SIDE LAUNCH BREWING COMPANY CONTINUING CASE The Globalized Beer Drinker "Globalization is not only a view outward from a firm to the planef's opportunity. It is often a firm's view of itself through the lens of the world. If that sounds backwards, consider the situation of Side Launch Brewing Company, competing within the space of craft beer, which by definition must contain itself to a volume limit in order to qualify as a "craft brewer-so it has no interest in building a national, never mind a global, brand "We could meet our sales quota by selling to China," claims founder Gamet Pratt. "But why? That's just selling beer for the sake of selling beer. That's not us." That said, because globalization is not just about growing internationally but also about international competitors infringing on its turf, it is in Side Launch's best interest to have one eye on global trends in order to seize opportunities or thwart threats. The biggest threat stemming from the globalization trend is, perhaps surprisingly, from macro beer companies, but it's not in the way that might be expected Based on his wealth of experience with some of those global brands, VP Operations Dave Sands explains, "Many national and international brewing companies have tried to launch craft styles and/or craft portfolios from within their organizations with very limited success, due in part to a negative or skeptical consumer perception of the quality of the products. The solution to this conundrum, the large brewers have decided, is to simply buy up the little guys. "As can be seen with the recent industry trends, acquisition is seemingly the only way the big brewers have been able to participate in the craft part of the segment." But aside from the big bad macro beer companies acquiring little vulnerable craft companies and competing head on with Side Launch, something over which they have zero control, Side Launch has other concerns with globalization. "With our present model, any exporting comes with a huge risk" cautions brewer Michael Hancock "Our beer is unpasteurized, which on one hand makes it better tasting, but on the other hand makes it prone to spoiling if not properly refrigerated. So even shipping beer outside of Ontario, and maintaining our reputation can be very very risky " Having said all of this, one could make the argument that the idea of craft beer is due to the concept of globalization. The pattern of North Americans spending time in Europe, consuming European beers, then returning to North America with the desire to find something that doesn't taste like a generic macro brand is the undeniable genesis of craft. I didn't invent dark lager, it came from Germany." admits Michael. I was one of the first in North America to make a wheat beer, but it was this notion of introducing a well-established European brewing technique to North Americans And people loved it Thus, for reasons of position and reputation. Side Launch will not pursue a globalization growth strategy. And yet it is because of globalization that Side Launch must rely heavily on its reputation to defend against the threat presented by big beer craft acquisitions, and it must keep a keen eye on global trends, to ensure it is attending to the needs of an increasingly global beer drinker "People will say to me." begins VP Sales and Marketing Chuck Galea, "Ahh, you know your beer reminds me of my trip to Munich and sitting on a patio there enjoying a truly German lager" Questions 1. Although global marketing is a logical, if not necessary pursult for some companies in certain industries discuss some of the barriers that would make it difficult for Side Launch to go in this direction 2 Research some of the multinational brewing companies and identify Canadian-based breweries that have become acquired by these large global firms 3. While Canada's liquor retaill outlets offer products from all over the world, including beer, what is the main advantage offered to small independently owned breweries such as Side Launch within their home provinces?