Liquid Assets: A Beverage Industry Podcast
99 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 2 months ago - ★★★★★ - 122 ratingsRabobank’s global beverage team offers insights, analysis, and a bit of entertainment for your morning commute. Liquid Assets will help you tackle the latest trends, introduce you to industry leaders, and prepare you for what’s next in the beverage world.
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Episodes
Neo-prohibitionism, Ozempic, and the end of the tequila boom?
March 07, 2024 13:12 - 53 minutes - 73.3 MBIs neo-prohibitionism a threat to the alcohol business? Will GLP-1 agonists decrease alcohol sales? Are soft drinks companies losing interest in their effort to develop alcohol brands? To debate these and other controversial topics, the RaboResearch Beverage team plays one of our favorite games: Buy, Sell, Hold! Note: The content and opinions presented within this podcast are not intended as investment advice, and the opinions rendered are that of the individuals and not Raboba...
Southern Glazer’s talks industry trends, inventory, and digitalization
February 02, 2024 14:58 - 1 hour - 102 MBAs the largest wine and spirits distributor in North America, Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits has a unique perspective on the US alcohol market. Senior leaders David Chaplin (Chief Growth Officer), John Wittig (Chief Commercial Officer), and Alan Wizeman (Chief Digital Officer) share their views on the health of the US alcohol market, consumer trends, distributor inventories, and the fast evolving world of business-to-business e-commerce. Note: The content and opinions presented w...
2024 economic outlook
January 09, 2024 12:00 - 42 minutes - 61.1 MBEconomic power duo Jane Foley and Christian Lawrence return to discuss the outlook for a recession, interest rates, inflation, and consumer spending and how these economic trends could impact food and beverage companies as we enter the new year. Rabobank clients can sign up for our research via this link: research.rabobank.com. Note: The content and opinions presented within this podcast are not intended as investment advice, and the opinions rendered are that of the individuals an...
Soft drinks boom, spirits hungover, and consumers reach an inflection point
December 13, 2023 12:00 - 57 minutes - 81.4 MBFor the first time in more than a year, the Liquid Assets team gets to do a recording in the same room. They take turns picking news stories that speak to wider trends impacting the beverages industry. Rabobank clients can sign up for our research via this link: Research.Rabobank.com Note: The content and opinions presented within this podcast are not intended as investment advice, and the opinions rendered are that of the individuals and not Rabobank or its affiliates and should not be ...
The history of bourbon, as told by Heaven Hill
November 20, 2023 12:00 - 1 hour - 91.8 MBBourbon has been booming for years, but that growth was preceded by a half century of hardship, hard work, and good luck that laid the groundwork for the soaring category we see today. Heaven Hill’s Max Shapira and Kate Latts lived through the good times and the bad. We tap that experience to understand the winding path that has led American whiskey to its current zenith and what more recent trends could mean for the future of this “distinctively” American spirit. Rabobank clients can sign...
Sports marketing 101
October 31, 2023 11:00 - 48 minutes - 67 MBDavid Broughton, a journalist and director of research for Sports Business Journal, discusses the history of sports advertising, how it is evolving, and what recent changes to the industry mean for building brands on the back of humanity’s most beloved pastimes. Rabobank clients can sign up for our research via this link: Research.Rabobank.com Note: The content and opinions presented within this podcast are not intended as investment advice, and the opinions rendered are that of...
What Kind of M&A Deals Will We See in 2024?
September 22, 2023 11:00 - 1 hour - 90.7 MBWith one of our favorite guests, consumer foods specialist Maria Castroviejo, and one of our favorite formats (a draft!), we debate the strategies that will drive beverage M&A deals over the next 12 to 18 months. Rabobank clients can read our report The New Deal Environment by logging in to our website. Note: The content and opinions presented within this podcast are not intended as investment advice, and the opinions rendered are that of the individuals and not Rabobank or its...
