Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2023, History

Humans have been brewing beer for at least 10,000 years. For most of this time, brewing was a rudimentary affair. Ancient, medieval, and early modern brewing was carried out using local grains, herbs, fruits, and open-air fermentation. This has radically changed in the last two hundred years. Modern brewing now relies on intensive capital inputs, standardized products and brands, marketing, global distribution networks, disposable packaging, and scientific expertise. Even today's craft brewers—who often pride themselves on their experimental brews and local or regional connections—are a product of this transformation. This dissertation asks how this radically different brewing industry came to be in the United States. I argue that the modern American brewing industry took shape because of the unique biological and material properties of beer's organic and chemical components (yeast, hops, barley, and alcohol) and that brewers' desire to control even the most minute aspects of their craft resulted in intense capitalization and standardization of their industry.

Committee: Bartow Elmore (Advisor); Jennifer Eaglin (Committee Member); Christopher Otter (Committee Member) Subjects: American History; Economic History

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Leadership Studies, Xavier University, 2020, Leadership Studies and Human Resource Development

The purpose of this study is to explore the current trends in levels of coopetition within the craft beer industry, as assessed by their engagement in collaborative efforts with their competitors in multiple geographic markets. While it is well documented that coopetition exists in small and medium-sized enterprises, especially craft breweries, it has not been studied at multiple geographical levels. The aim is to increase the scope of research and provide richer evidence of coopetitive efforts between organizations at local, regional, national levels. This study employed a non-experimental quantitative research method, using archival numerical data retrieved from publicly available databases to compare relationships between amounts of coopetition at the local, regional, and national level in the United States among breweries and 1) brewery age, 2) market saturation, 3) industry maturity, and 4) consumer social media ratings. All results other than brewery age vs. local coopetition had statistically significant relationships p < .05 and p < .01. All correlation coefficients (rs) were positive; most correlation were strong, with only market saturation at the local and regional level, and social media ratings at the national level, being of moderate strengths. These results suggest that coopetition is a beneficial practice for craft breweries. Leaders of these organizations may want to be intentional about which competitors they engage with regarding their geographic location to keep a competitive advantage in their industry.

Committee: Gail F. Latta Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Michael Flick Ph.D. (Committee Member); Michael Chikeleze Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Business Administration; Entrepreneurship