Mahou San Miguel acquires 90% stake in Founders Brewing

Spanish brewing giant Mahou San Miguel has increased its stake in US brewery Founders from 30% to 90% in a deal expected to close in January 2020.

The Mahou San Miguel group initially acquired a 30% stake in Michigan-based Founders in 2014. Founders, which was established in 1997, is now the 14th largest brewery in the US according to data from 2018.

In documents seen by MiBiz.com and filed with the Michigan Liquor Control Commission back in August, it was announced that the Mahou San Miguel Group would now take a 90% stake in Founders, with co-founders Mike Stevens and Dave Engbers each retaining a 5% share of the business.

MiBiz.com reported that the investment will help Founders Brewing to pay off more than 24 minority shareholders it had accumulated over its years in business.

Founders said its day-to-day operations would continue as normal and its leadership team would all remain in place.

Stevens told MiBiz.com said the funds would take the brewery “to a whole other level”.

“We’re a growing company. We have 650 employees. We owe it to our employees to do the best we can to protect them with jobs into the future. This is a great opportunity for us to do that,” he said.

“We really have to start looking beyond craft and beyond that industry. We are starting to see a slow down there, but there is so much opportunity out there when you really start to look at it and evaluate the beer industry. Eighty percent of the beer drinking public does not drink craft. What does that mean? It means there’s a sea of opportunity.

“That opportunity is going to take a lot of resources – resources greater than any craft brewery in our industry has. We look at this opportunity with Mahou as our opportunity together to break into a much larger segment of the beer industry. That’s what we’re looking forward to with this partnership.”

The deal is expected to close in January 2020, pending approval.

In 2017 Mahou San Miguel bought a 30% stake in Colorado-based craft brewer Avery Brewing. Earlier this year, it acquired a further 40%, taking its total stake up to 70%.

In April, the Spanish beer giant reported more than €170 million in pre-tax profit in the 2018 financial year. In 2018 it invested €25.4 million in product innovation, up 23% from 2017, and launched three new products to the market; Mahou Maestra Dunkel, San Miguel Radler, and Mahou Cinco Estrellas Radler.