BrewDog to target China and South Korea in global expansion push

BrewDog is planning to open bars in India, China and South Korea as part a drive to reach 300 global sites by 2030.

The Scottish brewer currently operates around 100 bars and hotels worldwide and is looking to triple its footprint with the launch of a further 200 venues in "key markets" over the next seven years.

These include new openings this year in the UK, India, Italy, the Netherlands, Australia, the United States (US) and Thailand.

BrewDog’s first US franchise location is set to launch in Denver, Colorado and the brand is also planning to expand in China and South Korea over the next few years.

It has identified India as a "key growth market" and will launch five bars in the country by the end of this year with 25 expected to be open by 2028.

It comes after BrewDog saw operating losses widen from £5.46m to £24m in 2022, which the company said was due to investments in the business and a “devastating” increase in costs.

Group revenue rose from £285.6m to £321m but adjusted earnings dropped from £23.7m in 2021 to £639,000 last year.

However, BrewDog said revenue from its bars grew by £44m in 2022 with new openings in Las Vegas and London Waterloo delivering £5.5m in revenue in the final quarter of the year.

It expects its bar revenues to grow by a further £26m this year.

BrewDog announced a partnership with SSP Group in May which will see its first bar at London Gatwick Airport open in December.

James Watt, who co-founded BrewDog in 2007, said the success of its bars was due to sites incorporating different elements such as coffee shops, workspaces, podcast studios and brewing lessons.

He added that the brand wanted “to change the world of beer forever”.