Did Jack Daniel sense a looming doom for the Kentucky whiskey market? Here's a blow-by-blow breakdown
Just this January, the Louisville-based spirits giant announced that it's cutting 12% of its global workforce and shutting down its very facility where it's been handcrafting barrels since 1945. The decision, expected to impact around 210 employees, is to save between $70 million and $80 million annually.
Following Jack Daniel's exit, the message is clear: the whiskey business isn't what it used to be.
ALSO READ| Kentucky whiskey bankruptcies: Which distilleries are broke, and why
The company explained that it will now source barrels from external suppliers, expecting to bring in over $30 million by selling off its cooperage assets. Brown-Forman also shuffled and appointed Jeremy Shepherd as its new chief marketing officer.
'These actions reflect the venerable company's 'relentless focus on evolving our strategy, our portfolio and our organization to grow and thrive,'' said CEO Lawson Whiting, per AP.
'Today's announcement will ensure we have the structure and teams in place to continue on this path, while also making investments that we believe will facilitate growth for generations to come.'
Kentucky whiskey market is going through bankruptcies
While Brown-Forman is trying to stay nimble, this week a string of bankruptcies has shaken the state's $9 billion whiskey industry, according to the Kentucky Distillers' Association.
LMD Holdings, the parent company of Luca Mariano Distillery in Danville, filed for Chapter 11, with court documents showing a jaw-dropping $25 million in liabilities.
Garrard County Distilling, a $250 million operation that only began production in 2024, was shut down in April due to mounting debts.
Even Stoli Group USA, along with its Kentucky Owl whiskey label, filed for bankruptcy after a double blow: declining spirits demand and a cyberattack that crippled operations.
ALSO READ| How much cheaper will whiskey be after India-UK FTA? What experts said
The problems are starting to mount industry-wide, whether it be inflation-strained consumers, Gen Zs' recent shift to not wanting whiskey, or renewed tsarphobia over tariffs on American liquor in the export markets.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Hindustan Times
US envoy Steve Witkoff to visit Moscow on August 6
US envoy Steve Witkoff will meet on Wednesday with Russian leadership in Moscow, an American source confirmed, as President Donald Trump's deadline to impose fresh sanctions over Russia's war in Ukraine looms. US envoy Steve Witkoff speaks to reporters outside the West Wing of the White House in Washington, DC on March 6, 2025.(AFP) The source did not specify if the meetings will include Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom Witkoff has met with several times previously. Trump has given Russia until Friday to halt its offensive in Ukraine or face new penalties. The White House has not outlined specific actions it plans to take on Friday, but Trump has previously threatened to impose "secondary tariffs" targeting Russia's remaining trade partners, such as China and India. The move would aim to stifle Russian exports, but would risk significant international disruption. Despite pressure from Washington, Russia has continued its onslaught against its pro-Western neighbor. Three rounds of peace talks in Istanbul have failed to make headway on a possible ceasefire, with the two sides appearing as far apart as ever. Moscow has demanded that Ukraine cede more territory and renounce Western support. Kyiv is calling for an immediate ceasefire, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last week urged his allies to push for "regime change" in Moscow. In recent weeks, Trump has increasingly voiced frustration with Putin over Moscow's unrelenting offensive. When reporters asked Trump on Monday what Witkoff's message would be to Moscow, and if there was anything Russia could do to avoid the sanctions, Trump replied: "Yeah, get a deal where people stop getting killed." Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday it considered the talks with Witkoff to be "important, substantial and helpful" and valued US efforts to end the conflict. Putin, who has consistently rejected calls for a ceasefire, said Friday that he wants peace but that his demands for ending his nearly three-and-a-half-year offensive were unchanged. Russia has frequently called on Ukraine to effectively cede control of four regions Moscow claims to have annexed, a demand Kyiv has called unacceptable. Putin also wants Ukraine to drop its ambitions to join NATO. The visit comes after Trump said that two nuclear submarines he deployed following an online row with former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev were now "in the region." Trump has not said whether he meant nuclear-powered or nuclear-armed submarines. He also did not elaborate on the exact deployment locations, which are kept secret by the US military. Russia, in its first comments on the deployment, urged "caution" Monday. "Russia is very attentive to the topic of nuclear non-proliferation. And we believe that everyone should be very, very cautious with nuclear rhetoric," the Kremlin's Peskov said.
The Hindu
an hour ago
- The Hindu
Don't give China pass, burn relationship with 'strong ally' India: Nikki Haley
The U.S. should not burn its relationship with a 'strong ally like India' and give a pass to China, Indian-American Republican leader Nikki Haley said on Tuesday (August 5, 2025), amid President Donald Trump's attacks against New Delhi over tariffs and purchases of Russian oil. 'India should not be buying oil from Russia. But China, an adversary and the number one buyer of Russian and Iranian oil, got a 90-day tariff pause," Ms. Haley said in a post on X. "Don't give China a pass and burn a relationship with a strong ally like India,' she said. Ms. Haley, the former Governor of South Carolina, was the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations under Mr. Trump's first presidential term, becoming the first Indian-American to be appointed to a cabinet-level post in the U.S. administration. In 2013, she officially announced her candidacy for the 2024 presidential election and withdrew from the race in March last year. Her comments came hours after Trump said India has not been a "good trading partner" and announced he will raise tariffs on India 'very substantially over the next 24 hours' because New Delhi is buying Russian oil and "fueling" the "war machine". India on Monday mounted an unusually sharp counterattack on the US and the European Union for their "unjustified and unreasonable" targeting of New Delhi for its procurement of Russian crude oil. New Delhi's response came after Trump asserted that Washington will substantially raise tariffs on goods from India over its energy ties with Russia. Meanwhile, Trump, in an interview with CNBC responded to a question on China and its leader, Xi Jinping, and said, 'We have a very good relationship'. Trump added that he might have a meeting with the Chinese President 'before the end of the year, most likely, if we make a deal." He said he won't have a meeting if a deal doesn't materialise. "But we're getting very close to a deal. We're getting along with China very well.' Trump added that China is 'very reliant" on the US. 'My relationship with them is very good. I think we'll make a good deal. It's not imperative, but I think we're going to make a good deal.' He added that he has had a 'great relationship' with President Xi. 'We respect him a lot. They respect us a lot.'
India Today
an hour ago
- India Today
Is it time to call out US hypocrisy? Experts debate on Rajdeep Sardesai's show
The big talking points of this episode of News Today are Uttarakhand cloudbursts and President Donald Trump's repeated tariff threats against India over buying Russian oil. A powerful cloudburst triggered devastating flash floods in Dharali village of Uttarakhand's Uttarkashi on Tuesday afternoon. Several people have been evacuated by rescue teams, but many are feared dead and still trapped under the debris. An army camp situated near Dharali was also devastated by the cloudburst. 10 army soldiers and one JCO are missing. Rescue operations are in full swing. And US President Donald Trump has again threatened to raise tariffs by citing India's imports of Russian oil. He claimed to hike tariffs further in the next 24 hours. Meanwhile, India has called out American double standards, pointing to US bilateral trade with Russia.
