Don’t look back …

… because what you will see might throw you into a depression. Between 2008 and 2016 the US beer market shrunk from 219 million barrels (256 million hl) to 213 million barrels (249 million hl) and that despite the fact that the US economy under President Obama (January 2009 until January 2017) witnessed economic recovery and falling unemployment. Given the depth of the 2009 recession, some argue the recovery was relatively weak. But, compared to the Eurozone, the US economy performed relatively well, with unemployment dropping to pre-recession levels.

As Beer Marketers Insights reported recently, both AB-InBev and Molson Coors saw their combined market share slip to 2/3 of total beer shipments for the twelve months until June 2017. That’s down from 78.2 percent in 2008 when InBev bought Anheuser-Busch and Miller and Coors merged.

For the twelve months through June, AB-InBev shipped an estimated 91.3 million barrels beer (107 million hl) and had about 42.3 percent of the market. That’s down from 107 million barrels (125 million hl) in calendar 2008, its peak, and a 48.8 percent share.

MillerCoors shipped about 52.9 million barrels beer (62 million hl) in the twelve months through June 2017 and had an approximately 24.5 percent share. That’s down from 64.5 million barrels or 75 million hl (also its peak) and a 29.4 percent share in 2008.

Meanwhile, Constellation Brands managed to hike beer sales to 18 million barrels or 21 million hl (2016) from 11.5 million barrels (13 million hl) in 2008.

But who cares about past performances when future challenges loom large?