'Keep It Fun, Keep It Fast': Athletic Brewing Co's CMO Takes On The UK

Athletic Brewing Company's CMO Andrew Katz initially studied political science and once considered a future in law, but when he worked as a paralegal he found it too dry. Now he's on a mission to keep consumers cool with some of the company's zeitgeisty no-and-low alcohol beers.

His marketing career has been carved out through his creative determination and listening, but the native New Yorker is now keener than ever to do the talking and spread the brand's message across the Atlantic. And despite his calm demeanour, Katz's passion for the independent brewer is abundantly clear.

Founded in 2017, Athletic Brewing Company was set up by sober ultramarathoner and former hedge fund trader Bill Shufelt alongside brewer John Walker.

"I honestly love working for founders. It's personal for them – this is their baby, it's their business," he highlights.

Shufelt's early moves in the company included running local 5Ks with a bag of beers on his back and handing them out at the finish line to surprised runners who were delighted at the taste which led to their current "beers in hands" philosophy - Katz has held multiple tasting sessions throughout the duration of his visit to London.

Whilst it was set up as independent firm, it has received an investment of $50m from Keurig Dr Pepper, but is still a far cry from the multinational corporations Katz worked for earlier in his career, such as Heneken-owned Dos Equis, and Pepsi.

"I learned scale from the big companies. I learned just to be a really good listener, because there were always so many smart, creative people that I was surrounded by," Katz explains.

He adds that his love of being a challenger has informed how he's continued to shape his career "because you can take bigger swings, you can take more risk".

He continues: "I love that we keep it personal, I love that we keep it fun and I love that we keep it fast moving."

And for Katz, who has been at the firm since 2021, it is paying off: by the end of 2024 Athletic Brewing Co. had received an $800m valuation, and is the 10th biggest craft brewer in the United States, and is the country's largest independent challenger beer brand.

Taking On The UK

"We were able to grow our business 25 per cent year-over-year, on top of a bigger and bigger base. We also completed our largest brewery ever… so demand continues to outpace supply, which is both exciting and challenging, " Katz says.

The firm now has two breweries, its original one in Milford Connecticut and the large new expansion in San Diego California.

Katz is pressing on with the task of raising Athletic Brewing Co's profile outside of the U.S.

"Here in the UK, we’ve done some out-of-home, digital campaigns, and influencer work, but it’s about building awareness and establishing credibility. The competition is fierce, and we want to position Athletic as a leading, trusted option for people who are moderating, seeking balance, and still want to enjoy a great beer," he adds.

Currently the brand is not yet working with any UK-based agencies but in the U.S. and Canada is works with Jack Taylor on PR and on creative with Fair Folk in Boston. WPromote is also its Media AOR in the U.S. and Canada.

It has however partnered with Arsenal FC across both the men’s and women’s teams, with the beer on sale at the stadium. Alongside this, its 'Cans in hands' strategy encourages people to try the beers in a natural, fun way. The beer is also available on draught in the stadium and in various local pubs, celebrating the UK's culture.

As well as working with Arsenal, former NFL players such as JJ Watt and Justin Tuck and ultramarathoners such as Matt Frazier, Athletic collaborates with comedy TikTokers such as the Holderness Family and Barbara Costello. In the US, it also has a partnership with Live Nation to sell beers at sold-out concerts.

"Influencer work is increasingly important. People are on their devices 8–12 hours a day, so if we can’t meet them in traditional media, it’s critical to be relevant to the people they follow — whether that’s health and wellness, lifestyle, comedy, food, or music," Katz emphasises.

His marker of success is getting more people to discover the brand. The aim is to create the beer as an option in consumer's minds.

"The best marketing always has something that can add value to people — maybe they’re fans of the brand, maybe consumers, but maybe all of a sudden they’re intrigued about learning what they want," he says.

Katz is certainly optimistic about the future of the business' potential to not just sell out pubs and stadiums but to produce unforgettable campaigns.

"I personally feel like the best work is still going to come," he states. "I think we do a really good job but I think we can do even better, and I’m waiting for that lifetime achievement campaign that everyone looks back on and goes, ‘Remember when we did that one?’"

The World Of Marketing According To Andrew Katz

What excites you most about being a marketer?

I genuinely enjoy the craft of marketing. I don’t think the best marketing is ever safe. I think the best marketing always has a point of view. Beyond just the basics and the fundamentals - most products today are so good, they satisfy the basic needs — so beyond that, how do you then create desire? How do you then create a point of difference between you and somebody else?

And to me, the best marketing is marketing that other people get excited about and want to share. I don’t think you can do better.

What frustrates you most about being a marketer?

The challenge that we have at times is we want to move so fast, and because we’ve gotten bigger and because we’ve gotten more attention, the regulatory compliance piece of our jobs has gotten more complicated.

Things that we used to just go and do, we can’t just go and do them anymore, because we’re kind of a big company now, and we have to be a little bit more risk averse than we were at one point in our development as a company.

So I would say that we want to move faster a lot of the time than everybody around us can move, and we’re somewhat only as fast as the slowest moving piece of our operation. We like to move really fast. Speed to market is one of our advantages, and we always want to maintain that entrepreneurial mindset and spirit.

What is a career moment that you are particularly proud of?

I’ve had the good fortune of working on campaigns that were really transformational at the time. When I worked on Mountain Dew, we had such a clear insight on who our audience was, what they wanted, and how we could deliver that.

It was our whole push into action sports, and taking what was traditionally just a stimulating drink for refreshment — it was really the first energy drink ever — and we really zeroed in on this benefit of drinking this particular soda.

And so the campaign was all around ‘Do the Dew’. ‘Do the Dew’ was just kind of a really fun ‘Just Do It'. So that I think lived for a very long time.

And then I also had the opportunity to work on the ‘Most Interesting Man in the World’ campaign while I was at Dos Equis — not a campaign I created, but one that I was able to work on and influence. That’s just one of those classic campaigns that is probably one of the best campaigns that has ever existed, especially in the beer business.

Is there a campaign you wish you'd made?

Last year’s campaign that the Oura Ring did… they launched a campaign in the US called ‘Give Us Your Finger’ instead of ‘Give Us the Finger’. It was all like… it really celebrated aging well, with people that you might not see in a typical Nike commercial or Adidas commercial.

It was all about people investing in their health and well-being by becoming more knowledgeable. I really loved it — the campaign conceit, first, because I felt like it was a great wordthrough, and then they’ve been masterful at these massive installations in big spaces where they make a ring 1,000 or 2,000 times the size as a piece of art.

People take pictures, share it on social. It becomes this flywheel of content generation… and to me, that’s the best marketing, the marketing that other people get excited about and want to share. I don’t think you can do better.

What advice would you give to people looking to carve out a career in marketing?

If you are able to, especially in your younger career, really be an observer and really… absorb a lot of the smartness that’s in the room with you, that’s the best training ground. I learned so many incredible lessons as a result of my time at Heineken or Amex or Pepsi.