Innovation at the heart of SEA Brew 2022

Big turn-out expected | With a conference theme of “Finding Your Advantage Through Innovation”, the region’s largest international gathering of brewers, distributors and suppliers focuses on propelling the post-pandemic brewing industry to ever greater heights over the coming years. This year’s SEA Brew conference and trade fair, to be held in Bangkok from 27–28 October 2022, will be the first in-person gathering that many industry players have attended in over two years, and the organizers are expecting a big turn-out.

“There’s a lot of chatter around the region from brewers and sales teams excited to attend as in many cases they’ve not seen their counterparts from other countries since 2019. We’re seeing this reflected in ticket sales with Early Bird sales up 30 % on our last in-person show” said conference Director Charles Guerrier.

Asia’s brewing industry is booming

Following two tough years, many breweries are now reporting record sales and anticipating solid growth for the foreseeable future. Conference organizers are hoping that October’s show will help brewers and marketing teams capitalize on Asia’s rapidly growing appetite for craft and premium beer.

Over the coming year brewery managers will need to look at upgrading equipment and brewery processes, new technology and products will have to be introduced and sales & marketing skills need to be refined. All this will be catered for with a comprehensive conference programme and expanded trade fair.

Keynote addresses

The two-day conference will be opened on 27th October by a legend of the US and global brewing industry, former President of the Brewers Association Charlie Papazian. In his keynote address, Charlie will share lessons learnt from over 40 years of craft brewing, the highs and lows and how breweries have had to innovate to succeed in an ever-competitive marketplace.

In Charlie’s own words: “You’ve invested your heart and passion to make a beer your customers admire, enjoy and want to buy. How do you maintain a business and a culture that beer drinkers will continue to admire for years to come? You need to innovate. But innovation doesn’t stop with a uniquely brewed beer. It is a mindset that small and craft brewers must with every aspect of their business in order to survive, improve and establish a long-term presence in the world of beer. It is an essential effort and attitude that all your company’s team members must be engaged in.”

Innovation the key to success

The theme of Innovation continues throughout all 25 sessions over the two days, with workshops and technical sessions covering everything from Innovative Hop Usage, No/Lo Alcohol Beer Production and Brewery Expansion to expert discussion panels on attracting and retaining talent in the brewing industry and the use of local produce in your brews.

Running concurrent to the conference will be the SEA Brew Trade Fair, a 1600sqm hall filled with the latest advances in ingredients and brewing equipment from the global supply industry. Along with companies from all corners of the supply ecosystem expect to see hop and yeast innovations on show from the likes of Barth Haas and Fermentis as well as new tracking technology from Konvoy. There will also be a window into the future of brewing in space from Project Aegir, a sustainability initiative of Vietnam’s 7 Bridges Brewing Company.

Day 2 of the conference will be opened by Mazen Hajjar, and ex-war photographer whose passion for craft has seen him grown from a small brewery in Lebanon to AIBA Champion Large Australian Brewery 2022. He will be exploring how breweries will need to adapt to fulfil their potential in the post-pandemic marketplace.

There will also be ample opportunities for marketing and sales teams to engage with workshops on product premiumization, digital marketing and business development.

“We can’t wait to open the doors for SEA Brew 2022” continues Charles “we’re excited by the high-quality programme designed to inspire and engage as well as the opportunity for everybody to gather together after so long. The vibrant city of Bangkok is the perfect place to reboot the show and look to the future with renewed confidence.”

For more information on this year’s SEA Brew Conference & Trade Fair please visit https://www.sea-brew.com/