Boston Beer Co.’s Jim Koch has special message for Anchor’s new owners
Now, it’s personal.
Yesterday, Boston Biz Journals reported that Boston Beer Co. sued Anchor Brewers and Distillers over an allegedly breached noncompete agreement with one of Anchor’s newly-hired employees. Jim Koch forwarded a statement to Beer Advocate today. Interesting snippet here:
Boston Beer has a policy of respecting similar agreements other craft brewers have with their employees and they normally do the same. We don’t poach employees from other craft brewers who are under agreement with their employer. A great respect and collegiality exists in the craft brewing community. The new owners of Anchor Brewing, who just recently acquired the Company after successful careers in the vodka business, may not be fully up to speed on how folks in the craft beer business have, in the past, dealt with this issue without litigation.
Full statement available (with free membership) at Sam Adams goes after Anchor Brewing – BeerAdvocate.
Breweries: Anchor Brewing, The Boston Beer Company
So the former employee knows the 2012 plans for Boston Beer Co.? Does it include brewing 50 times the volume of Anchor, releasing Noble Pils, Summer Ale and some homebrew recipes? Good God, he could bring down the entire company!
It’s rare to find a brewery employee (sales or production) who hasn’t worked for other breweries in the past. Get over it Jim.
Jim’s statement made me go from being glad that I don’t buy Boston Beer’s beer to being ECSTATIC that I don’t give them any of my money.
Non-compete forms are simply a way for a company to bully employees into staying in unsatisfactory positions, or, preventing them from finding more beneficial employment.
Agreed. I thin those in the industry realy realy like it. Since people tend to stay in the beer business its nearly imposible to find a competent new hire that hasnt already worked for someone elts in the same trade under a noncompete agreement. I love Sam Adams and I hope they are doing this for a good reason because it looks realy bad.
There are similiar agreements in the telco industry, and everyone knows that they might as well be printed on toilet paper. This sort of petulant bullshit from Jim Koch just put me over the edge into never buying his damn beer again.
Boston Beer Co./Sam Adams gives away more beer than anchor produces in a year. Maybe Jim Koch should take a good look in the mirror. Have never been a fan of their products or company as a hole. Drop the suit and let this guy get back to work.
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I have worked in the beer sales industry. I understand the reasoning behind Boston Beer Co.’s non-compete agreement. I do not, necessarily, agree with how they are enforcing it. Craft sales is all about personal relationships and that is why it can hurt to have one of your sales reps leave to work for a competitor. Accounts will follow the reps more often than not which can cause drops in on and off-premise visibillity. With all this said, BBC saying they don’t seek out reps from other craft breweries is complete, grade A horse pockey. We can’t forget; however, that the rep in the case knowingly signed a non-compete agreement and should have been more cognisant of that fact.