I'd point to Greg Hughes (the head of Suntory's international branch that includes Jim Beam) as the main culprit here. The CEO is generally the person most at fault for their company failing
The article asserts that a combination of (1) the business strategies of Jim Beam and similarly situated whisky producers, (2) consumer preferences, and (3) governmental actions taken by the Trump administration (especially statements about Canada and tariff policies) are mostly responsible for the current gap between supply and demand.
I wouldn’t say Jim Beam is “failing,” which usually connotes persistent insolvency/bankruptcy.
I agree. The article states that, "Overall, exports of American whiskey are down about 9 percent from 2024, according to the Distilled Spirits Council," so tariffs have affected Jim Beam, but its impossible to know how much.
Your submission was removed because you do not have any user flair. Please select appropriate flair and then try again. If you are confused as to what flair suits you best simply choose right-wing, left-wing, or Independent. How-do-I-get-user-flair
The biggest impact was Canada which used to account for 30% of Jim Beams sales. They were also impacted by the EU and other countries retaliatory tarrifs. All directly trumps fault. There is no valid argument that trump isnt to blame.
Reciprocal tarriffs were/are warranted. europeans and canadians are just mad that their 1 way tarriffs are being pushed back on. Just say you don't like Trump because he hurts the feelings of leftists, it is allowed.
Edit: blocking before someone can reply isn't a good indicator for your argument
One way tariffs? Do you believe the US was not imposing tariffs on Canada in 2024? There are a thousand reasons to not like trump but I would say he is not hurting the feelings of the left, he is disgusting them. Same as he is doing with most level headed individuals in the center and on the right.
Have they ever done anything as petulant as when Republicans renamed the cafeteria's French fries to freedom fries because France wouldn't join our ill-advised offensive war?
As far as Canada goes, I'd say it's a reasonable response to a country that suddenly started insulting and threatening them.
In Canada, a lot of the alcohol sector is also declining for that same reason of reduced consumption, but with two exceptions: Canadian whisky and Canadian wine. Both of those have boomed in Canada because most provinces have completely boycotted the sale of American spirits and wine, so Canadian brands are filling the gap (this doesn't hold for beer, since most of the big "American" brands are actually multinationals that are brewing within Canada for the Canadian market).
Canada used to be the largest single foreign export destination of American whiskey, but the amount that is imported is down a whopping 90% from a year ago.
The article is behind a paywall. Isn't the problem for alco companies that the younger generations drink a lot less, especially hard liquors? Or does the article cite specific government actions or inactions?
I could never get into bourbons, even though good people in Kentucky took me to a tasting of some of the better ones.
Just for future reference, it's pretty easy to bypass them with something like https://archive.ph/. Just plug the URL in, they usually have articles from major publications within hours after posting, but if not it'll take a few minutes for them to scrape it.
Only quote my phone is letting me format normally for some reason:
“The sudden, steep decline in bourbon sales comes after more than 20 years of expansion in American whiskey, which regularly reached 5 percent in annual growth. It went from about $1.4 billion in sales in 2004 to about $5.2 billion in 2024, according to data from the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, a trade group”
Other highlights from the article: sales drop of 5% in 2025 vs. 2024. Industry expected some kind of correction as COVID era growth has lead to a post COVID inventory boom(no quantification). Movement of youth away from drinking(no quantification). 9% drop in whiskey exports.
My takeaway: a perfect storm of ongoing weakening accelerated by tariffs. Which imo will be the economic story of 2025/Trump’s presidency.
Answer: no one in government is responsible for Jim Beam. Also, Jim Beam is not failing.
It is pausing production at its flagship location, while still remaining open to the public. They have surplus stock and are also spending money and time on improving its facilities.
I’m sure it’s top-line revenue is down, and that has very little, if anything, to do with the government.
Alcohol is a hyper-competitive industry, with ebbs and flows. There are many niche and local distilleries eating away at the established companies’ revenue. At the same time, overall liquor consumption is falling due to younger generations not drinking as much and when they do, they aren’t heading for the Jim Beam’s of the world as much as the prior generations did.
Are you saying that Trump's tariffs aren't affecting this decision in any way? Hmm
I’m saying that the factors I described are long-term foundational impacts on the industry. I’m sure the tariffs are having some impact, but the factors I described fundamentally changed and/or created the current trend line.
Out of all the things impacting their sales and projections, the tariffs rank near the bottom of the list.
And yet, Canada, one of the biggest purchasers of this product has stopped buying, and there's a huge Canadian PR program discouraging purchasing liquors from southern U.S. states. Are you saying this is simply coincidence and has very little to do with his? Hmmmm
Their sales started to decline in 2024, and domestic alcohol consumption has been declining since the peak during COVID. And Gen Z drinks a lot less than previous generations.
Me too... I thought I was going crazy trying to google it to find out if that was a typo... nope... I've just never actually bothered to look in the first place.
