How San Francisco's Anchor Brewing Company Could Still Stay Open

More than two dozen interested buyers have come forward to keep Anchor Brewing open after it announced earlier this month that it would close by Aug. 1, according to a company spokesperson. But there are still a few steps before Anchor Brewing can go full steam ahead again, and time is ticking.

“We’re open to work with anyone who is willing to work with us,” said Pedro de Sá, a representative with International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 6, which includes workers at Anchor. “People have reached out to us, some investors who originally talked about going on their own.”

Anchor Brewing workers have started laying the groundwork to purchase the business from parent company Sapporo USA and run it as an employee-owned cooperative. Sapporo is open to the idea, but there’s not much time before a state-appointed liquidator will take over the company’s assets and determine whether it will remain open.

Unionized workers at the brewery — representing about a third of the staff — are now hoping to extend that timeline as they evaluate the brewery’s worth and formulate their bid. They have selected a point person to talk through some of the logistics with the parent company, but next need to secure funding and legal representation by Aug. 1.

“We want more time. The timeline right now is very short,” de Sá said. “We had a lot of people reach out to us to help, individuals and investors saying they want to invest.”

Meanwhile, other offers are brewing.

Venture capitalist Mike Walsh, who lives in the Potrero Hill neighborhood where the brewery and taproom are located, has spent the weeks since the company’s announcement talking to fellow investors and putting together an offer.

One person he already tapped is Tony Foglio, who co-owned Anchor from 2010 to 2017 before he and Keith Greggor sold the company to Sapporo for about $85 million.

“There’s definitely enough investor interest” to make an offer, Walsh said. “I just have to figure out that offer amount.”

Both parties are now crunching the numbers. Walsh said that he plans to meet with employees at the brewery about involvement or collaboration. De Sá did not definitively say what the brewery workers would be open to, but that they “feel strongly at this point that they want to have governance and a say in how that company is run.”

The latest dash for a new owner to come in and keep Anchor from shuttering comes after a long history of highs and lows for the historic brand and brewery.

Anchor was founded 127 years ago, using actual steam and San Francisco’s cold temps and fog to brew its iconic Anchor Steam beverage. It survived the 1906 earthquake, prohibition and even the boom and bust cycles of the local tech sector.

In 2019, brewery workers unionized, citing the need for higher pay and better working conditions.

But Anchor couldn’t make up for sliding sales and broader pandemic-fueled challenges.

“About 70% of the company’s sales were on-premises, meaning in bars or restaurants. When the pandemic came along, that just absolutely tanked sales,” said Anchor spokesperson Sam Singer.

Singer told KQED that there is no definitive timeline for when a new owner could step in. As of publication, plans to close the taproom and brewery on Aug. 1 are moving ahead.

“After that date, it will be in the hands of the liquidator to make a determination as to whether it will remain open,” Singer said in a text message.

Production has already stopped at the brewery and Anchor Public Taps, the company’s brewpub, will stay open selling what’s left of the inventory.

In the meantime, Anchor beer lovers are showing up in droves at the brewery to pick up cases of beer and merchandise while they still can.

“It’s super sad. I’m somewhat not surprised after Sapporo bought them in 2017, but I’m staying hopeful someone will pick it up and take the brand forward,” San Francisco resident John Elliott told KQED between sips of Anchor Steam at the taproom. “It’s a huge part of being in the city and growing up in California.”