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New Belgium Brewing history
New Belgium Brewing company history timeline
The first bottles were capped in June 1991, and featured a neighbor's watercolor paintings on the labels.
In the fall of 1992 the company's operations were moved into a former rail freight warehouse in Fort Collins, and distribution was gradually expanded to cover much of the state of Colorado and a few outstate metropolitan areas.
1992: New Belgium Brewing's operations move to renovated freight warehouse.
By 1994 NBB's annual output had grown to 28,000 31-gallon barrels, and the firm had begun offering public tours of its plant.
I’ve been at Forbes since 1995, writing about everything from books to billionaires.
In 1996 NBB experienced a minor controversy when it received a cease-and-desist letter from a small group of Belgian and Dutch Trappist Abbeys that objected to the use of the term "Trappist" in one of its beers' names.
Over time NBB had gradually expanded its distribution area, and by 1998 its beers were available in ten states.
It had discontinued Old Cherry Ale in 1998, but enough requests for another cherry brew came in that the firm decided to re-formulate it.
1998: Production tops 100,000 barrels for the first time.
1999 saw NBB make headlines when it signed a contract with the city of Fort Collins to buy only wind-generated electricity to operate its plant for a ten-year period.
New Belgium starts off the new year with a new tradition: New Belgium-branded anniversary bikes, beginning with a 1999 Electra cruiser.
In the fall of 2000 NBB sponsored a promotional six-city "Tour de Fat," a traveling festival that offered community bike rides, a Cruiser Bike Olympics, and a children's activity area.
In 2001 the company introduced a new cherry-flavored beer.
2001: Expansion of plant to triple capacity begins.
Explaining the firm's regional focus, in 2003 CEO Kim Jordan told Mother Earth News, "we're not looking at aggressive marketing strategies right now because quality of life--for ourselves and our employees--is important, too.
2004: Distribution is expanded to Southern California; New Belgium beer is now sold in 15 states.
In January 2013, Kim Jordan, the cofounder and CEO of New Belgium Brewing, called an all-hands meeting and stunned employees by announcing that the company had been sold.
That, along with the decision to put the company up for sale in late 2015, took a toll on the staff.
Craft geeks can object, but New Belgium recovered from 2015 to sell more beer than ever last year, booking $234 million, with a net profit Forbes estimates at $17 million.
New Belgium took on even more debt to build a second brewery in Asheville, North Carolina, which cost $140 million and opened in 2016.
In the first four months of 2017, as sales of Sam Adams and Sierra Nevada slid 20% and 11.1%, respectively, according to Nielsen data, New Belgium's sales surged 8.5%.
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New Belgium Brewing competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stone Brewing | 1996 | $630.0M | 1,100 | 6 |
| Great Lakes Brewing | 1988 | $29.1M | 50 | - |
| Avery Brewing | 1993 | $14.0M | 50 | - |
| Victory Brewing | 1996 | $12.0M | 20 | - |
| Brooklyn Brewery | 1988 | $38.8M | 50 | - |
| Constellation Brands | 1945 | $10.0B | 9,300 | 60 |
| Left Hand Brewing | 1993 | $71.0M | 80 | - |
| Nothin' BUT Foods | 2010 | $690,000 | 50 | - |
| Maker's Mark | 1958 | $730,000 | 7 | - |
| Pura Vida | 2010 | $470,000 | 10 | 1 |
New Belgium Brewing history FAQs
Zippia gives an in-depth look into the details of New Belgium Brewing, including salaries, political affiliations, employee data, and more, in order to inform job seekers about New Belgium Brewing. The employee data is based on information from people who have self-reported their past or current employments at New Belgium Brewing. The data on this page is also based on data sources collected from public and open data sources on the Internet and other locations, as well as proprietary data we licensed from other companies. Sources of data may include, but are not limited to, the BLS, company filings, estimates based on those filings, H1B filings, and other public and private datasets. While we have made attempts to ensure that the information displayed are correct, Zippia is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of this information. None of the information on this page has been provided or approved by New Belgium Brewing. The data presented on this page does not represent the view of New Belgium Brewing and its employees or that of Zippia.
New Belgium Brewing may also be known as or be related to New Belgium Brewing, New Belgium Brewing Co, New Belgium Brewing Co., Inc., New Belgium Brewing Company and New Belgium Brewing Company, Inc.