Liverpool micro brewery falls into administration

A micro brewery, tap room and shop based in Liverpool has fallen into administration and ceased trading. Big Bog Brewing Company Limited was based at Venture Point West in the suburb of Speke.

Originally established in 2011 in North Wales as Waunfawr (English translation Big Bog), the company moved to Liverpool and rebranded as Big Bog Brewing Company in 2016 in order to meet growing demand and establish a foothold in the North West of England.

The multi-award winning brewery operated the trading brand Strawberry Fields Brewing and produced a wide range of beers, including lagers, IPAs, ales and stouts, as well as an array of spirits, including 46 flavoured gins. In addition to its taproom and shop, the brewery also offered delivery.

However, during recent times, the company had begun to struggle with rising costs for materials, distribution and utilities and also saw its sales impacted by the UK’s growing number of pub closures.

As a result, the company appointed Neil Henry of Lines Henry as administrator on March 19 2024 and ceased trading. Administrator Neil Henry commented: "All of this has meant that, despite producing a product that has won many awards and accolades, the business could not continue and has had to close."

Following its collapse, the company’s assets will be sold and interested parties have been advised to contact the administrator.

In Big Bog Brewing Company’s most recent accounts at Companies House, for the year ending July 31 2022, its total assets were valued at slightly over £95,000. However, the company owed significant amounts to creditors at the time, with its net liabilities amounting to just under £52,000.

The company's collapse comes at a time of significant strain on the UK's micro and craft brewery industry, which has faced years of increasing competition from bigger breweries and supermarkets offering their own craft beers, as well as being heavily impacted by the cost increases affecting the wider UK hospitality sector.

This has resulted in soaring insolvency levels in the sector, including fellow Liverpool operator Love Lane Brewery, which fell into administration in October of last year, before being acquired from administrators by TJ Morris in January.


Read more about the pressures impacting UK craft breweries

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