The State of the US Craft Industry
August 22, 2023 11:00 - 1 hour - 88.7 MBMargie Lehrman, CEO of the American Craft Spirits Association, and Bart Watson, Chief Economist for the Brewers Association, team up to discuss the winds of change blowing through the craft industry. Not long ago, the seas of craft beer and spirits were all smooth sailing as operators expanded into new, undiscovered territory. As costs rise, consumers shrug, and investors start to feel uneasy, many craft operators have been forced to batten down the hatches and rethink their long-term strate...
Consumer Demand – Going Beyond the Headline Data
July 27, 2023 11:00 - 46 minutes - 64 MBLiquid Assets hosts Stephen Rannekleiv and Jim Watson sit down with Rabobank economists Christian Lawrence and Jane Foley to dig beneath the headline consumer data and provide a clearer view on where demand (and the economy) is heading in the second half of 2023.
A Liquid Assets Celebration
June 20, 2023 10:35 - 1 minute - 5.22 MBSteve and Jim invite Liquid Assets listeners to join them in congratulating Bourcard for becoming a father… on Father’s Day. Congrats Buki!!!
Can Changes to Ingredients Help Fight Inflation? Kerry on Innovation vs. Reformulation
June 15, 2023 11:00 - 45 minutes - 63.2 MBThere are two major ways that beverage companies are changing their ingredients to fight inflation. Some brands are looking to cut costs by replacing their more expensive ingredients with cheaper ones. Others brands are developing new products or modifying existing products to increase revenues by adding more functional ingredients or making healthier versions of those products. We are joined by John Kelly and Paul Villis from the Kerry Group. They help us better understand what drives these...
How Is a New Brand Supposed to Find Distribution in the US?
June 01, 2023 11:00 - 32 minutes - 47.7 MBAs the big get bigger, many new brands and foreign brands are wondering how to get attention in the massive and complicated US distribution landscape? Sara Harmelin, Vice President – Digital & Innovation at Allied Beverage Group, and Michael Bilello, Executive Vice President – Strategic Communications & Marketing at WSWA, are both part of Access Craft, a program from WSWA to help smaller and new-to-market brands navigate the three-tier system and get the most of out their distributors. They ...
Breakthru’s Danny Wirtz on Digital, Alternative Routes-to-market, and How Brands Can Get the Most out of Distributors
May 04, 2023 11:00 - 33 minutes - 49 MBWe sit down with Danny Wirtz, vice chairman and a fourth-generation family leader at Breakthru Beverage Group, to discuss M&A, the digitalization of distribution, and how brands can work better with distributors in this time of uncertainty. Breakthru has a larger beer business than most other wine and spirits distributors, giving Danny unique insights into why some wine and spirits brands are choosing to work with beer wholesalers.
WSWA’s Tom Cole and Francis Creighton on Distribution Trends, Marijuana Legalization, and More
April 26, 2023 11:00 - 36 minutes - 53.4 MBTom Cole (Chairman) and Francis Creighton (President and CEO) help lead Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA). We sat down with Tom and Francis at WSWA’s annual conference, Access LIVE, to kick off our series on US distribution. They share their views on industry trends, competition, and their legislative agenda for the year ahead.
How Are Beverages Performing Around the Globe?
April 07, 2023 11:00 - 1 hour - 99.5 MBTo show off the global reach of the RaboResearch Beverages team, Steve and Bourcard sit down with analysts across four different continents, collecting stories about the economy and how it is affecting beverage brands around the world. Episode breakdown: 1:23 - Jim Watson on the latest US beverage pricing data and why some brands are outperforming the competition. 18:21 - Andrés Padilla & Guilherme Morya on the Brazilian economy and how it is impacting the local coffee market. 31:3...
Will Beer Be More Profitable in 2023?
March 09, 2023 12:00 - 41 minutes - 57.6 MBAgainst all odds, most big brewers were able to grow their business and expand margins in 2022. Can they do it again in 2023, or will lagging cost pressures and backlash from recent price increases come back to bite them? The authors of Rabobank’s latest Beer Quarterly report share how brewers are working to control costs, boost revenues, and present their outlook on big-brewer balance sheets for the year ahead. Click here to read Rabobank’s latest Beer Quarterly report: “Have Cost Increa...
