Alright, I don't know if this thread will be helpful to anyone or if it's already common sense, but I wanted to pass along some info that *I* have first hand knowledge of from my non-Brewing career in the hopes it could help some craft breweries gain wider distribution.
First off, I work for a major oil refining company with a large nationwide retail presence. I work in the refining and business development segment of the company, but have a little bit of exposure to our retail operations.
There is a trade magazine called "Beverage Spectrum" which is geared towards beverage retailers and C-stores. As you might guess, the magazine tends to focus on items like energy drinks, bottle water and of course beer. While I can't attest to how much the advertisments and write ups in this magazine play into the decisions of what to stock our stores with- I do know that it is at least read by the people who make those decisions in my company.
Again, I don't know how helpful this is, or if you production brewers are already utilizing it - but I thought I'd pass it along.
First off, I work for a major oil refining company with a large nationwide retail presence. I work in the refining and business development segment of the company, but have a little bit of exposure to our retail operations.
There is a trade magazine called "Beverage Spectrum" which is geared towards beverage retailers and C-stores. As you might guess, the magazine tends to focus on items like energy drinks, bottle water and of course beer. While I can't attest to how much the advertisments and write ups in this magazine play into the decisions of what to stock our stores with- I do know that it is at least read by the people who make those decisions in my company.
Again, I don't know how helpful this is, or if you production brewers are already utilizing it - but I thought I'd pass it along.