The emergence of Italian craft breweries and the development of their local identity

The entry of craft breweries has transformed the Italian beer industry. In 1988, a massive flow of craft breweries started to compete with mass producers. The craft’s nature and the local orientation of craft brewers are the key aspects of their success. First, the sentiment and attachment to the concept of a “craft” gave to craft beer a meaning that goes beyond the beer itself. Second, the ability of craft brewers to form connections to local places creates a sense of distinctiveness that satisfies the desire of consumers to re-establish connection to local places, communities, and economies, tending toward neolocalism. These attributes differentiate their products from mass-produced beer, giving a strong identity to craft breweries. Craft brewers have developed strategies to strengthen such attributes by using local ingredients such as fruits in beer and by intertwining the worlds of wine and beer.