How Brewdog built a £billion beer brand - James Watt

The last time I spoke to today's guest, James Watt, he fired me. It's the first thing we talk about in the episode, but I have nothing but respect for the man who built Brewdog into the Unicorn it is today. Through their impressive marketing stunts, focus on product quality and immense speed of execution, Brewdog successfully took on the beer behemoths and solidified its place in the industry. In this episode we talk about why James made a mistake hiring an executive team (including me), how they convinced a bank to give them a loan in the global financial crisis and how he almost lost £50m to a Russian bank account. Now, James has launched a new venture, Social Tip, a new way brands can connect with consumers.

Timestamps

00:00 - Intro
00:58 - Why did James fire Jon?
01:56 - Being in the detail and close to the customer
06:07 - Brewdog founding story: how they got funding
08:54 - Why Brewdog is so passionate about making a great product
13:07 - How Brewdog won their Tesco listing
15:58 - How a Tesco listing transformed Brewdog
17:37 - The secret to an overnight success
20:22 - Why constraints led to great marketing for Brewdog
22:09 - Examples of Brewdog’s incredible marketing stunts
27:43 - Why James changed his name to Elvis
29:28 - Collaborating with copycats: launching ALD IPA
31:14 - When marketing stunts go wrong
33:28 - How James almost lost £50 million
37:48 - James Watt’s favourite business books
41:17 - How James Watt felt when he left Brewdog
43:01 - Leadership lessons from James Watt about scaling
46:05 - Dealing with public scrutiny
47:26 - Why James started his new business: Social Tip
54:03 - How to pitch your business to James Watt

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