Quebec microbreweries drink the cup down to the dregs. Already weakened by the pandemic, they must now survive a difficult economic context which is causing their costs to explode and which is holding drinkers by the throat. The collapse of Transbroue, a company sued by several microbreweries for unpaid invoices, adds to these setbacks.
Health regulations in times of COVID-19 have shaken up the beer market, forcing bars and restaurants to close. Since then, the industry has never returned to cruising speed, tossed around by inflation which is hurting.
“We are facing 20% increases in the price of our inputs since the pandemic,” explains Anne-Marie Lachance, founder of À l’abri de la temps, the only microbrewery on the Magdalen Islands. We also adjusted the salaries of our workforce: all of that exploded at the same time, in two years. »
It’s a period, she told the Duty, “extremely anxiety-provoking” for Quebec microbreweries. An opinion shared by Marie-Eve Myrand, general director of the Association of Microbrasseries of Quebec, which is holding its annual conference this week in Quebec.
“I can’t wait for us to get through this economic turbulence which affects everyone,” she explains. People have less money for discretionary spending. Is there a natural skimming that will take place? Are there certain microbreweries which, for all kinds of management reasons, personal choice, environmental issues, will close their doors? Probably. »
The world of Quebec microbreweries has experienced “exponential growth” over the last decade, recalls Marie-Eve Myrand. Today, the industry is slowing down.
“This growth was truly extraordinary. There, we are coming back a little closer to normality,” she explains. The association had 333 microbreweries in Quebec, with 18 openings counted over the last year, unlike peaks of “30, 35” during the golden era.
Bankruptcy and difficulties
For some, however, these difficulties already represent the straw that breaks the pint. “It is with a very heavy heart that we must announce to you that this crisis has got the better of us,” wrote MaBrasserie, the oldest brewing cooperative in Montreal, on Friday. The increase in the cost of rent, which has doubled, the increase in fixed prices, the surge in raw material prices, the market situation and the necessary replacement of certain equipment are all factors that have led to the bankruptcy. »
Others could follow, in particular because of the large sums that the distributor Transbroue, owned by Groupe Triani, has not yet paid to around ten microbreweries. The company owes some $635,000 to six of them, including $141,000 to the Madelinian microbrewery, according to a lawsuit filed in August.
Sheltered from the Storm decided to cut all business ties with Transbroue last June. “I stopped sending merchandise during the month of May to see if it would pay off,” emphasizes Anne-Marie Lachance. I saw that nothing was entering. In addition, communications were extremely difficult. It was very arrogant, I have no other words. We were really treated like nothing. »
In 2017, the Caisse de dépôt et placement invested $2.5 million in Transbroue. At that time, the company did not yet belong to Groupe Triani and its owner couple, Tristan Bourgeois Cousineau and Joannie Couture.
“Transbroue has existed for a long time, but the collapse really began when Triani bought it, in August 2022,” says Anne-Marie Lachance. We were the first to get out of there, we could see that we were being fooled. »
“My bank account is missing $140,000 to simply ensure my turnover,” calculates Anne-Marie Lachance. You know, we are a company with 17 permanent employees. There are 17 families who depend on this year-round and 35, in total, if we count seasonal workers. In an environment like ours, it is still an important employer. »
This “direct hole” in the liquidity of microbreweries like À l’abri de la temps compromises the future of some of them. “There are some who are juggling “is it going to be a bankruptcy or not”, indicates Anne-Marie Lachance. We have reached the end of our drawers. »
An audit report commissioned by Transbroue
Joannie Couture told Duty, Monday, having mandated an accounting firm to take stock of the situation and help Transbroue determine the next step. “We must receive the audit report on Friday,” said the vice-president and general manager of Triani Group.
“We have never denied owing money to microbreweries. We will come back to them with a proposal shortly, when we have the report in hand. »
Triani Group maintains that certain arrears put forward publicly turn out to be erroneous and adds that it was the former owners who contracted these debts. “These are amounts which do not take into account the distribution costs, sales costs or representation costs of Transbroue. We owe amounts to the breweries, but the breweries also owe us for the services rendered. »
She also believes that the company has never lacked courtesy towards microbreweries. “People are running out of patience on both sides, but I really don’t feel like I treated a microbrewery with disrespect or arrogance. »
In a press release released on Friday, Triani Group announced that Transbroue will cease “all sales and representation activities” to “concentrate solely on distribution”.
The company specifies that the economic slowdown has not spared Transbroue and that its sales have fallen by 40% in the space of two years. The press release specifies that Transbroue, owned by Joannie Couture and Tristan Bourgeois Cousineau, owes three million dollars to Groupe Triani, also owned by the couple.
Does the financial proposal that the company intends to submit to the microbreweries plan to put them at the top of the list and reimburse Triani Group last? “It’s part of the scenarios,” concludes the vice-president.