A brand is not simply a logo, it’s much, much more, explains Myles Pinfold, founder and strategic director at WPA Pinfold – a brand design consultancy that has worked across the drinks sector for four decades.

The last few years have been challenging for breweries. Is it more important than ever for these businesses to ensure they are marketing and promoting themselves effectively?

Myles Pinfold: For the most part of this century growth in the beer market has largely been driven by ‘craft’, in 2003 there were approximately 460 UK breweries whilst today there are just under 2,000. However, the beer market has matured, the ‘craft’ boom has peaked and there are more brewery closures than openings.

When markets get tough and supply outstrips demand, branding is key to gaining a competitive advantage over the competition. The smart brewers have always used brand wisdom to leverage success – take for example Camden, Beavertown and BrewDog who have gone from start-up to stardom in a decade.

Whilst Guinness has not become the UK’s favourite pint simply because of its brewing prowess, it’s largely down to the significant investment Diageo has made in its brand and marketing.

How can breweries ensure they are standing out in what remains a crowded market?

Myles Pinfold: A brand is not simply a logo, it’s all about being fit for market and having a compelling and differentiating proposition and positioning that is manifested across all aspects of the business – from its people to its marketing.

Whether or not you love them, BrewDog has a consistent attitude that permeates its brand and has taken the brewer from the bad boys to the big boys of brewing, with their brand now present on most supermarket shelves. 

Gratuitous graphics no longer cut it, in order to survive and thrive brewers need to ensure their brands are meaningful, relevant and differentiating.

What demands are being placed on you by existing and potential customers? 

Myles Pinfold: Our clients need results and return on investment, they depend on us to apply market wisdom and strategic planning to ensure their brand represents all that is great about the organisation and delivers a compelling reason for customers and consumers to believe in them.

Creating great brands requires significant commitment, whilst anyone can create a logo, it requires real experience and expertise to deliver transformational brands that are fit for market and drive growth.

What advice do you have for breweries that are potentially reluctant to invest in this side of their operation?

Myles Pinfold: The high-end of the beer market is still holding up – overall beer sales by volume may be down, sales by value are up. Moreover, if you look to our Stateside brewer friends, who have been a bellwether for the UK beer sector over the last decade, US sales of ‘craft’ beer account for 13% of total volume and a whopping 25% by value.

That’s a significant premiumisation and demonstrates that this is a category where investment in branding makes a real difference. Your brand is critical to maintaining price differentials and for those that don’t invest there is a slippery slope down to commodity pricing.

In addition, cask is becoming the new ‘craft’ as brewers are looking to expand their beer portfolios (take Deya and Cloudwater for example) and a fresh generation of drinkers is widening its repertoire with a thirst for the new. There is a real opportunity to rebrand and to reposition cask for today’s market.