The INSIDER PODCAST: Season 11 – Episode 10

James Watt - The secrets you need to know for effective communication

With James Watt

In this episode, I had a fascinating conversation with James Watt, Co-Founder & CEO of Brewdog. Started in 2007 in a small industrial unit with his friend Martin Dickie, now estimated to be worth $2bn, BrewDog is ranked the world’s 14th most valuable beer brand by Brand Finance, overtaking Carlsberg for the first time in 2023. A self-professed business Punk, Brewdog is renowned for doing business differently. In June 2022 James announced an employee ownership programme that will see 3.7m shares of the company distributed to 750 staff over four years together with a profit share arrangement in his bars.
James Watt

James Watt

Before embarking on a hop-fuelled journey that would change the face of the beer industry forever, James completed an honours degree in Law and Economics. It didn’t take long for him to discover that the corporate suit-and-tie world of litigation and libel was not for him, so he packed in his career in law after a few weeks, opting to return to the bitter cold shores of Northeast Scotland to join his father as a fully-qualified Deepsea Ship Captain.

James authored the book “Business for Punks: Break All the Rules – the BrewDog Way”. A fascinating insight to his own alternative approach to scaling with purpose. His Vision is for Brewdog to be the best company to work for in the world, to maintain position as the worlds most sustainable beer business and to become the worlds most successful brewery!

This is a fascinating insight to James who has courted much controversy over the years as he has continued to lead Brewdog in scaling with purpose.

See all ScaleX Insider episodes here!

Contact James:

Website: https://www.brewdog.com/uk

Buy the book: Business for Punks: Break All The Rules – the BrewDog Way 

About the Host, Brendan McGurgan

Brendan is a global business leader who builds profitable, scalable businesses by delivering on his strong personal belief that anything is possible.

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