27-04-2020
Stefaan Anckaert, managing director at Birra del Borgo
Stefaan Anckaert is the managing director at Birra del Borgo, part of Ab InBev. Inside the Belgian multinational he has covered commercial roles connected with sales, direct distribution and marketing. «I first met Leonardo Di Vincenzo in 2016», he says, «while I was the sales director for the Ho.Re.Ca. channel in Italy. Speaking with Leonardo I grew passionate about the Birra del Borgo project and discovered the world of high-quality Italian beer». Here’s an interview with him. How do you live this period of emergency? It’s impossible to hide the fact that we’re suffering too. The absence of socialization, of relationships and experiences, which are essential for an industry like ours, are putting us to the test. We’re strongly connected with Ho.Re.Ca. and food with Osteria di Birra del Borgo and our Banconi which we have closed regardless of the just indication given by the government, because health and security come first. In order not to lose contact with people, we had to find some alternative solutions fast: we launched a delivery service for L'Osteria and Bancone in Piazza Bologna and launched an e-commerce platform. Of course, we-re working a lot in the off trade, with the distribution in supermarkets. Is it true that consumption in Italy, over the past month, has grown? If so, in which way, and are there some peculiarities? Yes, consumption has grown, by a good 20%, also thanks to Lisa, our lager with a well-defined character, Italian in terms of name and flavour. In March, the emergency slowed the growth, especially because of the strong crisis experienced by the Ho.Re.Ca. channel, with the closure of bars and restaurants. We will be able to make assessments at the end of the year, but we’re doing whatever possible to start again fast when the moment will come, especially in the Ho.Re.Ca. channel, which is our core business. So as not to stop, and be close to our consumers, we also launched Lisa in the 50 cl bottle, focusing for now on distribution in supermarkets and large food retail chains.
Lisa, a popular lager from Birra del Borgo
Perle ai Porci, Oyster Stout available from May
A detail of Bottega, the new online shop of Birra del Borgo
Luca Pezzetta, Osteria di Birra del Borgo
The theme of the congress is “The Sense of Responsibility”. Yes, it’s a theme that sums up well the message we’ve always tried to spread: ‘Promoting the culture of Beer in Italy’. To spread this concept over the years we’ve looked for new ways of giving value to beer in Italy, we have reinterpreted the culture of beer in light of the changes that have taken place in Italy’s gastronomic culture, we’ve worked with great chefs and invested in training, first with Accademia Niko Romito, then with the Giunti Academy School of management and with the birth in Italy of the first Master in "Beer Business Management". By preserving our identity, we have fostered a convergence of the restaurant and beer industry focusing on quality, research and taste. For Birra del Borgo the partnership with Identità Golose is a natural prosecution of the road we took years ago, which is meant to channel innovative thoughts for the entire beer industry, to give value to Italian beer. The emergency imposes to find new creative way to sell and buy. What can you anticipate as to what you will do in the next few months, in Italy and in other markets? For sure online sales will continue to grow. People will rediscover drinking beer at home and even those who have never bought online will start to do so. And then it will be time for some thoughts, to rediscover ingredients, and traditional and local dishes. Accessible prices, people and identity will make the difference. We will focus on people a lot, on Luca Pezzetta for the Osteria and on the strong identity of Birra del Borgo in general. This moment will also be a chance to rediscover Italy, a country that has always had its strength and its foundation in conviviality and in spending time together. And then we will need to find a new way of spending time together because, even though I’m not Italian, I cannot imagine Italy without the values that make it a unique place to visit, made of meetings and extraordinary people.
Reviews, recommendations and trends from Italy, signed by all the authors of Identità Golose
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This article is curated by Identità Golose, the publication that organises the international fine dining congress, publishes website www.identitagolose.com and the online Guida Identità Golose, on top of curating many other events in Italy and abroad