Elevating New Trail Brewing
Rapid Market Penetration and Brand Establishment in Western PA
Executive Summary
Founded in January 2018, New Trail Brewing was a promising young brewery with a mission to highlight the outdoor lifestyle while producing top-quality beers. In May 2020, at the peak of the pandemic, they signed with Steel City Beer Wholesalers to enter the Western PA market. Despite the challenging circumstances, our strategic planning, targeted investment, and comprehensive market strategies resulted in over 22,000 cases sold in the first year. This case study highlights our approach to building brand awareness, securing distribution, and driving consumer engagement, establishing New Trail Brewing as one of the fastest-growing craft beer brands in the region.
Client Situation
When New Trail Brewing approached us, they had no prior presence in Western Pennsylvania. Despite their growing popularity in their home region, expanding into Western PA presented several challenges:
Limited Brand Awareness: Consumers in Western PA were relatively unfamiliar with New Trail Brewing, requiring significant effort to build recognition and preference.
Creating Retail Distribution: Establishing a distribution footprint and market penetration in a new region from scratch early on was critical.
Reduced Consumer Engagement: Building consumer engagement and loyalty in a new market where there was limited pre existing momentum.
Competitive Market: Western PA's craft beer market was highly competitive, with numerous well-established local, regional, and national brands.
New Trail Brewing needed a comprehensive strategy to master these challenges and establish a strong market presence in Western PA.
Objectives
Our primary objectives for Blake’s Hard Cider were:
Create Brand Awareness: Establish Blake’s Hard Cider as a recognizable and preferred brand among consumers in Western PA, overcoming the initial lack of familiarity.
Build Distribution: Secure placements in a high volume of retail locations to build a strong distribution footprint and enhance market visibility and accessibility.
Drive Consumer Engagement and Loyalty: Foster strong consumer relationships and encourage repeat purchases through targeted brand-building strategies, addressing the initial lack of consumer engagement and loyalty.
Achieve Significant Sales Growth: Increase sales to position Blake’s Hard Cider as one of the largest and most successful hard cider brands in the highly competitive Western PA market.
Solutions
To achieve these objectives, we implemented a series of strategic actions:
Targeted Account Placement: Strategically placed New Trail Brewing’s products in key retail locations that best aligned with the brand and had high potential for customer engagement and sales volume. This ensured rapid sell-through and built early brand momentum.
Comprehensive Brand Strategy: Built and executed a robust brand strategy tailored to the Western PA market, ensuring alignment with New Trail Brewing's overall mission and values.
Strategic Brand Positioning: Positioned New Trail Brewing as a premium, high-quality craft beer brand while maintaining its approachability and price competitiveness through strategic brand strategies and in-market execution efforts.
Targeted Promotional Campaigns: Implemented promotional campaigns, including in-store tastings, local events, and social media marketing, to boost brand visibility and consumer interest with the brand’s target audience.
Robust Distribution Plan: Developed and executed a distribution plan targeting key, high visibility retail locations to ensure widespread availability of New Trail Brewing's products.
Results
The strategies and actions we implemented resulted in significant achievements:
Remarkable Sales Growth: Sold over 22,000 cases of New Trail Brewing’s products in the Western PA market within the first full year.
Dominant Market Share: Established New Trail Brewing as one of the fastest-growing craft beer brands in the region.
Extensive Retail Expansion: Secured placements in over 500 new retail locations, significantly enhancing the product’s visibility and accessibility.
High-Level Success: Built Western PA into one of the top markets for New Trail Brewing, setting the stage for continued growth and success.
Chain Account Success: Established multiple New Trail Brewing SKUs as top 100 volume beer products in the top regional grocery chain.
Transforming New Trail Brewing into a Regional Powerhouse
From no previous market presence to becoming one of the fastest-growing craft beer brands in Western PA, the journey of New Trail Brewing showcases the power of strategic planning and targeted execution. Through my leadership at Steel City Beer Wholesalers, we leveraged in-depth market insights, implemented a robust brand strategy, and invested in brand building to transform New Trail Brewing into a household name in the region. This success story is a testament to the effectiveness of my comprehensive approach and dedication to achieving outstanding results, principles that I now bring to clients at Five Star Beverage.
Highlights of Success
Remarkable Sales Growth: Sold over 22,000 cases of New Trail Brewing in the Western PA market in the first full year.
Rapid Market Penetration: Established significant brand momentum and consumer engagement immediately.
Extensive Retail Expansion: Secured placements in numerous high-volume retail locations, significantly enhancing the product’s visibility and accessibility.
Top Market Performance: Elevated Western PA into one of the top markets for New Trail Brewing in the region.
High Consumer Engagement: Created strong consumer loyalty and brand recognition, driving repeat purchases and sustained growth.
Elevate Your Brand Today
By grounding our decisions in comprehensive strategy, I transformed New Trail Brewing into one of the fastest-growing craft beer brands in Western PA while leading Steel City Beer Wholesalers. Thoughtful planning, strategic development, and targeted investment were key to this success. Now, at Five Star Beverage, I apply these proven strategies to help other brands achieve similar results. Set up a free strategy call and discover how we can drive growth for your brand.