Attempts at scaring the Beer King in Lebanon

Concerned parties: Almaza, Beirut Beer, Colonel Beer, 961 Beer, Kassatly Chtaura, Al Rayess

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In a corporate meeting room (yes, Kassatly Chtaura’s), they’re discussing the idea of the financial potential of introducing a new product onto the beer market, and trying to take market share off the leader, Almaza. Next they do a small feasibility study and decide to go with the project.

- “But do we know anything about making beer?”
- “No problem, we’ll hire someone who does.”

- “And what should we call it?”
- “Euh… I don’t know, Beirut F*cking Beer. But without the ‘F*cking’.”

“

This is how I imagine the story of “Beirut Beer”.
And if you read their story on their website, it somehow falls within the scope of my imagined story.

Now on a different note:

“[…] Beer has long been one of Batroun’s favorite drinks and that culture nurtured [His] own passion for beer and motivated him finally to take up home brewing. […] However, after pursuing rigorous research, attending several workshops in the UK, and touring different breweries and beer festivals in Europe, [He] finally learnt the craft and became proficient at it.”

This is the actual “Colonel Beer” story.
A story of pursuit of passion, bringing a dream to life, and living it.
Whether you like it or not, Colonel Brewery is a landmark in Lebanon.
Dare I say Colonel Beer has become part of the Lebanese heritage.
It’s a product that speaks for itself:
It has made its way from the bottom to the top (relative top), without much marketing effort.

So basically, Colonel worked its way from the bottom up, and Beirut Beer worked its way from upper management down to the market.
Ain’t nothing wrong with one way or the other.

Almaza is the King, the market leader (among Lebanese brewed beers).
The others might be chewing a little market share here and there, But I don’t see a serious threat to its position, at least for now. But then again, I don’t have the numbers so I can’t be definitive on that.

Beirut Beer has a poor marketing mix.
Colonel is on a different positioning.
961 Beer hits on a different positioning as well with their many flavors, but still have their say somehow on the Pilsner/Lager segment, where Almaza dominates.

Almaza

Almaza is what you grab on the go without thinking too much about beer.
They’re some kind of reference, just like “Kleenex” or “Soha” mineral water.
Their Pilsner product is generic; they tried to diversify with the Malt flavor, the light, the lemon… but those can’t be easily found on the market, especially the missing Malt flavor in pubs. The popularity of the variations is in doubt.

They have a good targeting with their communication; their ad agency is hitting the spot: there’s a chunk of people who will identify with their slogan and ads, “Hayda Jawna, Hayda Ne7na” (translated into “This is our mood, this is us”).

But Almaza introducing “Al Rayess” beer for a new market segment?
Will this really compete with Beirut Beer?

Beirut Beer

Beirut Beer, what a lame name!

Product → regular to weak
It’s definitely not a premium quality product when it comes to taste. Especially when everything they do suggests that they’re out there to get market shares and not tongues loyalty.

Plus their bottles sizes issue…
It all makes me think of penis size issues.
And they came up with nicknames to the different sizes… Yes I’m going down to the shop to buy a couple of “Cousin Muscles”…
And this is your argument for the small size bottle? That we get to finish the beer before it gets warm? Is this your selling point?

I’d really like to see the study they did where they found out that this was a concern among beer users, who preferred smaller size bottles, because it dealt with their beverage temperature convenience issues.
Isn’t it rather, “how much beer can I get for 1000 L.L.?”…?

Promotion → Inferiority Complex
They’re busy with defining themselves relative to Almaza… Their ads refer too much to the competition… which backs up my imagined story at the beginning of the article. They don’t really talk about product quality, or any topic related to their unique identity (OK they don’t really have a unique identity).
- Proud to be 100% Lebanese, referring to Almaza being partially Dutch
- “Sar Wa2ta” slogan (translated into “it’s about time”), referring to the fact that it’s time that another beer got introduced to the market, which has been dominated by Almaza for so long now
- “Mish kil yom mjadra” advertisement and the #TrySomethingNew tag, referring to the fact that it’s time to try a new beer, other than the usual Almaza
- The multitude of ads they frequently upload online, with stories and slogans, suggest that they’re using Almaza’s language of “Hayda Jawna, Hayad Ne7na” campaign. The ads and slogans are not that fun, but they keep social media running and busy, and they’re targeting their right audience.
Have a look at the ads. Notice any similarities with Almaza’s?

There’s a common thinking out there in marketing that says that it’s not all about the competition; take a look in the inner self, find out who you are.

And it seems that all their communication disregards a chunk of the population that is not “social media active” and “smart tagline sensitive”. I know my parents haven’t tasted it yet, and I think my father hasn’t heard of it yet. But then again, I still don’t have market numbers or any research in that regard; so maybe those are not a lucrative chunk and thus not as interesting to them.

On a different note, they have invested in a great visual identity: you can’t but recognize the dark green of Beirut Beer.

Price → Penetration
They’re cheaper than Almaza, but be careful about the Price versus Quality perception.
However they do hit the spot when a price sensitive consumer will pick up a Beirut Beer bottle or 6 pack, instead of an Almaza.
There probably lies their good selling strategy. I’m presuming they’re penetrating on different segments, age groups and social/occupational status groups.

961 Beer

Apart from the fact that on 2 different instances, my friend and I experienced a weird looking residue in 961 Beer bottles, last time I bought one was because I didn’t want Alamaza’s generic beer, or Beirut Beer’s unattractive beer, and they didn’t offer Colonel Beer or any other good Belgian beer at that shop. So yes, it was a matter of the best of the bad choices.

And yes beer is a matter of taste (isn’t everything?), and personally I think they are the 2nd best beer in Lebanon, after Colonel’s.

Colonel Beer

For the aficionadas! It positions itself on a different segment than the other more generic Almaza and Beirut Beer; maybe a similar positioning to 961 Beer’s, but with a better product to my taste at least.
Only few months old and with much less marketing than any other beer, the quality of the Colonel Beer spoke for itself.

Colonel microbrewery is a home to a community. What else do you need for a well rooted identity?
The price tells you that there is no compromise in quality.
The communication follow up is poor, but the basics are there, with a website, a good story and a good visual identity.
The service at the pub in Batroun is poor, but can be overlooked, and probably will get more experience with time.
Its strategy of hosting fests and parties would work well for promotion.

For all of you beer enthusiasts, you have to visit the microbrewery and taste a good draught IPA, in a very chilled Batroun atmosphere.

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King Almaza, you’ll have to cope with living with more people in the castle.
It probably was a nice ride for so many years without competition.
For now, you’re the popular beer of most of the Lebanese people, but you gotta keep up the work.
Beware of close relatives.

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