growing beer market growth, which has made it the world’s largest beer producer and consumer.
James Watt, BrewDog’s CEO, expressed excitement about entering the iconic Lan Kwai Fong district and emphasized that “this is first of many bold plans with our joint-venture partner Budweiser China, which will see us bring BrewDog to every corner of the world’s biggest beer market”.
The craft beer scene in China has seen a significant surge in popularity over the past decade, with production increasing tenfold to 6.5 million hectolitres by 2020, reflecting a shift away from local lagers.
Partnerships like these are a tried and tested approach for BrewDog. In 2021, they had successfully doubled sales in Japan through a similar partnership with Asahi Japan, where they operated as BrewDog Japan.
The collaboration involved BrewDog Japan operating as a standalone entity with its own sales, marketing and back-office teams, utilising Asahi’s distribution capability to push up supermarket sales.
BrewDog’s expansion plans aim for 300 bars by 2030, a three-fold increase from their over 100 bars and hotels worldwide.
These additional 200 venues will be opened in key markets over the next seven years, including the UK, US, Italy, Netherlands, Australia, and the first US franchise location in Denver.
BrewDog anticipates that within the next five years, their total system revenue from bars, including owned bars and franchise locations, will surpass £1 billion.
