TIVERTON, ON – It’s been slightly more than a year since Steelback Brewery was brought back from bankruptcy with new ownership and a renewed focus on brewing good quality beer, but two recent media reports make it appear that a second bankruptcy may be on the horizon.
Two weeks ago, the Kincardine News reported that president Ian MacDonald had left the company. No reason was given for his departure, but an official statement from the company stated that “Ian MacDonald and Steelback Brewery have decided to part ways”, and that owner Jon Sherman had taken over as president.
And this past week, the Owen Sound Sun-Times reported that 35 Steelback employees had been laid off, with only a bare bones staff of four retained to continue selling beer. According to Sherman, low sales forced the move, but he’s hopeful that the company will be able to regroup and become profitable in the future. He expects a decision to be made on the company’s future “within a couple of weeks”.
Rich // Jul 25, 2009 at 3:51 pm
Surprise surprise. Standard Lager takes another hit.
Steelback Brewery Shut Down? « Canadian Beer News // Feb 2, 2010 at 5:04 pm
[...] While Sherman oversaw a big change in direction for the brewery, including new packaging and reformulated brands, there was speculation in the industry that the negative legacy left by the D’Angelo version of the company would be difficult to overcome. The biggest evidence of this came last July, when the majority of Steelback’s workforce was laid off due to low sales. [...]
Hugh Carson // Jul 12, 2010 at 7:06 pm
Cream always rises to the top, wheras crap is always dumped into Lake Huron.