Beer-brewing company BrewDog has been sold to American firm Tilray Brands for just £33m, with close to 500 people being made redundant.
In total, 38 bars across the UK will be set for closure, with the deal encompassing only 11 pubs along with the brand and brewing operations.
After failing to turn a profit in recent years, BrewDog appointed administrators to oversee a sale, with Tilray – which owns a range of other craft brewing companies, along with businesses operating in the medical cannabis sector – emerging as the successful buyer.
Earlier this year, BrewDog stopped operations across its gin and vodka brands in Aberdeenshire, while last year it closed doors on several pubs it owned in a bid to stem losses. Jobs were also cut after a £37m loss was recorded across the previous year.
Following the closure, with immediate effect, of the 38 bars, there will be 484 redundancies, though 733 employees’ jobs have been preserved under the terms of the sale, and will now become workers for Tilray Brands UK.
Administrators AlixPartners confirmed that there was no offer received “from any prospective bidder which would have preserved BrewDog in its entirety”.
The administrators have also confirmed there would be “no return to any equity holders” from the sale, including the members of the public who invested in BrewDog through the company’s “Equity for Punks” scheme.
Money raised from equity sales to fans in this way was used for expanding the business, and was estimated to have raised about £75m.
“As one would expect over the past two weeks, we have received significant interest in the BrewDog business from prospective buyers across both the trade and investment communities,” said Clare Kennedy, a managing director at AlixPartners.
“In Tilray, we have secured a purchaser with a passion for craft brewing who will be an excellent custodian and sponsor of the business in the months and years ahead.
“Having done so, our priority now is to support, to the fullest extent possible, those people whose roles have been made redundant, and we would ask operators within the UK leisure sector who are in a position to assist to contact us at any time.”
Irwin D Simon, chief executive of Tilray Brands, added, “BrewDog is one of the most iconic, mission-driven craft beer brands in the UK. What makes BrewDog truly special has always been its brewers, its brewpubs and its passionate community of beer fans.
“As we begin a new chapter for this great brand, our priority is to refocus BrewDog on the craft beer excellence that made it beloved in the first place and strategically invest to return the operations to profitable growth. BrewDog’s future is bright, and we are committed to ensuring the brand continues to lead and inspire the global craft beer movement.”
Neither of the two original co-founders, James Watt and Martin Dickie, hold ongoing day-to-day roles at the firm, though Mr Watt moved to a position of “captain and co-founder” after stepping down as chief executive in 2024 following a series of complaints and controversy. Mr Dickie left the company last year due to “personal reasons”; last year, he announced plans to turn a new venture into a dominant medical cannabis company.
