White Claw, oh White Claw… where for art thou, my White Claw?
Grab the tissues folks, this one is about to be a real tear-jerker. The tragic news of the White Claw shortage has continued to destroy tailgates, deplete happy hours, and take the ‘funday’ out of Sundays. Fans of the hard seltzer have had to turn to generic, second-string offerings and lesser-popular competing brands. The horror. But who is to blame for the empty shelves and nation-wide sellouts? A little bit of underproduction, a little bit of viral fandom, and a little bit of frat-boy paranoia.
Liquor stores across the country report variety packs flying off the shelves, and the wrath of angry customers when they see empty displays. And naturally, tweeting about the shortage has only increased the demand. People want what they can’t have, am I right?
Truly no one expected how popular the canned beverages would be, not even the company itself. After outselling Budweiser in July, it was clear that the company was about to experience unprecedented growth throughout the rest of the summer. The hard seltzer industry has exploded with 300 percent growth annually since 2016, and it is expected that the number would be even higher if production could keep up with sales. White Claw senior vice president Sanjiv Gajiwala reports that Mark Anthony Brands (the parent company behind both White Claw and the second-in-command hard seltzer, Truly) are up 185 percent in sales compared to summer of 2018.
To combat climbing sales, Gajiwala says the team is working nonstop to increase production rates so that stores can fully restock. This round-the-clock production has had its qualms though, as drinkers reportedly purchased six-pack with entirely empty cans this past month. Reactions went viral, with people losing their minds over dry cans.
If all the stores in your surrounding area are sold out of this liquid gold, it may be in your best interest to stock up the next time a shipment comes in. if production can’t be rectified, re-sale prices on eBay may be a one-way ticket to thousands of dollars.