In March, Tilray Brands agreed to acquire key assets of BrewDog for £33m, securing the global brand, UK brewing operations and a limited number of bars, while other parts of the estate were shuttered or sold off.

The collapse followed years of heavy losses, including £36.7m in 2024 and roughly £60m the year before, as rapid expansion left the business exposed to rising costs, an overextended bar estate and a far tougher consumer environment.

However, for some, the timing is striking. Just months earlier, in November 2025, BrewDog’s leadership was still projecting a reset. In an interview with Grocery Gazette, COO Lauren Carrol described a business refocusing on its core, insisting “everything is about the beer now” as it leaned into a grocery division that remained resilient and attempted to shrug off previous controversy.

The off-trade was still a bright spot: BrewDog was the seventh-largest brewer in UK grocery, worth £157 million, with its craft portfolio alone at £103 million, and volumes growing ahead of the wider category. Five of the UK’s top ten craft beer brands were BrewDog-owned, with Punk IPA (£37m) and Hazy Jane (£22m) leading the charge.

For Tilray, led by CEO Irwin Simon since 2021, BrewDog is part of a much bigger play. The group has spent recent years diversifying beyond cannabis into alcohol and wellness, building a drinks portfolio that includes SweetWater, Montauk Brewing, Breckenridge Brewery, Terrapin and 10 Barrel Brewing.

With BrewDog, Tilray is aiming to build a global craft platform worth around $500 million in revenue, contributing to group annualised revenues of roughly $1.2 billion. However, the move also reflects a broader shift across adjacent industries, where cannabis and tobacco players are moving into beverage and wellness categories in search of more stable, mainstream growth.

Retail Gazette caught up with Simon to find out exactly went wrong at BrewDog, and what happens now?

Q&A: Irwin Simon, CEO of Tilray Brands

What went wrong operationally, and what will BrewDog do differently?

“BrewDog grew very quickly over the past decade, and with that pace of growth came complexity across our operations, cost base, and estate. Like many businesses in our category, we were built for a different market environment, one that has shifted significantly in recent years.

“What we’re doing now is bringing greater focus and discipline to how we operate. That means simplifying the business, prioritising our highest-performing channels and products, and ensuring our cost base is aligned with today’s reality.

“We’re also sharpening our execution, investing behind the brands and experiences that truly resonate with customers, while being much more rigorous in how we allocate capital and measure returns.

“The result is a more agile, focused BrewDog, one that’s built for sustainable, profitable growth over the long term.”

What is BrewDog’s new growth strategy and what does that mean for retail partners?

“Our growth strategy is rooted in focus, discipline, and a clear commitment to what we do best.

“At the heart of that is continued investment in our brand and our core beers, reminding consumers why BrewDog remains the UK’s number one craft brewer. Around that, we have clear channel strategies across grocery, bars, and international markets, each with a defined role to play.

“For our retail partners, this means greater clarity and consistency. We’re prioritising the products that drive rate of sale, supporting them with stronger brand investment, and being more selective and strategic with innovation.

“With the support of the Tilray team, we’re confident we can unlock sustainable growth across all channels while delivering stronger, more predictable performance for our partners.”

In UK grocery, is the focus on core lines or innovation over the next 12 to 24 months?

“It’s absolutely both but with greater clarity and intent. Our core beers, like Punk IPA and Hazy Jane, remain some of the most loved and recognised brands in craft, and we’re putting renewed energy and investment behind them to drive penetration and frequency.

“At the same time, innovation remains a critical part of our DNA. The difference now is that we’re being much more focused on where we can genuinely win, whether that’s in emerging styles, new occasions, or attracting new drinkers into the category. So retailers can expect a stronger core, supported by more purposeful, commercially-driven innovation.”

How are you reshaping your supply chain to deal with cost volatility, and what changes will retailers actually feel?

“We’ve taken a much more disciplined and strategic approach to our supply chain to ensure it is fit for today’s market.

“That includes simplifying our network, improving planning and forecasting, and working more closely with key suppliers to manage cost volatility and ensure consistent quality.

“For our retail partners, the impact is straightforward: greater reliability, improved availability of our core range, and more consistent execution in-store.

“Ultimately, it’s about building a more resilient and efficient supply chain that supports both profitability and long-term growth.”

Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter