The beer industry has an old adage that holds true even today: A full truck is a happy truck! In the days when the deliveries were all driver-sales and the wholesalers represented only one supplier, it was the driver who loaded out the truck. An experienced driver would typically return to the warehouse with an empty truck. He knew when, and how, to load the truck according to the day and/or the promotion. Of course, during these times, the industry was using eight bay trucks to deliver beer, and reloads were not uncommon on big drop days. The advent of 16 bays and bigger trucks put an end to the reloads.
Fast forward to today and the technology on beer delivery has totally changed. Wholesalers have learned to maximize their delivery; however, what still remains relevant is what the industry calls, golden cases. The true definition of a golden case is dollars floating to the bottom line on high margin crafts or imports (maybe seltzers) with little or no investment from the wholesaler. This model works well for wholesalers. If a brewery closes its doors, for any reason, the wholesaler only loses those golden dollars. And as we know, closings are becoming more and more common today. On the other hand, if a golden case grows and the vendor begins investing behind their brands, at what point does a golden case become a golden brand? What metrics must a wholesaler identify when this transition happens? How much does the wholesaler subsequently increase their commitment?
When Truly and White Claw hit the market, one would suppose both were nice golden cases and the rapid growth of both brands quickly turned them into golden brands. Truly and White Claw are owned by major breweries with their own professional sales and marketing teams, and both products have the backing of wholesalers. Many golden cases, however, are from local or regional breweries without the support needed to become golden brands. So, the question arises: Is the transition from golden case to golden brand the result of volume or something else? Volume would be the easiest metric, but what would that number need to be? 50K cases or more? Does it include an across-the-board advertising and marketing support program? Perhaps all of the above are necessary to make the shift from golden case to golden brand.
What happens if all of those key components are in place, yet the wholesaler still looks at the brewery as nothing more than a golden case? How does a vendor view themselves with the wholesaler? Often the vendors see their brands as golden brands while the wholesaler still views the vendor’s brand only as a golden case. Therein lies the problem.
I believe in the golden rule, the man with the gold… rules!
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