Now that the dust has somewhat settled following the most recent storm to hit infamous Scottish craft beer company BrewDog, I’m interested to see what kind of lasting impact, if any, the whole affair will have on the brewers.
The brand has had its fair share of controversies over the years, but this one has potential to cause the most reputational damage, given the serious nature of the allegations. In case you didn’t get caught up in any of the media storm surrounding BrewDog in recent weeks, it all kicked off with an open letter published on Twitter and signed by 61 former employees of the beer company, which contained some very concerning accusations.
Accusations of a toxic culture of fear, sexism, workplace bullying, and health and safety breaches were just some of the most serious complaints contained in the letter. Of course, social media went wild, and the letter generated thousands of comments. Many opened up about their own negative experiences of working with the brand, while others rushed to their defence.
During their short but meteoric rise to fame, BrewDog has been embroiled in controversy (I’m sure you’ll remember the Beer for Girls saga), but it was difficult to see how they could bounce back from such serious claims with their usual tongue-in-cheek approach.
They acted fast. A public apology was issued the following day, and co-founder James Watt appeared on numerous TV and radio shows, facing tough questioning and promising to learn from the experience.
I applaud Mr Watt for tackling the situation head on, but I wonder if it’s enough. Has BrewDog’s reputation already been tarnished beyond repair, or will people forget about this whole situation in a few months’ time?
There have been inevitable calls to boycott the brand, and I’m sure many will do just that. But perhaps the reality is that as long as the brewer can demonstrate positive next steps, others will allow the company and its founders to move on by continuing to purchase their favourite tipple.
I’m sure there will undoubtedly be a negative impact, at least in the short-term, as some who have watched the situation unfold will be eager to spend their money elsewhere to disassociate from these serious allegations. However, I’m not convinced there will be any serious long-term effects.
What they do over the next few months however will be critical to how they come out the other side.
A matter of days after the open letter was published, BrewDog announced the appointment of a new female chairwoman, Blythe Jack, who is supposedly being parachuted in as the brand aims to draw a line in the sand.
While their sales may not be hugely affected, recruitment may be a problem for some time. People won’t exactly be queueing up round the block to interview for a role with a company at the centre of this kind of storm, so it’s important for them to show they have truly learned from this, and that they are striving to make genuine changes to the workplace culture.
I think they need to keep their heads down for now and work hard on making sure their staff feel listened to and valued before coming out with any kind of big announcement or publicity stunt to try and curry favour with the public. A gimmicky marketing ploy certainly would not go down well right now.
BrewDog is an amazing Scottish success story, and a great example of a small company which has gone from strength to strength to achieving international success, so it’s a real shame to see them come up against this kind of criticism. However, if these accusations are accurate, then of course it’s only right for them to be called out and held to account.
It’s impossible not to admire BrewDog’s accomplishments, but if it’s true that the business was run in a way that made employees so uncomfortable they’ve felt the need to come together to collectively name and shame their bosses, there’s no excuse.
I’m sure BrewDog can and will recover from this, but it’s clear that evidencing a real departure from the claims made in the open letter will be the way to revive its reputation.
I, like many, will certainly be watching with interest to see what comes next from the brand.
With a vested interest in the commercial property sector, I like to keep an eye on what the future holds for the industry.
With businesses asking employees to work from home last year, many centres of commerce felt like ghost towns as offices lay empty.
Businesses saw a number of advantages to remote working and the big question over the past 12 months has been whether traditional offices would become a thing of the past.
It wasn’t time for the sector to hit the panic button just yet however as Land Securities Group, one of the UK’s biggest commercial property companies, outlined its shift in strategy to refocus on developing new city office space and mixed-use projects.
This statement of intent was a welcome boost for the industry and now, as more businesses open once again, the commercial property sector will certainly bounce back.
However, the pandemic has taught us that businesses can’t stand still if they are to survive – diversification is key.
It was therefore interesting to see fellow Scottish entrepreneur Michelle Mone unveiling her first collaborative business venture with her husband last week – an £18m investment into a hybrid workplace.
Reflecting on the change in working practices over the past year, they hope to create a multi-use environment where individuals and businesses can work, rest and play, all under one roof in a 55,000 sq foot flagship site located in Aberdeen.
With private offices, co-working ‘flexi pods’ and meeting rooms, all supported by additional breakout spaces and collaboration hubs, sat alongside a gym, a TrackMan golf simulator, steam and sauna rooms – their vision for the next generation in office space is an interesting one.
I’m sure that we will see many other businesses within the sector follow this type of concept as they look to futureproof commercial property in the wake of a shift in traditional working for many across the UK.
It Made Me Laugh
You would have thought that many of us would have honed our culinary skills during lockdown.
This doesn’t seem to be the case however for the amateur chefs who share their at-home creations online and who are subsequently roasted by Scots chef Gordon Ramsey.
Ramsay has built quite a following for his hilarious TikTok videos where he reacts to amateur cooks’ creations with his trademark putdowns.
It appears even Ramsay has his limits though when the Hells Kitchen chef ended up sobbing after seeing a homemade attempt on his famous Beef Wellington.
TikTok user Succhefful introduced his version of Gordon’s dish on the social media site, pairing processed meat slices, mustard, Spam, bread and tomato sauce all together.
It’s fair to say that once Ramsay has recovered from shock, the amateur concoction certainly won’t be appearing on his menu any time soon.
It Made Me Weep
It was sad to see that mindless vandals struck last week in Dundee, causing four figures’ worth of damage to a local football club. Unfortunately it wasn’t even the first time that the Whitton Park stadium had been targeted over the past few months.
Although the youngsters responsible were caught, it’s commendable that Broughty Athletic, the junior football club affected, hopes to launch night-time soccer schools in a bid to offer youngsters an alternative to anti-social behavior in the area.
At a time when a number of community hubs are on pause due to Coronavirus, it’s great to see local businesses and organisations such as football clubs, stepping up to the plate to provide activities for our young people to keep them active and out of trouble.
