Brewdog rebrands, exchanges old cans for equity

Nearly 15 years after launching its first IPA and spearheading the ‘craft’ beer movement in the UK, Brewdog has completely rebranded its packaging and is asking drinkers to return old cans in exchange for shares.

Brewdog’s branding will be paired back as part of a “new dawn” for the brewer’s image, according to co-founder and owner James Watt.

The new cans feature a shield design and a smaller version of the brewer’s signature dog logo, bright colouring, and the words “brewed in Ellon”, with reference to the company’s brewery in Aberdeenshire.

The labels, which are still in the prototype stage, will be updated for markets that are brewing their own beer, such as the US and Australia, according to a spokesperson. Brewdog launched in the US 2017, and is currently completing construction of a facility in Australia.

Fans of the brewery will also get a chance to own a share of the business if they trade in 50 empty beer cans. The initiative, called “cans for equity”, is yet another way Brewdog is encouraging people to invest in the company through its own Equity for Punks scheme. So far, the beer giant has raised over £74 million from over 125,000 people through its crowdfunding initiatives.

Brewdog is offering more shares of its business as part of a six-point strategy to devise “a new course for business as it balances profit with people and planet.”

The company also said it will:

• Use “imperfect” beer that does not meet its quality standards to distill vodka.
• Invest £1 million per year in initiatives and research that will help the brewing industry “have a positive impact on the world”.
• Make beer recipes, new brewing standards, and accountability reports available and open-source. The brewer has publicly shared its beer recipes since 2016, but has now said it will add beer knowledge to this.
• Implement an “upcycling revolution”, filling up old cans with its own beer
• Encourage more people to brew their own beer at home using brewkits, with a view to cutting carbon emissions from shipping beers to various markets.

Watt said in a statement: “We’ve made it here by shaking up brewing and crafting a community owned business that is 100% powered by people. This marks a new dawn, welcome to the new Brewdog.”