BrewDog will close nearly 40 locations across the UK and lay off hundreds of staff after the brewery and pub chain was sold to a new owner as part of its administration process.
The Scotland-based self-styled “punk” brewery went into administration earlier this month.
Tilray Brands, a US-based producer of medicinal cannabis and craft beer, has agreed to buy the company’s UK and Irish assets for £33 million ($62 million). The company is also in talks to acquire certain BrewDog assets in Australia and the US.
BrewDog currently has five locations in Australia, including two in Brisbane and one each in Sydney, Perth and Melbourne, according to its website.
Founded in 2007 by James Watt and Martin Dickie, BrewDog has four breweries and over 100 pubs around globally.
The deal includes the BrewDog brand and associated intellectual property, its UK brewing operation, and 11 of its pub venues across the UK and Ireland. About 733 jobs were preserved and will transition to Tilray.
The remaining 38 locations in the region that were not included in the transaction are set to close, affecting about 484 employees. The deal will also leave the company’s early-stage crowdfunders empty-handed.
BrewDog’s 18 franchise bars in the UK and internationally will continue to operate normally.
Brewdog’s German arm, which includes a brewery and bar in Berlin, will be liquidated, as it was not included in any deal.
- Further reading: Aldi partners with BrewDog for pop-up pub in Sydney.
