New Belgium Brewing has become one of the nation’s largest craft breweries, since starting in a basement in Fort Collins, Colorado, in 1991. New Belgium has seen amazing growth over the past 25 years. In 2014 New Belgium broke ground on a state-of-the-art second brewery in Asheville, North Carolina. New Belgium’s Asheville Brewery, which opens to the public next month, will make east coast distribution of brands like Fat Tire, Ranger IPA, Citradelic IPA, & Slow Ride IPA easier and more cost effective.
Being a 100% employee owned company, New Belgium is known for having a high involvement culture. For example, New Belgium places a heavy emphasis on being environmentally conscious. See video (http://rationalmiddle.com/movie/the-energy-life-of-sustainable-beer/). Under this open culture many New Belgium Brewing employees have risen to positions to help lead the company. For example, VP of Sales, Joe Menetre, has worked with New Belgium for 18 years. Joe made a lasting impact on the company by guiding its expansion into 38 states, including Florida.
Distribution has always been a major part of New Belgium’s business model. Joe explains, “We very quickly realized that just sending beer to a market wasn’t a good strategy…We would never have been able to expand nationally without the three-tier system.” See video (http://bit.ly/1piHR1D)
Recently, Joe announced his retirement from New Belgium. Florida distributors salute Joe Menetre as a great beer man.
Our partner and our friend. Joe defines the definition of both. We wish you the best and hope our paths will cross again. Cheers!
-Jay Martin, President, J.J. Taylor Distributing
We are grateful for all of Joe’s contributions to the Florida market and wish him success in future endeavors.
-Steve Conner, Director of Craft/Specialty, Cone Distributing
I’ll miss working with Joe at New Belgium, but I take solace in knowing great beer men like Joe are never too far from