What Do Young People Want? Feat. Beatbox Beverages
February 13, 2023 12:00 - 54 minutes - 77.3 MBAt Liquid Assets, we take pride in avoiding “how-I-built-this” stories. But once in a while, a brand comes along whose path to success is so unique, so unexpected, that the best and most insightful question you can ask is: “How?” Beatbox Beverages is one of those companies. Cofounders Aimy Steadman (COO) and Brad Shultz (CMO) share the origins of the brand, how they stay connected to young 21+ consumers, how they leverage beer distributors to get more attention and find the right accounts, ...
The 2023 Economic Outlook
January 24, 2023 13:01 - 54 minutes - 79.4 MBEconomist power duo Jane Foley and Christian Lawrence return to discuss the most important economic trends heading into the new year and what a potential recession, persistent inflation, labor shortages, and a cost-of-living crisis for lower-income consumers could mean for the beverage industry.
Second Annual Quiz-of-the-Year
December 21, 2022 12:58 - 1 hour - 96.7 MBIn a show packed with passionate debate, fierce competition, and even mutiny, journalist Kate Bernot (Good Beer Hunting, Craft Beer & Brewing magazine) and Brewbound Managing Editor Jess Infante help us process the most important stories from 2022. Kate and Jess also do a bit of a takeover, hosting the second annual Liquid Assets Quiz-of-the-Year. Happy holidays, everyone! Thanks for tuning in and supporting yet another year of the show!
Crypto-Death, Innovation, and Marijuana Burnouts
November 30, 2022 13:35 - 50 minutes - 68.8 MBUsing recent industry headlines for inspiration, we break down three big questions on the minds of many beverage executives: Could a change in investor mindset brought on by the collapse of cryptocurrencies be good for the beverage business? What new brands and partnerships are working best at big beverage companies? Has the hype surrounding marijuana and CBD finally burned out?
Get Ready for an Energy Crisis!
November 02, 2022 14:26 - 40 minutes - 57.9 MBAn energy crisis caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine is devastating the European economy. There is a global shortage of diesel, the go-to fuel source for the trains, trucks, and ships that support economic activity around the world. And greenhouse gas emissions are rising as households, governments, and businesses scramble for affordable, yet dirtier, sources of energy. Rabobank’s energy strategist Joe DeLaura and head of FX strategy Jane Foley join us to explain how we arrived at this...
How AB InBev’s E-commerce Team Wants To Bring Sales and Marketing Teams Together
October 04, 2022 11:00 - 37 minutes - 54.4 MBE-commerce and digital marketing are blurring the lines between sales and marketing, but sales and marketing teams don’t always get along. Carolyn Brown, Head of Commerce Marketing at AB InBev, and Rebecca Christiansen, AB InBev’s Director of eCommerce, see this as an opportunity to help their sales and marketing teams better understand each other and increase collaboration, setting up the world’s largest brewer for success in the digital age.
From Clipboards to The Cloud: The Digital Revolution Comes to Supply Chains, feat. Amazon
September 14, 2022 11:00 - 58 minutes - 82.4 MBWhile many CPG companies are still keeping records on clipboards, new technologies like cloud computing, connected factories, and AI are helping more innovative firms capture and analyze the data they need to navigate disruption, reduce waste, optimize operations, and ultimately improve their margins. Alongside two guests from Amazon Web Services, Justin Honaman and Michael Connor, we explore how CPG companies are taking advantage of these new technologies and the digital revolution that is ...
AB InBev and Coca-Cola Want to Build a Playground for Sustainable Innovation With the 100+ Accelerator
August 24, 2022 14:56 - 58 minutes - 83 MBThe 100+ Accelerator is a partnership between AB InBev, The Coca-Cola Company, Unilever, and Colgate-Palmolive that allows sustainability-focused startups to pilot their innovations within the supply chains of these four multinational CPG companies. In an unmissable conversation, Molun Zhang of The Coca-Cola Company and Carolina García Arbeláez of AB InBev discuss their companies’ biggest sustainability challenges and how this new collaborative approach, the 100+ Accelerator, is helping to s...
A Recession Seems Inevitable – How Bad Could It Be?
