BrewDog IPO: One of the World’s Most Valuable Beer Brands

BrewDog is one of the world's most popular beer brands, known for its wacky commercials, unique flavors, and controversial bottles. The company's loud-and-proud attitude attracted the interest of big-time investors, hoping to score several hundred shares when it goes public. But the question here is this: when is the BrewDog IPO?

Co-founder and chief executive James Watt has long since discussed his interest to list BrewDog on the stock market. In fact, he was on the verge of listing the company in 2020 after raising funding of $7.5 million. But COVID-19 came around, and plans were postponed. Now, Watt is waiting until market conditions have stabilised before filing for an IPO.

In this article, we'll discuss everything you need to know about the BrewDog IPO, including funding rounds, valuation, and expected share price.

Brief History of BrewDog

Founded in 2007 by young entrepreneurs Martin Dickie and James Watt, BrewDog is a UK-based brewery and bar chain. It's one of the country's largest independent breweries, operating more than 70 bars around the globe.

A Rocky Start

As with most success stories, BrewDog started small.

Founded in Fraserburgh by then-college students Watt and Dickie, BrewDog was more of a passion project than anything else.

Fed up with stuffy UK beer, Watt and Dickie decided to create their own craft beers to compensate. This turned out to be the idea of a lifetime, as four years later, BrewDog became one of the UK's most famous beer brands.

BrewDog's first year of trading was distressing, to say the least. Watt and Dickie sold no more than a couple of cases on a good day, so the duo was losing more money than they could make. Before long, they started missing bank payments on the £20,000 loan they took.

The outlook was bleak, but the duo was nothing if not resilient. They knew their beers were good—they just had to find the right market and opportunity to advertise their products.

Step In the Right Direction

As Watt and Dickie introduced more flavours to their range, they decided to enter a bottled beer competition hosted by Tesco.

Surprisingly—or perhaps unsurprisingly, given the quality of their beers—BrewDog dominated the competition. The brewery won not only first but also second, third, and fourth place.

BrewDog received its first big break when Tesco's higher-ups approached the company founders and requested an order of 2,000 cases of BrewDog a week.

Watt said, "Is that all? No problem," but in the back of his mind, he was doubtful. Could he and Dickie really fulfil such a massive order? By hand, no less?

Tesco wanted their first delivery in about four months. Determined to succeed, BrewDog approached the bank for £150,000 to install a bottling line to make production a bit easier. However, due to late payments on existing loans, BrewDog was promptly turned down.

But that didn't discourage the duo. They went and found another lender and managed to strike a "once in a lifetime" deal. They got the money they needed and began expanding their brewing facilities.

BrewDog was a smashing hit at Tesco, going out of stock almost as soon as bottles were placed on shelves. Other supermarkets caught wind of the famous BrewDog beer and began ordering from the company.

Rapid Rise to Success

After purchasing an outlet in Aberdeen in 2009, BrewDog began producing various lagers and ales for online and retail purchases. The company also started to export to other countries like Japan and America.

By the end of 2009, BrewDog became Scotland’s largest independent brewery.

Fast forward a couple of years. BrewDog opened numerous craft bars including one in the capital city of London. The company starred in dozens of guest shows and was given the "Fastest Growing Company" award in Scotland. The company even got a TV show called The BrewDog Show.

Between 2015 and 2018, BrewDog opened upwards of 15 bars outside the UK. The company also launched its second and third seasons of The BrewDog Show and expanded its line to 82 new beers, and exported to upwards of 60 countries.

Today, BrewDog is valued at a staggering $1.9 billion (approximately £1.8 billion). The company raised some $230 million across various private equity rounds and crowdfunding.

When Is The BrewDog IPO (Initial Public Offering) Date?

BrewDog has yet to announce an IPO date publicly.

The company initially wanted to go public on the London Stock Exchange in 2020, but plans were postponed when COVID-19 affected all business lines.

According to founder and CEO James Watt, the brewery company has yet to make any imminent plans to list. However, he mentioned the possibility of putting up a timeline at the end of 2023. BrewDog's IPO can therefore be assumed to occur sometime in 2024 or early 2025 at most. The current share price is unknown, but it's expected to be $25 per share.

In February 2023, BrewDog struck a deal with Budweiser China to produce its flagship craft beers at the Putian Craft Brewery based in Fujian. BrewDog aims to sell its products through Budweiser China's distribution network to further expand its global reach.

Details of the dealings are yet to be publicly announced.

What Is BrewDog’s Valuation?

BrewDog's valuation is estimated to be $1.95 billion in 2022, an 8% increase from 2021 at $1.8 billion. Founders Watt and Dickie own roughly 44% of the company, 24% and 20%, respectively. Their combined stakes are around $880 million.

Currently, BrewDog is ranked the 14th most valuable beer brand in the world by Brand Finance's Alcoholic Drinks Report of 2022, which ranked the 50 most valuable beer brands worldwide. It has overtaken Carlsberg, Harbin, Brahma, and Stella Artois.

BrewDog's Funding Rounds

BrewDog received funding of $230 million over 14 rounds, with the most recent being on September 15, 2020. Here’s a brief overview of the most notable funding rounds:

How Does BrewDog Make Money?

BrewDog makes most of its money through product sales.

BrewDog's biggest selling point is its wide variety of beer flavors and sizes and extreme ABV (Alcohol By Volume) percentage, which is as high as 55%.

Apart from retail sales, BrewDog makes money from its pub chains, hotels, and TV networks. BrewDog has around 14 TV shows covering travel, food, company, cocktails, and more. These shows allowed the company to connect with its audience on a global scale and educate them about the brand.

Moreover, the company has a unique way of attracting stakeholders.

Stakeholders are given the opportunity to take part in a premium beer-tasting event and stay at the Doghouse Columbus Hotel located in Canal Winchester, Ohio. The Doghouse Columbus Hotel is the world's first hotel inside a craft brewery. The 6,000 square-feet hotel features 32 beer-themed rooms with draft beer on tap in each.

Final Thoughts

Though BrewDog's IPO is yet to be publicly announced, experts estimate it to appear in the LSE sometime between 2024 to 2025.

The company raised approximately $7.5 million via a crowdfunding round in October 2020, raising its valuation to nearly $2 billion (£1.9 billion).

The potential IPO price is unknown, but shares currently cost $25 through Equity for Punks.

The information in this article is well-researched and factual. Still, it contains opinions also, and IT IS NOT FINANCIAL ADVICE and should not be interpreted as such, do not make any financial decisions based on the information in this article; we are not financial advisors. We are journalists. You should always consult with a professional before making any investment decisions. We hold no stock or interests in any of the Companies discussed on this website/app.