building a national beer brand: the basic 101

Building a National Beer Brand:The basic 101

Adam LambertSeller of Beer and Cider

Adam Lambert

Adam has spent the last 20 years learning from just about every angle of the beverage industry. Starting as a grocery store liquor clerk and growing to his current position as Vice President of Sales for Virtue Cider. Today’s duties involve managing the day to day and long term vision for the sales department. Prior to working for Virtue Cider, Adam has spent time at New Holland Brewery and Distillery as VP of Sales, 7 years’ as VP of Sales for Dogfish Head Craft Brewery and 6 years as National Sales and Marketing Manager for Rogue Ales. Past experiences include owning a wine distribution company and beverage brokerage, managing the west coast as a brewery brand manager and is a proud graduate of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Adam has been a member of the Independent Council on 3-Tier Dynamics and long serving member of the Brewers Association Export Development Committee.

[email protected] / www.virtuecider.com

mailto:adam.lambert@virtue

Building a National Beer Brand.

Ask yourself why?

I. National: Things to think about before embarking on this journey!i. Plan the work, work the plan, it takes some thinking.ii. What’s my story?iii. Will I and it be relevant?iv. What’s in it for me and what’s in it for the consumer?v. Is there an ends to a means?vi. Can I afford this trip?

The Plan:

I. Strategy: Taking the steps and pacing out the stages.i. Local.

i. Concentric circles.ii. Regional.

i. Multi State.iii. National.

i. Pick the markets that are right for you.iv. Shotgun approach.

i. Scattered throughout.v. Anchor Accounts.

i. Building your expansion on great business partners.

The Plan:

I. Timing: It takes way longer than you think!i. Think 12 weeks out minimum.

i. Everyone is behind right now.ii. Give yourself plenty of time to meet and greet distributors.iii. Make sure you got all your paperwork in line.

i. There’s a lot of it!iv. A little legal goes a long way.

i. Build your check list and listen

The Plan:

I. Portfolio: Today is way different than yesterday!i. Build a portfolio that is easy to execute.ii. Have a story for why these brands.iii. Not every market needs the same portfolio.iv. Manage your sku’s for maximum sales.v. Traditional timing is simple.

i. Core, Seasonal, Limited Release.vi. Keep in mind your account base.

The Plan:

I. Picking your Distributors: Your about to get married!i. Think about where you see yourself in five years in terms of distribution

and volume.ii. Survey the market on your own.

i. Phone Calls are the same as stepping in the store.iii. Plan ahead and get your information.

i. Distributor survey.iv. Build out a 90-day plan.

i. Have some objectives and measures of success.ii. Understand the language your working in.

The Plan:

I. Accounts: Who do I focus my energies on?i. Build a simple quick plan.ii. On Premise vs. Off Premise.

i. On: Rotation nation what’s my strategy.ii. Off: Shelves and floor space aren't getting any bigger.

iii. Find your partners.i. Class of Trade.ii. Strong local.iii. National Accounts.

iv. Compelling selling sentence:i. What’s your hook?

The Plan:

I. Telling the story: Bringing your personal circus to town!i. Events.

i. Roll outs.ii. Press.

i. Find the local guys.iii. Media Plan.

i. Tie all your activities together into a up-loadable storyiv. Point of Sale.

i. You gotta have something.

The Plan:

I. People: Feet on the street isn’t what it used to be!i. People business:

i. Forward spend!ii. Hire a rep as soon as possible.

ii. Cost effective approaches:i. Tel-Sell.ii. Shot gun management.

iii. National Accounts:i. Build it quick as you can.

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