Liz Holland, NBC5 Street TeamAs a Wisconsin Badger, I am quite familiar with the products of Miller Brewing Company being surrounded by many Milwaukee natives, aka “Miller loyalists”.
Well, Miller’s making some changes – and there’s a Chicago twist. On June 30, Miller Brewing Co. and Molson Coors announced MillerCoors, a 50-50 joint venture to consolidate resources and compete with combined force against rival Anheuser-Busch, a plan that will cut over $500 million annually to their budget.
Most excitingly, the new venture is coming to Chicago! Beating out Dallas, Chicago was chosen for the new headquarters as a neutral site outside of the Milwaukee (Miller) and Denver (Coors) offices. They won’t be closing any of the eight local breweries in Wisconsin, but they will be relocating up to 400 new employees or should I say “beer enthusiasts”.
I think this might ruffle some feathers, being that Miller beer is a product that is integrated into the image of Milwaukee, not to mention the additional rivalry with Chicago. What else do people do while watching the Packers vs. Bears game but drink beer? Dilemma!
Nevertheless, the move is slated for June 2009, and the MillerCoors site will be located at one of three possible locations: 350 N. Orleans (the Sun-Times building), 250 S. Wacker, or 33 S. State (the old Carson Prarie Scott building).
Let me extend a warm welcome! Cheers!
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