July 27, 2022 12:31 - 57 minutes - 78.5 MBAs the world braces for recession, Rabobank’s world-class economists Jane Foley and Christian Lawrence join the Liquid Assets team to dissect the most recent economic news and share what indicators they’ll be watching in the months ahead. Check out our 2022 economics preview from January: The Most Important Trends of 2022. Rabobank clients can sign up for our research via this link: Research.Rabobank.com
Inflation Is Changing Beverage Packaging
June 29, 2022 11:00 - 41 minutes - 57.2 MBCould inflation force beverage companies to rethink their packaging choices? And could those changes have a positive impact on climate change? With help from Packaging and Supply Chains Analyst Xinnan Li, we explore what is driving up costs in packaging and some less disruptive changes companies can make to address those problems in the near term. Our next episode will be dedicated to structural changes that may be needed to address packaging costs, waste, and the climate crisis. Links...
Black Girl Magic & The Art of Mass Appeal
June 09, 2022 11:00 - 56 minutes - 80.3 MBMcBride Sisters is a Black-owned brand that explicitly – though not exclusively – markets to Black women. As a consequence, the media, retailers and distributors, often assume your brand must only appeal to Black women or worse, that it might actively push away other consumer groups. With help from Co-founder and CEO, Andréa McBride, we learn more about one of the fastest growing wine brands in the US and summarily destroy the idea that marketing to an underserved consumer group could underm...
Buy, Sell, or Hold: 15 Hot Takes in 45 Minutes
May 18, 2022 11:00 - 52 minutes - 75.1 MBIn a format designed to maximize controversy, the Liquid Assets team analyzes some of the industry’s most urgent and contentious opinions and predictions. Expect plenty of rapid-fire debates as they answer questions like "Is hard seltzer dead?" "In two years, will anyone be talking about NFTs?" and "Will the US ever legalize marijuana?" Rabobank clients can sign up for our research via this link: Research.Rabobank.com
How To Take Your E-commerce Marketing to the Next Level, featuring Constellation Brands
April 26, 2022 11:00 - 53 minutes - 72.8 MBConstellation Brands’ Vice President of E-commerce, Wayne Duan, returns alongside Sara Master, Constellation Brands’ Senior Director of E-commerce Marketing & Digital Shelf, to discuss how alcohol brands can take their e-commerce marketing to the next level. In this episode, we discuss: The importance of digital content and how brands can maximize the impact of the digital shelf The evolution and growing importance of performance marketing and retail media How category advisory and capt...
How Big Is the E-commerce Opportunity for Alcohol Brands? featuring Constellation Brands
April 13, 2022 13:24 - 47 minutes - 65.4 MBConstellation Brands’ Vice President of E-commerce, Wayne Duan, and Adam Springer, Constellation's Director of E-commerce Category Advisory, help the Liquid Assets team breakdown the US online alcohol business. In the first of two episodes featuring the digital team from Constellation Brands, we tackle big picture questions like: How much has the pandemic changed the e-commerce landscape for US alcohol brands? How should alcohol companies approach their e-commerce investment? What does ...
The Worst Supply Chain Disruptions, Ranked
March 16, 2022 11:00 - 59 minutes - 83.8 MBInflation, war, and general chaos are disrupting every aspect of the beer value chain. To help brewers plan through this conflagration of unfortunate events, we invited Bart Watson, Chief Economist for the Brewers Association, and Michael Uhrich, former Chief Economist for the Beer Institute and now principal at Seventh Point Analytic Consulting, on to the show. With their help, we use a draft to identify the most important themes from the current inflation and supply chain crisis and how br...
What Could Monster Devour Next?
February 25, 2022 12:00 - 52 minutes - 74.3 MBFebruary may be the shortest month, but this year, it has felt like the longest. To break it all down, the Liquid Assets team discusses the biggest stories from the past few weeks: Monster Beverage Corp’s beer dealings, the US Treasury Department’s report on fairness and competition in the US alcohol industry, and, finally, the potential impact of a global public policy push to reduce alcohol consumption.
