Rumors of an investor group taking over the Celis brewery of Austin, Texas have been circulating for months among industry insiders. Christine Celis resurrected her father Pierre’s original Austin brewery building a facility capable of producing 50,000 barrels annually. Unfortunately, sales never reached a self-sustaining level. It was estimated the company needed to sell over 20,000 barrels a year for profitability, yet in its best year, 2018, sales reached only 12,000, well short of the threshold. Observers estimate the decision as to the brewery’s future could be made as early as Friday the 10th of May.
Celis is far from the sole example of a brewery facing hard-times. Following over a half decade of double-digit growth Craft-beer sales have slowed and it shows in recent industry news. San Diego’s Green Flash, once a darling of craft-beer consumers, pulled distribution from 32 states, cut its workforce and shuttered its East-coast plant; it was sold via foreclosure to an investment group. Likewise, Smuttynose Brewing of New Hampshire was sold and Michigan’s Arcadia brewing was turned over to its financer.
