Biz Talks: The Business of Beer with Jacob Landry and Prof. J. Cameron Verhaal

Jacob Landry (MBA ’13), founder and president of Urban South Brewery, and  Cameron Verhaal, assistant professor of management, joined host Rich Collins to discuss the business of beer for Episode 126 of the Biz Talks podcast. Since founding Urban South in 2016, Landry has built the microbrewery into one of the largest manufacturing breweries in Louisiana. Verhaal wrote his doctoral dissertation on the U.S. craft beer industry and he studies organizational authenticity and product positioning in cultural-production markets. In a wide-ranging conversation with Collins, Landry and Verhaal discussed the growth of the craft beer industry, the challenges of establishing an authentic brand, and the relationship between craft producers and the mainstream industry. Landry pointed out that despite the craft beer industry’s rapid growth, it’s still just a fraction of the mainstream market.

“Anheuser-Busch InBev produce about 100 million barrels of beer a year, and here we are at 20,000 barrels of beer a year. In the grand scheme of things, we’re tiny. Despite how much Paradise Park you see on the parade routes for Mardi Gras, we still don’t hold a candle to the amount of Michelob Ultra sold in Louisiana.”

--Jacob Landry

“Even though it pales in comparison to the larger industry, craft beer is reaching mainstream markets. You walk through a grocery store and you see way more craft beer, so [I think it’s important to] understand your customer and be true to them and not pretend like you’re something you’re not.”

-- Cameron Verhaal

To hear the podcast in its entirety, visit bizneworleans.com:

https://www.bizneworleans.com/episode-126-the-business-of-beer-with-jacob-landry-and-prof-j-cameron-verhaal/