BrewDog buys Draft House bar group
The self-described "punk" brewer has taken on the network of rival craft beer bars across London and Milton Keynes.
Draft House founder Charlie McVeigh will step down from the business, with BrewDog MD David McDowall taking the reins across both companies.
BrewDog says it is planning to invest in the existing Draft House sites, and may look to open further bars in future.
The beer selection will be different from BrewDog, but with the same "focus on independent craft beer from around the world".
It comes after BrewDog reported that like-for-like bar sales rose 11% during 2017, with total bar sales reaching £24m.
“At BrewDog we are obsessed with making other people as passionate about craft beer as we are, and in speaking with the Draft House team we recognised that there was a great opportunity to combine our efforts and really have an impact on the UK bar landscape by working together,” says McDowall.
All 213 Draft House staff will be offered further training and the chance to contribute to the development of new beers at BrewDog’s Aberdeenshire headquarters – which will then launch across all Draft House sites.
“Nine years have passed since the first Draft House launched, and it has been a truly remarkable journey of discovery,” says McVeigh.
“We’ve built an awesome business, and more importantly, a team right at the heart of the UK’s beer revolution. I am immensely proud of what we’ve achieved together and delighted to hand the business over to BrewDog for its next stage of growth. Draft House couldn’t be in better hands.”
Draft House was founded in Clapham in 2009, while the first BrewDog bar opened in 2010.
BrewDog now operates over 40 sites worldwide and is planning to launch its first beer-themed hotel, complete with in-shower beer fridges, in the UK in 2019.