The Most Important Economic Trends of 2022
February 01, 2022 12:00 - 56 minutes - 80.2 MBGet up-to-date on equity markets, labor, and inflation as Rabobank’s world-class economists Jane Foley and Christian Lawrence join the Liquid Assets team to dissect the economic stories you need to pay attention to in 2022.
The Quiz of the Year!
December 28, 2021 12:00 - 1 hour - 95 MBJournalist Kate Bernot (Good Beer Hunting, Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine) and Brewbound Managing Editor Jess Infante, help us debate the biggest stories from the past 12 months. Things then turn fiercely competitive, as we go head-to-head in Liquid Asset’s first ever 'Quiz of the Year'. Happy New Year, everyone! Thanks for tuning in.
Can We Fix Big Beer?
December 09, 2021 11:00 - 47 minutes - 68 MBThe old playbook of geographic expansion, consolidation, and premiumization were widely successful, but those strategies seem to have run their course. If big brewers want to grow, they’ll have look outside of the beer category. In this episode, we bring you success stories from around the globe of brewers diversifying their portfolio and outline a strategy that could help all beverage companies take full advantage of this changing world. Read our latest Beer Quarterly: research.rabobank.com
Celebrity Partnerships 101: Featuring Elizabeth Banks & Archer Roose
November 11, 2021 12:00 - 53 minutes - 73.9 MBEarlier this year, Marian Leitner-Waldman, CEO of canned wine brand Archer Roose, found an unusual business partner: the actor, producer, and director Elizabeth Banks. Celebrity-backed brands are not a new phenomenon, but the trend is gaining considerable momentum in beverages. In this episode, Marian and Elizabeth (now Co-Owner and Chief Creative Officer at the company) help us understand celebrity partnerships as a modern brand-building strategy – discussing why they joined forces, where t...
Are Brands Built in the On-premise?
October 15, 2021 10:00 - 55 minutes - 78.6 MBSteve Chasen, VP of Trade Marketing at Campari America, helped execute one of the most successful on-premise brand-building campaigns in history: that of the Aperol spritz. Linden Pride, Co-Founder & President of Dante NYC, is the proprietor of Caffe Dante, which was named the "World’s Best Bar" in 2019 and played a major role in popularizing the eminently Instagrammable fluorescent-orange cocktail. Together, they help us answer an important question: In the age of social media, e-commerce, ...
Occasion-Based Marketing, featuring Pinterest
September 21, 2021 11:00 - 46 minutes - 63.7 MBPinterest is a powerful platform for occasion-based marketing. Kym Lewis, their Partnership Manager for beverages, and Tina Pukonen, their Global Head of Vertical Strategy & Marketing, share their best practices for building an occasion-based marketing strategy, on Pinterest and beyond.
Portfolio Rebuilds: Is the Cash Always Greener on the Other Side?
September 01, 2021 11:41 - 39 minutes - 56.3 MBWe started our conversation expecting to talk about the news, but so much of the news has been dominated by major beverage companies shaking up their portfolio. Whether it was Molson Coors shutting down 11 brands, Coca-Cola cutting its portfolio in half, PepsiCo selling its juice brands for USD 3bn or Boston Beer partnering with PepsiCo and Beam Suntory, we try to figure out how each of these decisions fit into a larger strategy and what they may mean for the future of the beverage industry.
DISCUS and the Drive for New Spirits Regulations
August 12, 2021 11:00 - 42 minutes - 60.6 MBChris Swonger, CEO of Distilled Spirits Council of the United States and Responsibility.org, and David Ozgo, their Chief Economist, talk about regulations, tariffs, and the overall well-being of the US spirits industry.
The Inflation Sensation That’s Sweeping the Nation
July 14, 2021 13:54 - 38 minutes - 53.1 MBThey warned us about the return of inflation during their last appearance on Liquid Assets. Now, six months later, we welcome back the Rabobank economic duo, Jane Foley and Christian Lawrence to discuss this pesky inflation situation and dive deep into how the beverage industry is dealing with upstream price spikes and shortages.
