Tilray Brands has snapped up BrewDog's Australian assets for an undisclosed sum.
The move follows the US-headquartered cannabis and beverage group confirming the acquisition of some of BrewDog's assets last week for £33m (then $44.1m).
With the latest deal, Tilray acquires the BrewDog Brewing Australia business, which includes a brewing and production facility in Brisbane, Queensland, a statement from the cannabis and beverages group read today (9 March).
The transaction will also see Tilray take ownership of two owned BrewDog bars in Brisbane, and three franchised venues in Pentridge, Victoria, South Eveleigh, New South Wales, and Perth, Western Australia.
In the statement, Irwin Simon, CEO of Tilray Brands, said: “The acquisition of BrewDog’s profitable Australian brewery operations and flagship bars represents another important milestone in advancing Tilray’s global beverage and consumer products strategy. Australia is a highly attractive craft beer market with a strong beer culture and serves as a strategic gateway to the rapidly growing Asia-Pacific region."
Under the deal sealed last week, Tilray secured BrewDog's worldwide intellectual property, its UK brewing operations and 11 bars in London, Birmingham, Manchester and Dublin. Tilray also takes on a bar in the Scottish town of Ellon, where BrewDog has a brewery.
At the time, Tilray said it was still in talks to buy “certain” – but undisclosed – BrewDog assets in the US and Australia.
The US brewer and cannabis business told Just Drinks that talks around the US assets were "ongoing".
President of Tilray Brands' international business, Rajnish Ohri, said BrewDog's Australia team "bring strong brewing expertise, experienced local leadership, and a deep connection to the Australian craft beer community".
He added the deal "gives us a strong foundation in a key market and an important hub for our international beverage and consumer products business".
Reflecting on next steps, he said: "Together with the BrewDog team, we will focus on growing the brand locally while leveraging our brewing, distribution, and commercial capabilities to expand BrewDog across Australia’s national retail chain footprint and introduce Tilray’s broader beverage portfolio across Australia and the Asia-Pacific region, including key markets such as Japan.”
Tilray's initial deal for BrewDog last week resulted in 484 redundancies in the UK. The Montauk beer producer told Just Drinks no jobs have been impacted at BrewDog's Australia business.
