Industry Concentration and the Entry of Craft Producers into the Global Beer Market

Craft brewers and their customers have transformed the global beer markets over the past two decades. They ended a century of consolidation of breweries, which had resulted in the domination of a few global multinationals, and the homogenization of beer. Their counter-revolution against the domination of the macrobrewers and their uniform beer styles has totally transformed the global beer scene. This chapter documents and explains this transformation, providing key insights that derive from a comparative analysis of the craft beer developments and the beer industry transformation in the various countries. Our discussion starts by defining craft beer. We then document and explain the consolidation in the traditional brewing industry which preceded the craft revolution. Afterward, we document when the craft beer movements started in the various countries and how they have evolved. The last part of the chapter concentrates on the role of governments, who have influenced the craft beer market through regulations, and the macrobrewers’ reaction to the growth of the craft breweries.