Writing on LinkedIn, Watt said that if such an opportunity arose, he would look to use Second Best, his new beer business, as the vehicle to purchase BrewDog.
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‘Devastated’
The former BrewDog chief executive said he was “devastated” to have come “narrowly second” in his bid to buy the business back earlier this year.
Watt wrote: “I lost a business I dedicated almost two decades of my life to building. A business which, for better or worse, will always feel like an intrinsic part of me.”
He claimed his bid would have saved “hundreds more jobs”, kept more locations open, immediately reinstated the real living wage and kept all Equity Punk investors whole.
The comments follow BrewDog’s £33m sale to Tilray in March, which included the brand, intellectual property, UK brewing operations and 11 brewpubs in the UK and Ireland.
The transaction preserved 733 jobs, but 38 bars closed with immediate effect, resulting in 484 redundancies. There was no return to equity holders, including those under the Equity for Punks scheme.
Equity Punk ownership
Watt said former Equity Punks can claim the same stake they once held in BrewDog for free in Second Best, with more than 19,000 already registered to be part of the new company.
He wrote: “You will own it. I will fund it. And I will dedicate myself to building it.”
Watt said registered Equity Punks would also receive the same ownership stake in a new drinks business set to launch in the coming weeks.
He added: “If the opportunity ever does come around again in the future for me to buy BrewDog back, which I hope it does, then I would use the Second Best company.
“Because the Equity Punks would already be locked in as co-owners.”
Watt concluded: “Equity Punks, you backed me once. This time, I’m backing you.”
Watt co-founded BrewDog with Martin Dickie in 2007 and stepped down as chief executive in May 2024 after 17 years leading the business.
