West End Brewery closure: Day of sadness for workers, hopes SANFL chimney tradition will continue
West End Brewery workers are saddened by the closure of the Adelaide plant, but “could see that it was coming”, while there are hopes at least the SANFL chimney tradition can continue.
SA News
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When last drinks were called for West End yesterday, it was no great surprise for longtime worker Adrian Radny.
“It’s sad but we could see it coming, most of the workers could see that it was coming because of the decline in production,” said Mr Radny, 52, a brewery technician who has worked with the SA brewer for 32 years.
“Beer production has been declining Australia-wide, roughly 7 per cent a year over the last 15 years.”
The Wynn Vale man said he had always enjoyed his job because he was working for an iconic SA brand. “Everything was good here,” he said.
United Workers Union SA’s Mark Whenan said members were shocked to hear of the closure. “This move is a massive betrayal to their workforce and the SA community after the company received tens of millions of taxpayer money for an upgrade to the site,” he said.
“Lion have benefited from the iconic SA brand for years and shouldn’t be compounding the state’s unemployment problem.”
Southwark Hotel publican Verity Ferguson said the news was “devastating” for her regular customers, brewery workers, and the state. She said “fingers crossed” locals would still drink West End, despite the fact it would soon be brewed interstate.
She said the hotel, just down the road from the brewery, lost customers after other near neighbour, the Coke factory, closed its bottling line in 2017. She hoped the brewery site would be redeveloped, bringing new trade to the area.
SANFL hopes GF tradition will go on
Scott Walsh
SANFL chiefs remain hopeful the demise of the West End Brewery’s factory line will not spell the end of one of SA sport’s great traditions – the annual chimney unveiling.
SANFL chief executive Jake Parkinson said the retention of an SA-based West End sales and sponsorship division boosted optimism the chimney tradition would live on, starting next Tuesday with a new paint scheme to celebrate the grand finalists in Sunday’s premiership decider between North Adelaide and the Eagles.
“ … We are sad for South Australia that the brewing of the iconic West End brand will no longer take place in South Australia,” Mr Parkinson said.
“It’s good news, however, that the sales and sponsorship division will remain in South Australia so we have been assured that the announcement will not have any effect on our partnership with West End.
“As long as this partnership remains, we also hope the great tradition of the SANFL State League Premiers’ colours on the brewery chimney will continue in the future.”
It is understood SANFL and West End hold a sponsorship agreement until 2022. For 65 years the West End Brewery has proudly carried the colours of the SANFL premiership team atop its chimney.
SACA chief executive Keith Bradshaw said West End had supported state cricket since the 1950s and while the closure of the brewery was unfortunate, he did not expect it to affect sponsorship.
Premier Steven Marshall says the Government is “100 per cent” committed to working with Lion Australia to save the iconic West End Brewery Christmas Lights and was also keen for the chimney tradition to stay.
Mr Marshall told ABC this morning that the Government was already in talks with the company to secure the festive lights display on the River Torrens, next to the brewery.
“We’ve also got to look at that chimney and see what the options are for that because again that’s a critical iconic part of history in South Australia, not just for brewing but of course for SANFL football.”
Coopers salutes a fellow traveller
Coopers Brewery said it is saddened to see the loss of the West End Brewery to the state, while reassuring fans it is in strong commercial shape.
The family-owned, Regency Park-based brewery’s managing director Dr Tim Cooper said it was a shame to see the historic brewer shut down in Adelaide.
“This is a sad day for the industry and our thoughts are with all the employees affected at West End,” Dr Cooper said.
“South Australia has a proud brewing history and the closure of the West End Brewery represents the loss to our state of an iconic institution with a long and proud history and which has made a significant economic contribution inside and outside of brewing.’’
Dr Cooper said it had been a difficult year for the entire industry.
“Despite all the challenges of 2020, Coopers remains in a strong position as an independent Australian family-owned brewer,’’ he said.
“This is testament to our loyal drinkers, the resilience of pubs and venues as well as the hard work of all our employees.
“We continue to invest in our brewery at Regency Park, while expanding and diversifying our portfolio of products in line with our future outlook.’’
While perhaps best known for its beers, Coopers is the world leader in home brew kits and has a large malting division also, after significant investments in recent years.
The company has added a number of new products and packaging innovations to its range in recent years also.
The company launched its extra pale ale (XPA) last year, clad in distinctive purple packaging, and earlier this year launched a HAZY IPA, to add to its core Pale and Sparkling, Dark and Session ales.
Leaders lament end of an icon
Daniel Wills
South Australia’s political leaders have each called the loss of an “iconic” local business a “sad day” for the state, as Premier Steven Marshall says he learned of the news on Monday.
Mr Marshall faced interrogation in Question Time on Wednesday over what he did to save 94 local jobs at West End. But he insisted making the SA economy more competitive was the best way to help all workers.
Mr Marshall told Parliament he had been assured by West End owners Lion Beer Australia that staff would receive their full entitlements and have access to a fund to help them re-skill.
“I received a call from James Brindley, the managing director of Lion Beer Australia, on Monday morning,” Mr Marshall said.
“We’ve been working very hard since we came to government to improve the competitiveness of this state.
“There has been no direct approach, and there is certainly no suggestion, that anything that we could have done would have improved the viability of this plant.”
Mr Marshall said “a private company made a private business decision”.
“This is a very sad day,” he said. “This is an iconic SA business.”
However, Mr Marshall did cite global tech firm Accenture’s reveal of 2000 new SA jobs as an example of growth. He also said the government had cut payroll and land tax as well as power and water bills to help boost wider investment.
Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas said the former Labor government’s bailout for Spring Gully Foods when it hit financial challenges was in stark contrast to Mr Marshall’s actions with West End.
“I can’t help but wonder if more could have been done to save this brewery and save these jobs,” Mr Malinauskas said. “Today is a very sad day for SA. The sad reality is once these icons go, they are lost forever.”
In 2013, former premier Jay Weatherill gave Spring Gully a $576,000 State Government handout to help it rebound from the brink of collapse. The grant was provided for new manufacturing equipment to assist company operations.
Do you have memories of West End to share? Contact Business Editor Cameron England here.