Beer Industry in the Czech Republic: Reasons for Founding a Craft Brewery

Abstract

The goal of this article is to evaluate the evolution of the brewing industry in the Czech Republic with an emphasis on the phenomenon of craft-brewery development. It deals with the influence of globalization on the structure of the Czech beer market and the rise of craft-breweries between 2000 and 2019. The main outputs come from research where a representative sample of 48 craft breweries was questioned from the Czech Republic. The result is the identification of the main factors influencing the increase of craft-breweries (legislation changes enabling entrepreneurship, increase of purchasing power of consumers, increase in demand for different beer styles, craft beers and specials, change of consumer behavior) but also the challenges that prevent their further expansion (lack of qualified brewers, complicated administration). The main motive for founding a craft brewery is an effort to improve beer culture in the Czech Republic and the ever-increasing demand for diversified beer (as opposed to the demand for the so-called euro-beers) and a good business opportunity stemming from this, which has been attracting more and more investors into this field.

The Growth in Demand for Craft Beer and the Proliferation of Microbreweries in Slovenia

“…Srebot [67] says that "They have created a very loyal audience for the English style and thus also made a certain shift in the entire Slovenian craft beer scene". Březinová [68] conducted a study on the motivations behind establishing craft breweries, revealing that Czech brewers are primarily driven by a desire to enhance the beer culture within the country. Additionally, the increasing demand for diverse beer options (in contrast to the demand for typical Euro-beers) and the promising business prospects associated with this trend have attracted a growing number of investors to this sector.…”

The Role of Emergent Processing Technologies in Beer Production

“…The brewing industry is a global business composed by many multinational companies and many thousands of smaller breweries, craft breweries and brewpubs [5]. Dominant brewery groups such as Anheuser-Busch InBev (Leuven, Belgium), Heineken (Amsterdam, The Netherlands), Carlsberg (Copenhagen, Denmark) and Asahi Group Holding (Japan) make up the largest portion of the beer market, consolidating such a tendency by acquiring and fusing large commercial breweries and smaller breweries, thus increasing their portfolio [5]. In 2021, the previously mentioned companies produced a combined amount of around 41% of all the beer consumed worldwide [6].…”

Analysis on the organizational management of Tsingtao Beer

“…The domestic beer market consumption demand shows a diversified, high-end and personalized trend. The increase of diversified demand and the improvement of income level have a positive impact on the demand for differentiated and high-quality products [2]. From 2013 to 2019, the supply of non-alcoholic beer was increasing [3].…”