LWC and Full Circle launch International Women’s Day beer
Drinks wholesaler LWC has partnered with Full Circle Brew Co. to launch a limited-edition cask ale to mark International Women’s Day (IWD) next month. db finds out more.
Created by women at every stage of its development
The 3.6% ABV cask ale, named Equal Measure, has been created by women at every stage of its development. The collaborative project aims to shine a light on the often-unseen roles women play across the beer industry, while giving pubs and hospitality venues a key talking point for IWD and a simple, visible way to show their support for women this IWD.
Essentially, the beer brings together female talent from brewing, design, sales and distribution, giving venues a way to champion women in beer on their bars during 8 March and beyond. As part of the project, LWC’s female cask co-ordinators worked closely with the female brewers at Full Circle, getting hands-on at the brewery. At the same time, the beer’s visual identity was developed by one of LWC’s in-house female designers, with members of LWC’s internal women’s network coming together to choose the name.
Added to this, women from across LWC’s sales and customer support teams have also been playing a role in bringing the beer to market. This means that Equal Measure has become a genuine end-to-end collaboration that reflects the breadth of roles women hold across the beer supply chain.
Pre-orders, distribution and charitable profits
The beer will be available exclusively through LWC and Equal Measure will first pour it at LWC’s annual International Women’s Day event and will make the new brew available for pre-order from this month with wider distribution planned for March. Additionally, a percentage of profits will be donated to Girls Out Loud, a charity dedicated to empowering and nurturing the abilities of young women and girls.
Partner Content
According to report data, women in top roles within the beer industry are beginning to diminish. The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) recently reported that just 17% of women hold board positions and only 7% of women are CEOs in the beer industry, while the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) reported that 30% of brewery employees are women with only 3% of female workers in brewing roles.
Speaking to the drinks business, LWC’s cask lead Kotryna Zlat said: “As a wholesaler, we sit across the full beer supply chain and see first-hand how many women are involved at every stage, from brewing and quality through to cask coordination, logistics, sales and customer support. At LWC, our cask team reflects that reality, with almost two thirds of our cask co-ordinators being women who champion and support cask across our customer base, backed up by a wider network of female account managers working closely with customers every day.”
Cask is no longer just ‘an old boys’ club’
Zlat told db: “Earlier in my career, running a cask-led business, I often came up against the assumption that traditional cask knowledge belonged to an old boys’ club. That experience isn’t unique and it’s a perception we want to challenge.”
Full Circle Brew Co northern sales manager Sophie Deacy agreed and added that “this project is very close to our hearts” and pointed out that “at Full Circle Brew Co, we pride ourselves on celebrating and empowering women across the brewing industry, from the scholarships we’ve created and funded through to the people we employ”.
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