Breal, the private equity group have acquired the Midlands brewery Purity. The deal went through on 22nd December although according to the Birmingham Mail Breal have been looking at the acquistion for most of 2023
It follows their most recent previous acquistion of Sarf London’s Brew by Numbers brewery.
I had a (rare) glass of Brew by Numbers pale at the Peterborough Beerfest in August and it was highly quaffable. More commonly the beer can be found in keg and can.
Breal own four breweries and taps- Black Sheep, Brick, Brew By Numbers and now Purity.
They are a venture capital group,and appear to have related operations elsewhere in the world. They have no obvious experience in brewing and bars. Previous deals have included steel and textiles.
A reading of Marx’s Capital can explain this. Capitalism renews itself by a cycle of boom and bust. The bust phase allows the recomposition of capital to promote future growth.
Breal then are getting in at the bottom of the market, (in craft beer in this case) but see growth and return on their capital to come.
Will things stay the same at the four breweries? No. Workers are protected at day one by a transfer of undertakings (TUPE) but after this ETO (economic, technical,organisational)applies to allow changes.
In short good news that the breweries remain and will likely flourish. Those impacted would do well to a join a union if they havent already.
Thanks also to Tania Nexus for noting on social media that Breal have just brought Vinoteca, a London based wine bar chain, out of administration saving 150 jobs.
Aside from Pilsener Engels was a wine drinker, maintaining a stock at a Dublin wine merchant and advising Marx on the best wines to drink
As beer writer James Beeson has noted on social media Neil Gostelow has advised Breal on the brewery acquisitions (Times 26th August 2023). Gostelow previously worked for KPMG and in that period dealt with the administration of several beer and pub groups including, as Beeson notes, Hopstuff. He joined Breal as an investment advisor in 2022. He does not have a beard.
His view as reported by the Times is that strong craft beer brands have a good future. No doubt he has noted that the economy in respect of brewing and beer is probably at or near the bottom of the market. Getting in now promises later profit. Breal as a private equity group have the capital to think beyond the short term whether or not they have read Capital Volume One
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