Page 47 - Beverage MasterAprMay 2021

International News

to create a diverse brand that appeals to locals and favorite breweries, which creates a real opportuni-
tourists alike. Established in 1996, Grizzly Paw has ty for brewers to allow their following to promote
grown from a brewing company to a brand that their brand for them.
extends from sodas and hot sauces to clothing,
housewares and even soap. The brewery recog- Blood Brothers Brewing in downtown Toronto is
nized the potential for a successful retail business an example of a brewery that has taken its business
early on, especially being a tourist destination, and and developed a recognizable brand of street-
started creating an array of branded merchandise
to sell in their taproom.

After launching The Grizzly Paw retail store, the
brewery continued to expand its offerings. They
added a line of handcrafted sodas to their rep-
ertoire in 2006, made with fresh water from the
streams of the Canmore reservoir. This move
allowed the brewery to expand its brand to include
children’s clothing and goods. Sales and Marketing
Manager, Kristina Cardinale, said the brewery
developed a second logo to use for the sodas and
used that logo to establish their children’s brand.

“When it comes to the kid’s side, we’re not pro-
moting kids wearing beer brands,” she said. “We style that can be seen all over the city. Owners
always put the soda logo on the kid’s merchandise, and real-life brothers, Dustin and Brayden Jones,
so now we can hit all the demographics and age started with a simple logo designed by artist and
groups.” close friend Meghan Kramer. They then started
commissioning Kramer to illustrate all of their beer
The brewery finds that many of its visitors want to labels, using her unique style of artwork that is now
take memorabilia and souvenirs home as a memory easily recognizable as the Blood Brothers brand.
of their time in the mountains and aren’t necessari- The Jones come up with the name for the beer and
ly just looking for a beer tasting when they visit The share the backstory behind why they chose it, and
Grizzly Paw Brew House. from there, Kramer has complete creative freedom
to interpret. These labels are then transformed into
The Grizzly Paw retail shop releases a new line of T-shirts, hoodies, posters and other merchandise to
merchandise seasonally that includes lots of plaids, sell in the brewery taproom.
branded toques, hockey jerseys and even collec-
tor’s items like their Grizzly Paw “Thumberjack The Jones brothers had no idea what the demand
Throw,” a fleece-lined, red and black sherpa throw for merchandise would become. The glassware
that retails at $75.00 CAD. Cardinale said they are sales initially tipped them off to the importance of
looking to add floaties to the list of Grizzly Paw having a retail shop when they opened their tap-
merchandise this summer. While brewing great room in 2016. Today, this paraphernalia is so highly
beer remains their focus, their retail shop continues sought after that it’s hard to get your hands on.
to be an important part of their business.
Blood Brothers continues to expand its offerings,
Blood Brothers Brewing and today, their shop includes not only clothing and
glassware but also pins, patches and playing cards.
Many Canadian breweries choose to expand their There’s even a bottle opener resembling a folding
brands to include more retail offerings as the inter- butterfly knife that the brewery can’t keep on the
est in craft beer continues to grow across the coun- shelves. The brand appeals to a specific sort of hip-
try. True beer drinkers love to sport their favorite ster beer-lover and has become a signature look
beer brands, and they’re not just pulling these amongst Torontonians. Each new beer is an oppor-
T-shirts out of a case of beer anymore. Consumers tunity for a new piece of art and more merchandise
are willing to pay good money to showcase their in the Blood Brothers retail shop.

BEVERAGE MASTER April - May 2021 45

BM040521 Main Pages copy.indd 45 3/23/21 3:06 PM