David Broughton, a journalist and director of research for Sports Business Journal, discusses the history of sports advertising, how it is evolving, and what recent changes to the industry mean for building brands on the back of humanity’s most beloved pastimes.

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Note: The content and opinions presented within this podcast are not intended as investment advice, and the opinions rendered are that of the individuals and not Rabobank or its affiliates and should not be considered a solicitation or offer to sell or provide services.

With one of our favorite guests, consumer foods specialist Maria Castroviejo, and one of our favorite formats (a draft!), we debate the strategies that will drive beverage M&A deals over the next 12 to 18 months.

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Note: The content and opinions presented within this podcast are not intended as investment advice, and the opinions rendered are that of the individuals and not Rabobank or its affiliates and should not be considered a solicitation or offer to sell or provide services.

Margie Lehrman, CEO of the American Craft Spirits Association, and Bart Watson, Chief Economist for the Brewers Association, team up to discuss the winds of change blowing through the craft industry. Not long ago, the seas of craft beer and spirits were all smooth sailing as operators expanded into new, undiscovered territory. As costs rise, consumers shrug, and investors start to feel uneasy, many craft operators have been forced to batten down the hatches and rethink their long-term strategy, lest they should be blown off course. 

Liquid Assets hosts Stephen Rannekleiv and Jim Watson sit down with Rabobank economists Christian Lawrence and Jane Foley to dig beneath the headline consumer data and provide a clearer view on where demand (and the economy) is heading in the second half of 2023.

Steve and Jim invite Liquid Assets listeners to join them in congratulating Bourcard for becoming a father… on Father’s Day. Congrats Buki!!!

There are two major ways that beverage companies are changing their ingredients to fight inflation. Some brands are looking to cut costs by replacing their more expensive ingredients with cheaper ones. Others brands are developing new products or modifying existing products to increase revenues by adding more functional ingredients or making healthier versions of those products. We are joined by John Kelly and Paul Villis from the Kerry Group. They help us better understand what drives these decisions and share their experiences from helping brands manage this process.

As the big get bigger, many new brands and foreign brands are wondering how to get attention in the massive and complicated US distribution landscape? Sara Harmelin, Vice President – Digital & Innovation at Allied Beverage Group, and Michael Bilello, Executive Vice President – Strategic Communications & Marketing at WSWA, are both part of Access Craft, a program from WSWA to help smaller and new-to-market brands navigate the three-tier system and get the most of out their distributors. They share some success stories, best practices, and sage advice on finding success in the US market. 

We sit down with Danny Wirtz, vice chairman and a fourth-generation family leader at Breakthru Beverage Group, to discuss M&A, the digitalization of distribution, and how brands can work better with distributors in this time of uncertainty. Breakthru has a larger beer business than most other wine and spirits distributors, giving Danny unique insights into why some wine and spirits brands are choosing to work with beer wholesalers. 

Tom Cole (Chairman) and Francis Creighton (President and CEO) help lead Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA). We sat down with Tom and Francis at WSWA’s annual conference, Access LIVE, to kick off our series on US distribution. They share their views on industry trends, competition, and their legislative agenda for the year ahead.

To show off the global reach of the RaboResearch Beverages team, Steve and Bourcard sit down with analysts across four different continents, collecting stories about the economy and how it is affecting beverage brands around the world. 

Episode breakdown:

1:23 - Jim Watson on the latest US beverage pricing data and why some brands are outperforming the competition. 

18:21 - Andrés Padilla & Guilherme Morya on the Brazilian economy and how it is impacting the local coffee market.

31:31 - Sudip Sinha on how beverage brands are navigating the economy in markets across Asia.

40:53 - Francois Sonneville on the European economy and the on-premise in the UK.

48:57 -  Maria Castroviejo & Bourcard Nesin on the outlook for e-commerce sales in Europe and the US.

This podcast was based on the latest edition of the Beverage Market Buzz: Click here to read the report.