Brewing giant Oettinger is focusing on a new trend: drinks with proteins

Brand moment
Brewing giant Oettinger is focusing on a new trend: drinks with proteins

The brewing giant will become more independent of the shrinking beer market. To do this, he relies on drinks with proteins – and new brands

His new job is getting under Tom Inden-Lohmar’s skin. After the marketing expert, who will also be the owner of Berlin’s oldest spirits brand Mampe until 2022, started working for the beverage manufacturer Oettinger, he got a new tattoo: his arm now features a beer bottle next to a Mampe logo.

Beer – especially cheap beer – is the product that most people associate with Oettinger. With an output of almost 7.5 million hectoliters, the family business from Bavaria is one of the 25 largest breweries in the world. But the task of Inden-Lohmar, who only wanted to take on a consulting job in Oettingen but then joined as head of marketing, goes far beyond the beer: he is supposed to ensure that the transformation from a cheap beer manufacturer to a beverage company is received by customers.

Like all major brewers, Oettinger is struggling with Germans’ steadily declining beer consumption. In 2021, the company, which also produced for private label discounters, made losses. The new chef Stefan Blaschak has therefore set the goal of reducing dependence on the beer market. By 2026, the share of non-alcoholic drinks in sales is expected to increase from 14 to 40 percent. Particularly in focus: the rapidly growing market segment of functional drinks, including drinks with additives such as proteins.

“We can drink beer”

It quickly became clear that a functional soft drink with proteins was not possible under the Oettinger brand without unsettling regular customers, says Inden-Lohmar. That’s why they created a sister brand called Oe, whose first product hit the shelves this year: a self-developed soda water with proteins and fruit flavor. Oettinger also bought the start-up Joybräu out of bankruptcy. “Their non-alcoholic protein beer is an “ideal complement,” says the manager: “We can do beer.”

Brand moment

Brandy company
Hip-hot cola mix? Asbach Uralt is now focusing on mixed drinks

June 2, 2024

After years of decline, Germany’s oldest brandy brand Asbach Uralt has been revived. The key: mixed drinks with cola

What is new for the traditional company is to be the first to enter the market with innovative products – instead of waiting for trends, following suit and then offering them cheaper. In order to make the new drinks known, the frugal and quiet Swabians will continue to not afford expensive TV campaigns. There should now be brand managers for the individual brands, as well as the support of an agency and possibly collaborations with influencers – that is also a novelty.

It is important to manage the brands “sharply,” says Inden-Lohmar. With Oe, Oettinger is popular on the mass market, with the higher-protein Joybräu drinks on fitness fans who want to support muscle building. However, it remains to be seen whether the growth in functional drinks will be enough to compensate for the decline in the core business. “The owners are definitely willing to give the innovations time to grow,” says Inden-Lohmar. It is clear to everyone: “Just turning the marketing screw a little won’t be enough.”

Published in Capital 10/2024