Sapporo-owned Stone Brewing Company in San Diego has announced that they will stop all exports sales. The company currently sells into 50 export markets which makes up about 1% of their total sales.
Sapporo USA acquired Stone in June of 2022. Since then, Sapporo has upgraded the Stone brewery in San Diego, California and in Richmond, Virginia in order to facilitate the brewing of Sapporo beer for the US market. Although Sapporo has held on to the Stone brand, they have focused their efforts on a few beers that have shown promise in their marketing and distribution efforts such as Delicious IPA multipacks and its Mexican-style lager Buenaveza. In October, the company discontinued some special releases, Enjoy By IPA and larger format bottles.
“We have a clear and very promising plan for future growth, which requires us to concentrate our focus on the US market where both Stone and Sapporo brands are experiencing the most success,” Sapporo CEO Zach Keeling told The Drinks Business. “Despite our team’s strong efforts, the current environment has challenged our growth.”
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