Lagunitas Sells Second Half of Stake to Heineken

Lagunitas Brewing has announced that it will be selling the last 50% of its stake to Heineken International, The Chicago Tribune reports. The California and Chicago based brewery had sold its first half of stake to Heineken in early 2015, but will now be selling the rest, making it fully owned by the Dutch beer company. The move was prompted by a desire to “...accelerate growth and opportunities for Lagunitas,” founder and executive chairman Tony Magee told the Tribune.

Heineken is currently the second largest beer company in the world after AB InBev acquired SAB Miller in 2015. Large breweries buying up smaller ones is a common story these days, and it’s little surprise that Lagunitas would end up selling the full stake after it sold the first half. In a Tumblr post, Magee wrote, “Some who don’t fully understand it all may say it is selling out. Truth is that we did then, and are now ‘buying in’… Money has value and equity has value too. I am using Lagunitas’ equity to buy deeper into an organization that will help us go farther more quickly than we could have on our own.” Magee will be staying with the company, moving from his position as executive chairman to global craft director for Heineken.

Photo via Flickr user amseaman