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CRAFT beers — loosely defined as beers brewed by small and independent brewers, as opposed to big “mega-brewery” corporations — are all the rage now in developed markets. Unfazed, big corporations around the world like Carlsberg Group are finding new ways to get in on the trend.

Some have formed partnerships with, or acquired, microbrewers while others are investing in pubs and restaurants that specialise in craft beer.

“There’s a strong trend towards craft beer that we’re seeing,  particularly in Western  Europe and the US at the moment. In Asia, some of the more developed markets like Hong Kong and Singapore are starting to see more craft beer coming in,” says Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia Bhd managing director Henrik Juel Andersen.

In Malaysia, the trend is slowly but surely making inroads, with an increasing number of craft beer bars and retailers — Taps Beer Bar, Brussels Beer Cafe and bottle shop Ales & Lager, to name but a few — popping up in the Klang Valley. Craft beer in Malaysia is typically imported, hence more expensive, and usually with higher alcoholic content than regular commercial beer.

Andersen and Guinness Anchor Bhd (GAB) managing director Han Essaadi says it’s a positive trend worldwide as it helps create a buzz in the beer segment.

“It’s a trend that we welcome, first of all, because we have our own craft beer which we import. We’ve quite a nice line of craft beer brands within the Carlsberg Group. But also, we believe that it helps drive excitement into drinking beer. Beer has developed to become more refined, more exciting.

“We have seen in Europe, for example, that craft beer has eaten into the red wine and white wine categories quite nicely so we do see craft beer being an important part of our business, going foward,” Andersen tells digitaledge Weekly.

Carlsberg Malaysia’s craft beer offering in Malaysia includes Grimbergen. The beer is brewed by Belgium’s Grimbergen Abbey, a small producer Carlsberg Group formed a partnership with. GAB last year introduced Affligem, a Belgian craft brew.

But craft beer is likely to remain only a small part of Carlsberg Malaysia and GAB’s business here. “It’s definitely a trend, but typically, these craft beers tend to be imported. And Malaysian import duties are sizeable, so you tend to have a higher price point but you also don’t want to be unaffordable. That’s probably the obstacle we have in Malaysia — that is, to import these craft beers, you would have to price them very high to make a decent margin on it,” Andersen says.

Unlike Singapore, Malaysia hasn’t caught on to the trend of microbrewery establishments that double up as pubs. “I think this is, first of all, because the government is very restrictive in issuing licences. You need a licence to be a microbrewery,” Andersen explains, adding that the high taxation on alcohol could also be a factor.

He says unlike some of its counterparts in Europe, Carlsberg Malaysia has no plan to invest in or set up establishments that specialise in craft beer.

“No, it’s not in our plans right now. We’re not in the business of running bars ... it’s a completely different business that we don’t know much about, so we would probably stay away from that,” he adds.

Earlier in April, a Carlsberg Group company in Norway, Ringnes, teamed up with American microbrewer Brooklyn Brewery to set up a brewery that would feature a pub, restaurant, conference facilities and visitor centre in the Norwegian city of Trondheim. It was seen as “a new era of craft brewing innovation”.

Set to open in 2016, the venue will serve up new craft beers. Last year, Carlsberg and Brooklyn also opened a craft brewery in Stockholm, Sweden.

Even non-brewers are catching on to the craft beer trend. Last month, Starbucks Coffee Co said it would start serving craft beer at some of its stores in the US as part of its “Starbucks Evenings’ initiative, which will also see it offer wine and small tapas-like nibbles.

GAB’s Essaadi says it’s important for big brewers to keep a finger on the pulse of new trends in the market, as these are their “insurance” for the future.

“GAB is very successful at the moment, but today’s winning brand is not tomorrow’s winning brand. We are trying to figure out and explore what’s next. I wouldn’t want to go, hey, you missed this one. We cannot sit on our laurels, we have to invest for the future,” he remarks.

In Malaysia, he notes that speakeasy bars for example — classy, intimate joints with an “underground” edge — have become popular, just like in major cities worldwide.

“Entrepreneurs are becoming more creative. It’s quite a phenomenal trend in KL. This is tapping into consumer behaviour. You create an environment that has a ‘wow’ factor, and people are willing to spend money ... even the crazy high price doesn’t really matter anymore. It’s all about ‘I was there, look at me, with the fancy cocktail and fancy beer’.

“So, the trends are all very fast moving, and we have to keep up.”

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This article first appeared in digitaledge Weekly, on September 7 - 13, 2015.

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