Behind the Scenes: The Best and Worst of Liquid Assets
June 25, 2021 11:00 - 42 minutes - 58.3 MBWe have just completed three years of producing Liquid Assets, and it is high time for some joyful navel-gazing. In this episode, we look back at three years of the show and discuss what we got right and what we got wrong, and we send some love to the industry leaders who inform and inspire us and fill us with jealous rage.
Wine Industry Outlook: Sunny With a Chance of Flowers
June 02, 2021 10:00 - 52 minutes - 75.4 MBThis week, we are joined by Wine Industry Person of the Year, Heidi Scheid, and leading industry analyst Dale Stratton to discuss how quickly the wine industry will recover from Covid-19 and the opportunity for the wine industry to tap into health and wellness trends.
Flavor and Ingredient Innovation Trends, with Kerry Group
May 11, 2021 11:00 - 47 minutes - 68 MBWhen a beverage company wants to create a new product – anything from a new line extension to a non-alcoholic drink – they turn to companies like Kerry Group. John Kelly and Paul Villis take a break from their work at Kerry Group to discuss product, ingredient, and flavor innovation trends.
The Future of the Malt Market
April 27, 2021 11:00 - 33 minutes - 49.2 MBIn this episode, we're joined by Rabobank analysts Francois Sonneville and Maria Afonso as well as Brent Atthill, CEO of RMI Analytics and former global procurement director at SAB Miller and AB InBev, to take a look upstream at the malting barley supply chain, how it is evolving, and how it is linked to the overall health of the beer industry around the globe. To learn more: Rabobank’s Malting Industry Outlook Podcast: What Will Australia Do With All of Its Barley?
Why Big Companies Are Going DTC
April 13, 2021 11:00 - 52 minutes - 74.6 MBOur guest Wayne Blum is currently Director of US E-Commerce Strategy and Partnerships at Diageo, but before that he led digital for Nestlé Waters and their direct-to-consumer (DTC) business, ReadyRefresh. Wayne joins us to discuss why the world’s biggest brands are interested in going DTC, the challenges they face in the channel, and what’s behind the success of the world’s largest and most profitable DTC programs in the food and beverage world. For more reading, check out our latest repor...
How to Build Digitally Native Brands, Featuring Vinebox Inc.
March 23, 2021 10:30 - 40 minutes - 58.2 MBFor Matt Dukes and Rachel Vodofsky, it wasn’t enough to build one successful digitally native brand. They built two! Leveraging learnings and consumer insights from their wine-tasting subscription service, Vinebox, they were able to successfully build a stand-alone sister brand, Usual. On this episode, Rachel and Matt explain what it takes to build a sustainable direct-to-consumer business, create value for consumers, and perhaps even revolutionize your brand development pipeline. For mor...
Beer, Hard Seltzer, and One Crazy Year — featuring Lester Jones
March 11, 2021 11:00 - 42 minutes - 60.4 MBOn March 11, 2020, the WHO officially designated the Covid-19 crisis a pandemic. One year later, we’ve asked NBWA chief economist Lester Jones to help us reflect on how beer – or should we say hard seltzer – consumption has changed and ask for an update on the recovery of bars and restaurants. Lastly, we have a lively debate about the most important trends facing America’s beer distributors: hard seltzer, RTDs, and digital transformation.
SPACial Report: Pat Roney on the Vintage Wine Estates Merger
February 19, 2021 12:28 - 36 minutes - 49.9 MBOur guest this week is Pat Roney, CEO and Founding Partner of Vintage Wine Estates. Pat’s company is going to merge with Bespoke Capital Acquisition Corp, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The USD 690m deal may not be the biggest we see in 2021, but it is super important and could set off a new trend in M&A, with massive repercussions for the wider beverage industry. For more on the latest trends in the wine and spirits industry, check out Rabobank’s latest Wine Quarterly report:...
The 2021 Economic Outlook
January 25, 2021 11:00 - 39 minutes - 56.5 MBFollowing a tough year, 2021 hasn’t had the most auspicious beginning. Will things improve? To better understand the economic outlook for the year ahead, we invited Rabobank’s Senior Markets Analyst, Christian Lawrence, and Rabobank’s Head of FX Strategy, Jane Foley, to discuss markets, the economy, and what a new US administration could mean for beverage companies.