Recently, Labatt announced an offer to purchase one of the few remaining ‘independent’ brewers in Canada, Lakeport Brewing.

Well, Teresa Cascioli’s annoying commercials and ‘on-air’ lack of style aside (I’m sure she is great in person and you have to give her credit for cracking the old boys network), on the substance I think this is great for Lakeport, its employees and its shareholders (an extra 20% premium on the stock’s trading price?). Assuming that they help increase Lakeport’s dominant position in the Private Label world.

But the geniuses at Labatt may have other ideas in mind… or so the word on the street seems to indicate. Today, I was made aware of a web site called “hamiltonbeer.com“. On the site, they say and ask:

There are two prominent truths about beer drinkers: They are loyal to their brand and they cling tightly to principles.

If this were to happen would you switch your brand of beer?

YES or NO?

First off, this question assumes that the people taking the survey 1. Already drink Lakeport and 2. Lakeport will continue to be offered even if the brewing facility is closed. But who knows the answers to these questions? If I were a Lakeport drinker, how could I answer this question without knowing whether my beer was still going to be available (maybe brewed by Labatt at another facility).

If not, then would I have a choice? Of course not. But I could and most probably would choose another ‘independent’ brewer just to make a point. One can only deduce that just by asking this question, there must be some consideration being given to continue offering the Lakeport 24 for $24 beer… no? But then again, we all know what happens when we make assumptions :-)

So the lesson here for fellow business people is to think more about your objectives, be more clear and communicate your goals, and ask the right questions to the right people. This is the only way to get the answers you really need in order to make the decisions you need to make.