Amid a wave of consolidation and closings in the craft beer industry, Mayflower Brewing Company – Plymouth’s oldest and largest beer maker – is changing hands.
Drew Brosseau said Tuesday that he is selling the business he founded in 2007 to Orleans-based Hog Island Beer Company for an undisclosed sum.
But the Mayflower name and its lineup of beers are not going away. The company’s Resnik Road brewery and taproom will remain, as will its seasonal beer garden on the green in the Pinehills.
“It’s really as much of a merger as an acquisition,” Brosseau said of the deal. “They want to continue to produce the Hog Island Beers and maintain that brand, and they’re going to continue to maintain the Mayflower brand.”
It was no secret that Mayflower – with annual revenue estimated at $5 million – had been looking for a buyer. In January it laid off sales and distribution staffers after striking a distribution deal with Sheehan Family Companies. Until then, Mayflower had distributed its own beers in Eastern Massachusetts. Calling the move “good news and bad news” at the time, Brosseau said it was necessary to keep the struggling business from folding.
On Tuesday, he said Hog Island was looking for more capacity to brew its products and will be able to do that in Plymouth at Mayflower’s 9,000-square-foot facility in the Plymouth Industrial Park.
Sheehan already distributes Hog Island’s beer.
Brosseau said the deal will close when Hog Island receives federal and state licenses to operate the Resnik Road and Pinehills locations, which he said could take time.
Mike McNamara, founder of Hog Island, could not be reached for comment, but in a press release issued with Brosseau he said, “Mayflower is a respected name with deep roots and an amazing story. This acquisition is about preserving that legacy while positioning both brands for long-term growth in a challenging and evolving market.”
Plymouth has seven breweries. In addition to Mayflower, they include Vitamin Sea, Untold Brewing, Second Wind, IndieFerm, Llama Nama, and Sour not Sorry.
While the town has become a magnet for craft brewers, the overall industry has declined in recent years. Among the reasons: market oversaturation, a drop in alcohol consumption as health warnings about drinking mount, and the popularity of legal cannabis products.
According to the Massachusetts Brewers Guild, Massachusetts had 236 breweries as of January. But the industry is stagnant statewide. Last year, 17 breweries opened and 17 closed, it said.
Brosseau said Mayflower’s remaining staff of seven full-time employees and half a dozen part-time workers will keep their jobs under the new ownership.
Mayflower’s annual open house, scheduled for Saturday, April 19, will now be a celebration of the future of the brewery, he said.
Once the sale is completed, he will not be involved in the brewery.
“It’s a little bittersweet for me, because I’ve been at this for quite a while,” Brosseau said.
Fred Thys can be reached at fred@plymouthindependent.org.