The Grans Brewery (Grans Bryggeri AS) is a

brewery A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of b ...

founded in 1899 in

Sandefjord Sandefjord () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Vestfold. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Sandefjord ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. The name was ''Sandefjord Bryggeri og Mineralvandfabrik A/S'' until 1965. After two generations of Guttorm Gran (senior and junior) in the management, Trygve Christophersen was employed as

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

in 2001. In 2019, the brewery sold 55 million liters of drinks, which was a four percent increase from 2018. 80 percent of their production consists of soda and mineral water, while beer and other alcoholic beverages make up 20 percent of the production. As of 2020, Grans is the fifth-largest brewery in Norway. It distributes most of its products domestically through the

REMA 1000 REMA 1000 (Bokmål: Rema tusen) is a Norwegian multinational no-frills soft-discount grocery chain owned entirely by REITAN. REMA is a short for ' (Reitan Food), referring to Odd Reitan (founder of the company). ''1000'' refers to offering a ...

chain stores. The brewery was not a member of ''Norwegian Brewers & Soft Drank Association'' ("Den norske bryggeriforening") from 1965 to 1996. It withdrew in 1966 in order to compete outside its designated sales area. The organization organized a nationwide boycott of Grans products following their decision to withdraw.

Facts

* Owners are Guttorm Gran Jr. and

Reitangruppen Reitan AS, formerly known as Reitangruppen (Reitan Group), is a Norwegian conglomerate comprising three business areas: Reitan Retail, Reitan Eiendom (Reitan Real Estate) and Reitan Kapital. Reitan's head office is at Lade Gaard in Trondheim ...

(50% each) * 57 employees (2005) * Approximately 18 million liters

beer Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...

and 18 million liters

soft drink A soft drink (see #Terminology, § Terminology for other names) is a class of non-alcoholic drink, usually (but not necessarily) Carbonated water, carbonated, and typically including added Sweetness, sweetener. Flavors used to be Natural flav ...

s produced in 2004 * Turnover 151 million NOK (2004) * Distribution deal with the store chain

Names

Some former names for the brewery have been: * Sandefjord Bryggeri og Mineralvandfabrik A/S (1899-1949) * Sandefjords Bryggeri (1949-1966) * Grans Bryggeri AS (1965-)

History

Grans was established at Grønli in Sandefjord in 1899 under the name ''Sandefjords Bryggeri og Mineralvannfabrikk''. Its first Chairman was Anton F. Klaveness and its first manager was Reidar Due. Peder Bugge Bull became a major shareholder in 1903. After Bull sold his shares in 1949, Guttorm Gran took over all stocks and renamed the brewery ''Sandefjords Bryggeri''. In 1966, Guttorm Gran took his brewery out of the Norwegian Brewers & Soft Drank Association ("Den norske bryggeriforening") and renamed the brewery Grans Bryggeri (Grans Brewery). The brewery established its own grocery store chain in 1982. It established a distribution deal with

in the spring of 1996. As of 1996, the brewery operated 36 stores and its beer was not sold in any other stores besides REMA 1000 and the brewery's own stores. The brewery does not deliver products to bars or restaurants. The brewery became a family company ("familieaksjeselskap") in 1969. Guttorm Gran passed away in 1979 and his soon Guttorm Gran, Jr. took over the brewery in 1989. It had 50 employees as of 1996 and an annual beer production of 4.5 million liters. Guttorm Gran took over Sandefjord Brewery (Sandefjord bryggeri) in 1949 when the company was doing badly both production-wise and economically. When Gran resigned from the brewery association in 1965, the brewery went its own way and became hugely popular. Soda brands and beer variations from Grans Brewery are now found throughout the

Oslo Fjord The Oslofjord (, ; ) is an inlet in southeastern Norway. The fjord begins at the small village of Bonn in Frogn Municipality and stretching northwards to the city of Oslo, and then curving to the east and then south again. It then flows south t ...

region. As of 2000, the brewery produced 30 million bottles per year. In 1966, the brewery acquired a new bottling plant with a four times higher production capacity. In its early years, the brewery presented itself as a more affordable alternative to its competition. In 1968, Grans Brewery began delivering its products to Oslo, and its products were sold throughout

Eastern Norway Eastern Norway (, ) is the geographical region of the south-eastern part of Norway. It consists of the counties Oslo, Akershus, Vestfold, Østfold, Buskerud, Telemark, and Innlandet. Eastern Norway is by far the most populous region of Norw ...

, from

Porsgrunn is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Grenland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Porsgrunn (town), city ...

to Oslo. The brewery saw a large expansion in 1979. In the 1980s, Grans Brewery acquired the chain of grocery stores known as Grans Mini-kjøp. As of 1984, Grans operated three stores in Sandefjord and 35 shops in other cities. Gunnar Olav Hildrum was the

brewmaster A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of be ...

and brewery manager at Grans Brewery from the late 1960s until his retirement in 2003. In 1997, the brewery began exporting its products throughout all of Norway, and in 2012, the brewery began exporting three brands of beer to

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

.Grans.no (2021). "Sentrale årstall i Grans-historien" (in Norwegian). Grans bryggeri. Retrieved on August 24, 2021, from https://grans.no/den-usminka-historien/timeline-sentrale-arstall-grans-historien/

References

External links

Home page (Norwegian version)

Norwegian Brewers & Soft Drink Association

RateBeer
{{Coord, 59.1296, 10.2419, region:NO-38, format=dms, display=title Breweries in Norway Buildings and structures in Sandefjord Companies based in Sandefjord Food and drink companies established in 1899 Norwegian companies established in 1899