Photo provided by BrewDog

On track to increase UK sales by 100% at the end of 2016.

The UK’s leading craft brewery, BrewDog, announced a window in which to invest in its trailblazing craft beer business on Friday 2nd December, and saw £1m invested by Saturday morning. Famous for its game-changing business model, which has propelled it to becoming one of the most successful crowdfunded business on record, the irreverent Scottish brewery has launched the bond, which has a £500 minimum investment, in partnership with leading investment platform Crowdcube.

The Aberdeenshire business also secured its fifth inclusion on the annual ‘Fast Track 100’ released by the Sunday Times. This list details the businesses with the fastest-growing sales over the last three years, and BrewDog has been noted as the first company to appear on the list for five years running. Continuing its relentless shake-up of the finance & business world, BrewDog’s bond will generate a bold 7.5% interest rate with a capital sum returned biannually throughout the term of the bond.

In an attempt to disrupt traditional financial institutions, BrewDog founders James Watt and Martin Dickie launched the first round of their pioneering ‘Equity for Punks’ program back in 2009. The business model has proven a global success, enabling BrewDog to lead the charge for the craft beer revolution. 50,000 people have invested in the BrewDog business, contributing more than £26m over the past 6 years. This latest investment opportunity makes available an opportunity to reap a steady return on your money, as well as a series of exclusive beer perks.

Prospective financiers buying into the bond will enjoy top tier discounts in BrewDog bars and the online shop for the duration of the bond, and join the thousands of evangelical beer fans backing the rise of craft beer.

“We’re serious about this craft beer crusade, and to keep getting great brews into the hands of as many people as possible means breaking new ground, searching out new territories, and conquering every single corner of the globe,” commented BrewDog co-founder, James Watt. “We’ve been solidly profitable every year since 2008, and we’re on track to deliver EBITDA in excess of £6m in 2016. We’ve smashed some serious crowdfunding records to date, and this Bond offers an additional way for people to put their money where their mouth is and get an awesome return as well.”

Money raised from the Crowdcube bond initiative will go towards fueling the company’s UK expansion, further enabling the business to meet growing demand from across the country as well as Europe. Funds will also support BrewDog’s brand new, new state-of-the-art 100,000 square foot brewery in Columbus, Ohio, which will be one of the most technologically advanced, environmentally friendly breweries in the world. Development of a new sour beer facility in Aberdeenshire, and BrewDog’s distillery Lone Wolf will also be given a boost by the latest crowdfunding scheme, and all these projects will contribute to BrewDog’s overarching mission – ‘To make other people as passionate about great craft beer as we are.’

“BrewDog is at the cutting edge of crowdfunding, and we’re excited to be hosting the second round of bonds for the business, which is changing the beer scene one pint of Punk at a time,” said Luke Lang, co-founder of Crowdcube. “BrewDog’s raise on Crowdcube is off to a storming start with over £1m having been raised in the first 24 hours alone, it’s clear our 300,000-strong crowd have a taste for this trailblazing brewer.”

Noted as a regular in the Sunday Times Fast Track 100 companies, the rise of BrewDog over the last five years has resulted in an average annual growth rate of 69%, and an average annual operating profit growth of 112%. Now the number one craft brewery in the UK, BrewDog shipped the equivalent of 41 million bottles of craft beer in 2015 and has 50 global bars and venues, from Rome and Brussels to as far afield as Tokyo and São Paulo. The brewery’s latest bar launched last week in Homerton, East London. UK sales are on track to increase by 80% in 2016, with a projected turnover exceeding £70.

Capital at risk. Interest payments are pre-tax and not guaranteed. Your bond investment will not be covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. Approved as a financial promotion by Crowdcube Capital Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (No. 650205).

Legal Notice: Investors should note that invested capital is at risk and that past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance.

About BrewDog

Since 2007 BrewDog has been on a mission to make other people as passionate about great craft beer as we are. From the Headliner series, which includes bold, uncompromising pack leaders like the flagship Punk IPA, to the Amplified range (beer, but turned up to 11), BrewDog creates beer that blows people’s minds and has kick-started a revolution. Cofounders James Watt and Martin Dickie shook up the business world in 2010 with the launch of pioneering crowdfunding scheme Equity for Punks, an initiative that has seen the company raise £26m over four rounds, taking more money through crowdfunding than any other on record. The funds, and the army of punk shareholders (46,000) enabled the Scottish craft brewery to scale up without selling out. With over 46 global bar launches, export into 55 countries, and a brand new brewery in Ohio opening in 2016/2017, BrewDog continues to take the craft beer revolution stratospheric, whilst continuing to push the boundaries, invest in people, put the beer first, and champion other small breweries in its venues.