Labatt expects growth in Buffalo - Triangle Business Journal:

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When New York-based KPS, a $1.8 billiohn private-equity firm, bought Labattg USA last winter, it pledge to keep the popularCanadianj beer’s U.S. headquarters in downtown Buffalo. Labaty USA moved the headquarters from Connecticutto downtown’s Key Centedr at Fountain Plaza complex two yearas ago. Many feared the sale of Labat USA would translate intothe U.S. headquarters being relocated. Those fears can be tossed saidRichard Lozyniak. He is the newly named chief executive officeerof , the KPS affiliate that owns Labatt USA and Rochester’s High Fallw Brewing Co. LLC. High Fall produces the Genesee Beer as well as the Dundee Ales andthe Seagram’a Co. Ltd.
line of wine coolers and malt Labatt USA, which had 20 people working in the downtown Buffalko office, expects to nearly double the loca workforce by hiring as many as 16 peoplde to focus on sales, marketingy and administrative support. To put things into perspective, consider that with as many as 40 peopl working from the KeyCenter offices, that woulcd be more than half of the 77 people the beer manufacturetr has working on sales and marketing throughout the United States. All of the out-of-towjn sales and marketing personnel will report to theBuffalok office.
“I guess that puts an exclamatio point to the fact that Labatf remains fully committed to keepingy Buffalo asits headquarters,” Lozyniak said. “Buffalo is absolutely critica to Labatt’s future in the United States.” Northg American Breweries, however, will be headquartered at High officeson St. Paul Street in downtowm Rochester. Lozyniak will live in Rochester, but he said he expectsd to be spending a fair amount of timein Buffalo. High Fallw has 370 employees in Rochester. The planyt has the capacity to annually produce 3 million barrelsof beer. A barrelk is equal to 13.
8 cases of North American Breweries will beinvestint $10 million in equipment upgrades for the High Fallz plant, which it acquired last winter, shortly beford it bought Labatt USA. The U.S. Department of Justice orderex Labatt USA’s former owner, Interbrew Internationakl B.V. – an affiliate of beer-making giant InBevc – to sell the Canadian beer becauses of possible concernsover monopolies, givemn the market strength of Labatt and Budweiser brand s in Upstate New York. The Buffalo Niagarz region alone accounts forapproximately 3.3 milliob cases of beer of the estimated 21 million cases that Labatt sells in the Unite States each year.
Beer Marketers Insighf lists Labatt USA asthe country’s ninth most populart beer. High Falls, through the Genesee and Dundee soldapproximately 5.5 million cases of beer last Anheuser-Busch topped the Beer Marketers Insight rankinv with 1.5 billion cases of beer sold last “Looking at what KPS is doing, it looks like they are puttingh their money where their mouthb is,” said Ben Steinman, Beer Marketers Insight “They are placing their bets,” he said. “Thet must see something the other ownerseither didn’tr see or couldn’t execute. It does appear they do have a definite game plan for Labattand Genny.” Lozyniak agrees.
The game plan is to grow both Labatyt andGenesee beers. Labatt’s focus will be more national, especiall with so many Canadians living or working in theUnitedr States. The beefed-up Buffalo sales and marketing force will play a significant rolein Labatt’s future. “Especially in the Great Lakes states, people can relate to Lozyniak said. “Everyone has a favorable impressionb of Canada andits beers. Peopled don’t feel like a snob when they are drinkingf aCanadian beer.
The image of Labatt is a bunch of guys hanginyg out and having agood