Royal Unibrew buys Danish craft brewer Nørrebro in fire sale

Denmark | Never let a good crisis go to waste must be Royal Unibrew’s motto because, on 3 January, it announced the acquisition of Copenhagen’s craft brewer Nørrebro Bryghus. Financial details were not disclosed.

As brewers are reeling from the pandemic and valuations are way down from previous levels, Royal Unibrew already took the opportunity last year to snap up the Hansa Borg Bryggerier in Norway and the Amsterdam Brewery in Toronto, Canada. Royal Unibrew also tried to buy the Aqua d'Or brand from the France’s Danone, but the deal fell through this past October.

Nørrebro is one of the oldest craft breweries in Denmark. It was founded in 2003 by the brewing industry personality Anders Kissmeyer, formerly a brewer with Carlsberg, who left the business more than a decade ago. Its annual beer sales are estimated at 10,000 hl, some of which are brewed by a third party.

A bottomless pit

Nørrebro is not a victim of the pandemic. The firm’s financial wobbles are longstanding and date back as far as its early years, indicating that it has been poorly managed almost throughout. The company’s financial statements, which are available to the public, show that it made a loss in 2020 and 2021. Its mid-and long-term debts stand at DKK 55 million (USD 8 million). In fact, in all its years of existence, it has only had a few years with a positive result.

Industry observers say that the original owners, Frederik Heegaard and Lars Thuesen, already had to pour in tens of millions of Danish crowns to keep the company afloat during the many tough years (2006 to 2015).

According to industry rumour, Royal Unibrew paid USD 150 per hl sold, which, if true, would indicate it got the Nørrebro brand on very favourable terms.

Royal Unibrew is interested in the brand

Under the terms of the deal, Royal Unibrew will buy both the brewery and the beer brand Nørrebro Bryghus, while the restaurant in Copenhagen’s borough of Nørrebro remains with the previous owners, according to Børsen, a Danish newspaper. Due to its size, Royal Unibrew is not allowed to operate an on-premise venue.

The Nørrebro brand is well-recognised in Copenhagen and will allow Royal Unibrew to make inroads into the capital’s on-premise, where it is currently underrepresented due to Carlsberg’s dominance. Royal Unibrew has already said it seeks to expand the brand’s distribution across Denmark.

Royal Unibrew is Denmark’s second-largest beer and beverage group behind Carlsberg. The group is headquartered in Faxe and, in addition to beer, also sells soft drinks, energy drinks, cider, juice, water, wine and spirits.