Maybe 2023: BrewDog momentum for London listing stalls
BrewDog’s momentum for a market debut in London appears to have slowed as the brewing operation eyes 2023 for a float.
“Could it be sometime in 2022? Maybe. 23? Maybe,” CEO and co-founder James Watt told The Daily Telegraph.
Watt was keen to distance the listing cooling from ex-staffers’ claims of a “culture of fear” at BrewDog. “That happened after we made the decision to push things back,” he told The Telegraph.
In response to the workplace bullying claims, Watt said BrewDog “should have been clearer about the high performance culture.”
Former staff had experienced a “mismatch of expectations” with the “dynamism” of a high growth company but the “steady state, perks and benefits” of a veteran.
After a letter from former staff emerged, Watt said it was “obvious that we failed these people in their journey with us.” The business pledged to learn from the situation, by introducing exit interviews for departing staff.
“Regardless of whether we agreed with the feedback from former staff or not, we’ve decided to use it as a catalyst to get better,” he says.
In April, the brewing company said it had hired Rothschild to advise on its Initial Public Offering after it was forced to postpone plans for a 2020 float amid the pandemic.
The Scottish company also brought in Allan Leighton, former boss of Asda and Pandora, as chairman last month. Watt said Leighton would be a valuable mentor to him.
BrewDog is not the only UK firm to slow down in its aim to float.
UK firms including steakhouse chain Hawksmoor has postponed its listing and Pure Gym is relooking at its own plans, according to the Financial Times.
Hawksmoor founder, Will Beckett, told the FT his firm had paused refinancing talks to focus on venues’ recovery from the pandemic.