The first-ever 40 Under 40 reception at City Works honored the next generation of leaders in the beverage alcohol industry .
THREE TIERS CONVERGE ON CHICAGO FOR BEVERAGE WEEK 2024
ACTIVATE NATIONAL ACCOUNTS SUMMIT FOCUSES ON INDUSTRY DATA
The second edition of Activate kicked off Beverage Week , bringing together representatives from across the beverage industry to discuss the biggest industry trends , challenges and opportunities . With a focus on data and analytics , Activate attendees participated in an open discussion about how to define new products , categorize consumers and standardize industry data .
Following the meeting , attendees joined members of the on-premise and off-premise at a cocktail reception honoring the 2024 Growth Brands and BevX Award winners . Later in the evening , the party moved offsite to City Works restaurant for a special event recognizing the first class of Beverage Information Group 40 Under 40 winners . Half of this year ’ s honorees traveled to Chicago to join the celebration in-person , cementing the 40 Under 40 reception as Beverage Week ’ s newest annual tradition .
BARC 2024 HIGHLIGHTS MAJOR INDUSTRY TRENDS
Independent beverage alcohol retailers and control state officials converged in Schaumburg , IL in mid-June for the 8th Annual Beverage Alcohol Retailers Conference . Complete with a newly added Beverage Incubator program for entrepreneurs and up-and-coming products within the alcohol industry , attendees spent several days listening to educational panels , browsing informative vendor hall and networking with peers .
BARC kicked off with a retail panel discussion on the current state of the industry featuring Kyle Rounesville , owner of M & R Liquors in Connecticut , Mike Moreno , owner of Moreno ’ s in Illinois and Steve Coram , owner of Chilly ’ s Liquors in Indiana .
Each panelist noted the drastic changes that each of their businesses have seen since Covid hit the industry . “ Consumers aren ’ t drinking as frequently as before and in general , we ’ ve seen a slump ,” said Moreno . “ But there are still a lot of opportunities . We just need to adapt to the changes we ’ ve seen .” www . beveragedynamics . com 2024 Top 100 Issue • Beverage Dynamics 23