Faubourg Brewing Company to Merge with Made By The Water, LLC

Faubourg Brewing Company to Merge with Made By The Water, LLC
Company Headquarters to be Located at Faubourg Brewery in New Orleans East

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, September 22, 2022

New Orleans – Faubourg Brewing Company announced today that it has merged with Made By The Water,
LLC, a southeast-based company of craft breweries that include Oyster City (Apalachicola, FL), Catawba
(Asheville, NC), and Palmetto (Charleston, SC). Made By The Water (MBTW) – a family owned business - will
brew and serve beers from each of these breweries at the Faubourg Tap Room located on Jourdan Road, New
Orleans East.

Faubourg will continue to brew its full line of products and because of the merger with Made By The Water
will increase and strengthen its distribution network. Craft beer drinkers will now be offered the opportunity
to enjoy a variety of new craft beer selections from the entire family of Made By The Water breweries at the
Faubourg Tap Room as well as the full line of Faubourg products.

“This merger is about making New Orleans the cultural hub of the craft beer industry in the Southeast,” said
Gayle Benson, owner of Faubourg Brewing Company. “Our partnership with Made By The Water allows us to
grow the Faubourg brand, and bring in a partner that is a leader in building craft beer brands. I pride myself on
making New Orleans first, and I think we can bring all of the best in craft beer from these historically strong
craft beer areas in the Southeast and make New Orleans the primary focus of the industry. Our goal is to help
New Orleans become as well known for its beer as it is for its cuisine and to see the local craft beer industry
continue to grow and create quality jobs.”

Made By The Water brings a wealth of geographical and institutional distribution strength to the merger
through its craft beer acquisitions that span four cities and nine retail breweries throughout the Southeast.
While their breweries are located in four cities, they boast a distribution of products in North Carolina, South
Carolina, Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Tennessee. Made By The Water’s company headquarters will be
located at the Faubourg Brewery facility, adding new brewing and manufacturing jobs as well as
administrative positons in Human Resources, Finance, Sales, Brand Management, and Marketing.

“We are thrilled to announce this merger of Faubourg Brewing Company with our family of breweries and the
relocation of our corporate headquarters to New Orleans,” said Alexi Sekmakas, CEO of Made By The Water.
“We are a family business and we have a shared vision with the Benson management team for growing craft
beer in the Southeast. Investing in the community and people is important to us. Gayle Benson has a proven
record of community investment and successful business growth, supporting commerce and creating jobs.
This makes our partnership a perfect fit.”

The $30 million Faubourg Brewery was built in anticipation to scale in job creation as well as beer production.
With this merger, the plan is to be one of the largest craft beer producers in the United States, and the largest
in the Southeast. With all of the Faubourg and the Made By The Water brands, the goal is to quickly produce
well over 100,000 barrels per year, at the Faubourg brewery in New Orleans East.

Sekmakas added, “We are both like-minded family businesses with a shared culture of innovative creativity
and team empowerment. The Faubourg brewery has an incredible lineup of beers who each reflect a piece of
what makes New Orleans so special, and will be enthusiastically welcomed by drinkers across North Carolina,
Florida, Tennessee and beyond. The Faubourg Brewery in New Orleans East is magnificent, and gives us the
opportunity to produce industry leading beers for national distribution. We couldn’t be more excited to join
the New Orleans community, and will make sure there’s always a fresh cold beer waiting for our new
neighbors.”

Benson noted that the “merger will inevitably mean more jobs and increased economic development and
growth in New Orleans East.”

“I was thrilled to hear about this merger,” said Councilman District E Oliver Thomas. “Mrs. Benson has always
been committed to the well-being of New Orleans. This is another example of that. Often when companies
merge, they leave our city. Not here. Mrs. Benson has brought in a company, that will create new jobs, and
bring in new brands that will be made right here in New Orleans. She has found a very strong craft beer family
company that has been doing business successfully throughout the Southeast, and has convinced them to
relocate their headquarters to New Orleans East, and add beer production and distribution. I love visiting the
brewery, and now we will have the best craft beers from all over the Southeast right here in New Orleans East
at Faubourg to enjoy. This will be a destination stop and I salute Mrs. Benson and Alexi from Made By The
Water.”


All media inquiries should be directed to:
Sam Shannon
Benson Corporate Communications
434.284.0451
Sam.Shannon@faubourgbrewery.com