Coming from humble beginnings, Brewdog has become a global phenomenon - but its leadership under co-founder James Watt has not been without its challenges.
BrewDog boss James Watt is to step down as chief executive after 17 years at the helm, having seen the Scottish brewer and pub chain grow into a global phenomenon.
It's a far cry from when Mr Watt and co-founder Martin Dickie started their business aged 24 from a garage in the northeastern Scottish town of Fraserburgh – selling hand-filled bottles out of a van at local markets. It points to the product's label describing the drink as a "class A ale" - another "clear reference to illicit drugs", and terms on the BrewDog website such as "up-down", "happy-sad" and a "vicious cocktail of active ingredients".
A passage on the site read: "Say goodbye to the corporate beer whores crazy for power and world domination. Ride toward anarchy and caramel craziness. Let the sharp bitter finish rip you straight to the t**s. Save up for a Luger, and drill the b******s." But BrewDog managed to successfully appeal its right to register the trademark BrewDog Elvis Juice in January 2018.BrewDog found itself in trouble with the ASA again over a billboard campaign promoting its "Punk AF" alcohol free IPA.
BrewDog said its messaging was intended to be tongue-in-cheek but accepted it had fallen foul of the rules.BrewDog was forced to apologise after former workers alleged a "culture of fear" within the business and "toxic attitudes" towards junior staff. Mr Watt said the letter was "upsetting" but that he would not "contradict or contest" its contents, and instead "listen, learn and act".
However, in February 2024 the regulator said it would not uphold the complaint, ruling that "material facts were not presented, disregarded or omitted in a way that was unfair to the complainants, that they had an appropriate and timely opportunity to respond to the allegations made in the programme, and that their response was fairly reflected in the programme".
The brewer said it didn't want to "stop people watching football", adding that "corruption shouldn't stop this", but it faced further questions as to why cans of BrewDog lager were available to buy in Qatar. In a LinkedIn post, Mr Watt accepted fault for the "£500,000 mistake", claiming that "in his enthusiasm", he "misunderstood the process of how they were made and the initial tweets I sent out told customers of the prospect of finding ‘solid gold cans’".
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