USA: MillerCoors to eliminate about 350 salaried positions across the company

MillerCoors plans to eliminate about 350 salaried positions across the company as it restructures while wrestling with slumping sales of some brands, especially Coors Light, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported on September 4.

The job reductions include approximately 150 salaried positions that have been held open or eliminated earlier this year, the company said. The positions are expected to be gone by the end of October.

The company said it will offer a voluntary severance program as part of the restructuring.

“We are moving quickly and decisively to get our business back on track,” Gavin Hattersley, chief executive of MillerCoors, said on September 4 in an email to distributors. “To accomplish this, we know we need the financial flexibility to invest in our brands and solutions at the right level, quickly capitalize on new opportunities and maintain a robust marketplace presence. Our current fixed cost base limits our ability to do all this.”

MillerCoors has seven large breweries in the U.S., with the biggest campuses in Chicago, Golden, Colo., and Milwaukee.

The company has roughly 1,400 employees on the main campus in Milwaukee and about 8,000 nationwide.

MillerCoors spokesman Marty Maloney said he couldn't predict how many positions would be eliminated in Milwaukee.

“We’re offering a voluntary severance program, which allows people who may be ready to move on the opportunity to do so with a generous package,” Maloney said. “So it’s too soon to say at this point what the exact impact will be to each campus. Once we know who has elected to volunteer, leaders will review requests against the organizational design and determine how roles will be impacted.”

The staff reductions follow several years of volume declines in a challenging industry, the company said.

“We’re committed to handling this restructuring with speed, dignity and respect for all involved and without marketplace disruption,” Hattersley said in the email.

MillerCoors said that since early July, it has taken several actions to boost business. It announced a search for a new chief marketing officer and appointed a new leader to oversee the conversion of its breweries to an integrated system.

The company opted to stop producing Two Hats beer brand so it could divert resources to other parts of its portfolio. It appointed new marketing agencies for Blue Moon and Leinenkugel's, and last week it announced that in 2019 it will roll out a new lineup of flavored beverages called Cape Line.

MillerCoors also has stressed that it is working to turn around its largest brand, Coors Light.

The parent company of MillerCoors, Denver-based Molson Coors Brewing Co., reported in August that sales for the second quarter of 2018 were down 0.2 percent from the same quarter a year earlier, at $3.1 billion. The volume of U.S. brands decreased 4.8 percent for the quarter, driven mainly by lower volume in the premium light segment, according to Molson Coors.

“While we know we still have some challenges ahead, we’re establishing a realistic, achievable plan for 2019 to put us on the path to long-term sustainable growth,” Hattersley said.

MillerCoors also this week began charging a fee for its Milwaukee brewery tour. The upgraded the tour now costs $10, or $5 for Wisconsin residents with a state-issued ID.

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