It can seem like great news is hard to come by in craft brewing these days, but that’s not because it doesn’t exist.
Brewers Association president and CEO Bart Watson repeated this point at the recent Craft Brewers Conference in Indianapolis: While the overall craft-beer market is challenging, 43 percent of breweries still grew their production volume in 2024. There are plenty of positive stories to be told—but they’re not always reaching the right ears.
“You walk around the trade show, talk to brewers, and there’s a lot of people who had great years,” Watson said at CBC. “We need to find more ways to celebrate that.” He said the industry should have more of a “finger on the dial” approach to disseminating those positive stories. “Rumors of craft’s demise are greatly exaggerated.”
Amid the narrative of beer’s decline—not to mention the thin margins and real-life challenges that many brewing businesses face—it’s arguably more important than ever for breweries to celebrate any wins they get. Those can come in the form of beer awards, positive media coverage, small-business accolades, professional certifications, or other milestones. Those wins tend to be hard-fought, but the accomplishments shouldn't be the end of the road: They ought to be shared.