Vol 7, No 17   Apr 27, 2026

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Nik’s Inevitabilities: Alc & Non-Alc Industries Will Merge Within 3-5 Yrs, Pepsi Will Refranchise and Agentic Commerce Will Upend Everything EXPRESS – Apr 20 “I don’t think we’re gonna have a non-alc and alc industry that’s separate 3-5 years from now,” RBC Managing Director Nik Modi declared at the tail end of NBWA’s BREW (Building Relationships and Empowering Women) Conference on Mon. “The consolidation is already happening at the supply chain level. It’s gonna drive manufacturer consolidation. It’s inevitable,” and “I think we’re just at the beginning.” But that wasn’t the last of Nik’s bold predictions. “Pepsi cannot compete with Coke until they refranchise. Bottom line,” he said. “The folks at Pepsi will fight me on this. But so far I’ve been right for 10 years and they’ve been wrong,” Nik noted, calling that “inevitable” as well.

Turning Over a New Stone: Firestone Set to Acquire Stone Brand Rights & Select Hospitality from Sapporo; Duvel USA Chipping In; Escondido Facility For Sale as Sapporo Shifts US Production to Richmond CRAFT – Apr 21 Less than 4 yrs since agreeing to buy Stone Brewing for $165 mil, Sapporo is selling it off. The buyer is none other than Firestone Walker, living up to its stated ethos as a “California Brewing Company,” having recently bought Trumer Pils and previously buying/scaling Cali Squeeze. While it declined significantly in recent yrs, Stone still sold ~250K bbls in 2025 with around 40% of its mix in CA alone, maintaining significant national presence too. So deal catapults Firestone ahead of the pack in CA craftland and up the ladder in CA beer/alc bevs while Firestone and sibling co Duvel USA (both owned by parent co Duvel Moortgat) work together in a new and unique way to make the deal sing across the country. Deal’s expected to close sometime in Q2.

Laird Superfood Notches Another Deal, for Terrasoul Foods, as Nexus Capital Moves to 72% Control; Tilts Coffee Creamer Maker Further to Food Side After Recent Navitas Pickup BEV INSIGHTS – Apr 21 As it moved to acquire fellow superfoods marketer Navitas LLC a few weeks ago, Laird Superfood CEO Jason Vieth said co’s financial backer in move, Nexus Capital, was ready to write another check should similar oppty arise again. As it happens, that wasn’t just a theoretical possibility: he clearly had his eye on next target as LSF Tues morning announced acquisition of Terrasoul Superfoods LLC for $48 mil in cash, backed by Nexus affiliates that kicked in $60 mil in Series A convertible preferred shares not long after they provided $50 mil to fund Navitas transaction, which closed Mar 12.

“The Wind May Be Shifting in Our Favor,” Sez NBWA’s Craig; Beer & Bev Distribs a “Steady Force” EXPRESS – Apr 21 While beer, alc bev and beverage industries continue to converge with rapid pace amid “ongoing challenges across every segment,” beer and beverage distribs “remain a constant steady force,” NBWA prexy Craig Purser stated at the org’s Legislative Conference on Mon. Perhaps “we are seeing signs that the wind may be shifting in our favor,” he posited, pointing to “some signs of improvement” in latest sales data, and a big swing in the public narrative on alcohol consumption. There was even “a positive editorial about alcohol in the Washington Post,” which is “something I never thought I’d see in my nearly 30 years working for you,” Craig quipped. Another big win was locking in “once-in-a-generation tax certainty” thru the 20% 199A pass-through deduction for “Main Street” bizzes. “But we can’t take that certainty for granted,” he underscored, as upcoming midterm elections could change “the priorities that come with it.”

Good Vibes Only: “No, the Numbers Weren’t Great,” But It’s “Not as Bad as Maybe You Think,” Bart Sez CRAFT – Apr 22 Craft has been mighty blustery, facing a litany of headwinds from ever-increasing competition within alc bevs, shifting societal and consumer behavior, claims of reduced alcohol consumption, messy and expensive supply chains, historically low consumer confidence, so on and so forth. It’s a familiar list, Brewers Assn prexy/CEO Bart Watson reviewed during his State of the Industry talk closing the Craft Brewers Conference in Philly Tues afternoon. But all the doom and gloom, the negative narrative around craft beer represents its own kind of headwind for the segment, he suggested. The reality isn’t nearly so bad, he argued.

New Constellation Chief Sales Officer Will Be Jack Edwards, Ex-Diageo Beer Co and Illy Exec EXPRESS – Apr 23 Well, it took over a year for Constellation Brands to replace Bill Renspie, but new chief sales officer Jack Edwards is a solid pick, already familiar with the beer biz and known to many distribs. He starts May 18 and his hiring is likely to be welcomed across Gold Network. This was notably prolonged absence in STZ sr mgt org chart. Jack also has gen mgt experience from more recent gigs that could come in handy down the road. He spent two decades at Diageo North America, including several yrs overseeing sales for Diageo Beer Co.

Keurig Dr Pepper Scores Strong Q1 as US Bevs Grow Sales, Operating Profit by Double-Digits; Newly Added Peet’s Brand Jumps Aboard Alta Podless Train; Eyes Potential Divestments BEV INSIGHTS – Apr 23 Keurig Dr Pepper rode healthy volume gains across its bev portfolio in Q1, offsetting anticipated coffee weakness as co motors toward planned split that it’s now expecting for early 2027. Its core CSDs, notably Dr Pepper, along with energy portfolio and Electrolit partner hydration brand, were among the stars of inaugural 2026 period. Coffee side, which didn’t yet incorporate JDE Peet’s collection acquired on Apr 1, is anticipated to enjoy steady improvement as impact of green bean inflation and tariffs wane. Co indicated this morning that breakthru Alta system of podless single-serve coffee is on course to make its DTC debut with acquired Peet’s brand joining Keurig itself as inaugural marques.

STZ 10-K Tidbits: Reyes at 27.5% of Total Revs; SGWS 70% of Wine & Spirits; $846 Mil from Sale to The Wine Group EXPRESS – Apr 24 One of the more notable stats shared in Constellation’s (STZ’s) just-filed 10-K annual report was under section dubbed “significant customers and concentration of credit risk.” Its biggest customer by far is “Reyes Beer Division” (now going by Reyes Beverage Group), which collectively represented 27.5% of Constellation’s total revs in fiscal yr 2026 thru Feb 2026, up from 25.4% in FY25 and 25.1% in FY24. Shows Constellation revs from Reyes were down ~3% vs yr ago but still totaled a whopping $2.5 bil in FY26. That’s as STZ’s top 10 customers collectively represented “approximately 60% of our total net sales for each of the last 3 fiscal years.” So Reyes alone makes up nearly half of the top 10.

Tom Day, Kyle Norrington, David Barnett and More to Take the Stage at the Beer Insights Spring Conference Hear from some of the industry’s most influential leaders on the forces shaping today’s bev alc transformation at the 2026 Beer Insights Spring Conference, June 2-3 at the Four Seasons Chicago. Our program includes:

• The CEO of the nation’s biggest beer distributor: Tom Day, Reyes Beverage Group
• The Chief Commercial Officer of the largest brewer: Kyle Norrington, Anheuser-Busch
• The President of the top bev alc flavor supplier: David Barnett, Mark Anthony Brands
• Panels on the rise of RTDs, the picked-up pace of M&A and the changing economic backdrop, plus experts breaking down broader industry trends.

Check out the full lineup here and sign up today to reserve your spot!

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