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Bars close and hundreds lose jobs as US firm buys Brewdog in £33M deal

bbc.com

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Re: Bars close and hundreds lose jobs as US firm buys Brewdog in £33M deal

#11

Post by nailer »

testfrequency wrote: post #9
bell-cot wrote: post #3

Not a Brit - but I've been seeing "times get even worse for UK pubs, with yet more closing" stories for years now. And the BBC seems torn between lambasting a corporation for screwing the little guys...and admitting that the whole works was a hopeless money-loser, with a mountain of debt.

Brewdog is pretty much a TGI Fridays that’s pretending to be edgy. People very much don’t like their beers, the atmosphere feels fake, and there’s significantly better options in any major UK city. It’s a shame they are closing and I feel for the employees, but nobody local really believes they are a respectable place, touristy really. While UK nightlife/drinking/pubs like every other city in the world is slower sinc…

Before Brewdog if you wanted IPAs in 2000s england you paid 8 quid for a single small bottle of imported Racer 5 from Utobeer in Borough Market. They weren’t the entire change but they were a big part of it.

Re: Bars close and hundreds lose jobs as US firm buys Brewdog in £33M deal

#12

Post by pixl97 »

mikkupikku wrote: post #5

I've been hearing buzz that the whole alcohol industry is in trouble, from a perfect storm of cultural changes that culminate in young people drinking less, and particularly drinking less in bars. With that context, it seems notable that the booze company in question here was purchased by a "beverage and medical cannabis " corp.

It also seems like GLP-1 drugs may reduce drinking too.

Re: Bars close and hundreds lose jobs as US firm buys Brewdog in £33M deal

#13

Post by medwards666 »

mikkupikku wrote: post #10
badgersnake wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They just stated slowly appparently: https://www.ft.com/content/1ae55e45-64a6-463a-b04b-198ee3241...

Maybe so. But it's not just the price of booze which is the problem; other problems include online dating (meeting people is now less of a reason to go to bars), cultural apprehensions about hooking up while drunk, and cannabis providing a superior experience (at least in the US, maybe less of a factor in the UK?)

Cannabis in the UK is still illegal, so unless you're picking up weed from your local dealer, it's not a big thing outside the home.

But price of booze is killing pubs here. Getting close to £8 a pint now in London. £10 for a pint of Guinness in many bars.

Re: Bars close and hundreds lose jobs as US firm buys Brewdog in £33M deal

#14

Post by bix6 »

From the guardian: “But about 220,000 investors, who contributed £75m in crowdfunding across seven “equity for punks” rounds, could walk away with nothing.”

I used to love the idea of crowdfunding but then I watched a bunch of people buy worthless common stock and get hosed over and over.

Re: Bars close and hundreds lose jobs as US firm buys Brewdog in £33M deal

#15

Post by testfrequency »

nailer wrote: post #11
testfrequency wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Brewdog is pretty much a TGI Fridays that’s pretending to be edgy. People very much don’t like their beers, the atmosphere feels fake, and there’s significantly better options in any major UK city. It’s a shame they are closing and I feel for the employees, but nobody local really believes they are a respectable place, touristy really. While UK nightlife/drinking/pubs like every other city in the world is slower sinc…

Before Brewdog if you wanted IPAs in 2000s england you paid 8 quid for a single small bottle of imported Racer 5 from Utobeer in Borough Market. They weren’t the entire change but they were a big part of it.

Oh no doubt, credit where credit is due. They served a purpose, but like anything cool in life, expansion and profits ate their soul and there are obviously so many better places to enjoy a pint (or grapefruit) these days :)

Re: Bars close and hundreds lose jobs as US firm buys Brewdog in £33M deal

#16

Post by tene80i »

bell-cot wrote: post #3

Not a Brit - but I've been seeing "times get even worse for UK pubs, with yet more closing" stories for years now. And the BBC seems torn between lambasting a corporation for screwing the little guys...and admitting that the whole works was a hopeless money-loser, with a mountain of debt.

Pubs have been in decline for years, because people don't go / drink as much, and because of our starting position: this is a country where there are pubs everywhere. But Brewdog is a chain of pubs and a brewery – this is much larger than the standard story of "village supporting three pubs can now only support two".

As for the "torn" reporting, there's no contradiction – companies can go bust ethically or unethically. You don't have to screw your retail investors / fans. You just can. And they have.

Re: Bars close and hundreds lose jobs as US firm buys Brewdog in £33M deal

#18

Post by roughly »

bix6 wrote: post #14

From the guardian: “But about 220,000 investors, who contributed £75m in crowdfunding across seven “equity for punks” rounds, could walk away with nothing.” I used to love the idea of crowdfunding but then I watched a bunch of people buy worthless common stock and get hosed over and over.

As George Carlin said, “it’s a big club, and you’re not in it.” Capitalism is not for the little guy, or at least not the version we’ve built.

Re: Bars close and hundreds lose jobs as US firm buys Brewdog in £33M deal

#20

Post by roughly »

pelagicAustral wrote: post #19
roughly wrote: post #17

Is “have been made redundant” normal phrasing in the UK, or did the BBC just decide to use that kind of bloodless phrasing for “fired?”

Is the bloodless phrasing for "sacked"...

I mean is it in common enough use that it shouldn’t stick out to me that a newspaper decided to use it instead of “fired,” “sacked,” or “laid off?” It’s got a whiff of “was involved with a shooting.”
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