Your submission was removed because you do not have any user flair. Please select appropriate flair and then try again. If you are confused as to what flair suits you best simply choose right-wing, left-wing, or Independent. How-do-I-get-user-flair
Your submission was removed because you do not have any user flair. Please select appropriate flair and then try again. If you are confused as to what flair suits you best simply choose right-wing, left-wing, or Independent. How-do-I-get-user-flair
No named individual. Your article explains the issue.
"It was likely, industry experts say, that a correction was in order as retailers and consumers, flush with inventory, slowed down their purchases and the market returned to normal after the pandemic buying spree."
"Polls show that not only are young consumers drinking less, but they are trading up as well, choosing high-proof, more expensive bottles to drink sparingly. That is a big problem for Jim Beam, which relies heavily on its inexpensive, lower-proof White Label brand for sales."
Your submission was removed because you do not have any user flair. Please select appropriate flair and then try again. If you are confused as to what flair suits you best simply choose right-wing, left-wing, or Independent. How-do-I-get-user-flair
I wholeheartedly agree with you guys that the federal government should not impose taxes, fees, or regulations on businesses because it impedes their ability to prosper.
Probably one Micheal McDoesntExist. Alcohol is an increasingly competitive market, with local breweries and distilleries seeing increased market access and publicity via the internet. Additionally, alcohol consumption is going down, which impacts the cheapest spirits first since nobody is buying jim beam for a special occasion.
People are drinking less. That’s a good thing. I’m not a teetotaler and I certainly wasn’t in my younger years but alcohol isn’t benign. It destroys families and lives. I’m not trying to sound like a MADD PSA but it’s no good.
1) Jim Beam is not failing. They just decided to pause production to manage surplus stock and invest in upgrades
2) Spirits are a competitive industry. The sheer number of small craft distilleries (estimated 3,000-4,000 in the US) is impacting profit margins, leading to increased competition. There is no way to determine how much affect tariffs are having.
While not wrong about competition, that’s not accurate about the tariffs. In 2025, a formal letter was signed by 57 alcohol-industry groups, including major U.S. distilled-spirits producers and trade associations, urging the removal of tariffs on EU and UK spirits and wines. This included the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS), whose members represent roughly 70% of U.S. spirits brands, including Beam Suntory, the parent company of Jim Beam. The letter explicitly warned that tariffs and retaliatory trade actions were causing billions in lost sales and threatening tens of thousands of U.S. jobs by suppressing export demand for American whiskey.
Yes, Jim Beam has cited inventory management and upgrades for the production pause, but those inventory surpluses didn’t arise in isolation. U.S. spirits exports declined after retaliatory tariffs hit key markets like Canada and Europe, and the industry has publicly linked those declines to trade policy. Saying there’s “no way to determine” tariff impact isn’t supported by the industry’s own documented actions.
Please use Good Faith and the Principle of Charity when commenting. We are currently under an indefinite moratorium on gender issues, and anti-semitism and calls for violence will not be tolerated, especially when discussing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
I'd point to Greg Hughes (the head of Suntory's international branch that includes Jim Beam) as the main culprit here. The CEO is generally the person most at fault for their company failing
Do you place any blame sales to Canada disapearing? I believe that market was like 30% of their sales
The question is not meaningful.
The article asserts that a combination of (1) the business strategies of Jim Beam and similarly situated whisky producers, (2) consumer preferences, and (3) governmental actions taken by the Trump administration (especially statements about Canada and tariff policies) are mostly responsible for the current gap between supply and demand.
I wouldn’t say Jim Beam is “failing,” which usually connotes persistent insolvency/bankruptcy.
I agree. The article states that, "Overall, exports of American whiskey are down about 9 percent from 2024, according to the Distilled Spirits Council," so tariffs have affected Jim Beam, but its impossible to know how much.
The main factor is gen z not drinking. You're trying to blame Trump for something that's not his fault.
And Jim Beam whiskey sucks. Millennials have aged out of cheap liquor a while ago.
[removed]
Your submission was removed because you do not have any user flair. Please select appropriate flair and then try again. If you are confused as to what flair suits you best simply choose right-wing, left-wing, or Independent. How-do-I-get-user-flair
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
Well, a whole bunch of places pulled Jim Beam from the shelves specifically because of trump, right?
No.
Sorry. That looked like a question. A whole bunch of places pulled Jim Beam from their shelves, specifically because of trump.
In the USA? No, they didn't. A few petulant Europeans may have, but that's why we left europe
The biggest impact was Canada which used to account for 30% of Jim Beams sales. They were also impacted by the EU and other countries retaliatory tarrifs. All directly trumps fault. There is no valid argument that trump isnt to blame.
Reciprocal tarriffs were/are warranted. europeans and canadians are just mad that their 1 way tarriffs are being pushed back on. Just say you don't like Trump because he hurts the feelings of leftists, it is allowed.
Edit: blocking before someone can reply isn't a good indicator for your argument
One way tariffs? Do you believe the US was not imposing tariffs on Canada in 2024? There are a thousand reasons to not like trump but I would say he is not hurting the feelings of the left, he is disgusting them. Same as he is doing with most level headed individuals in the center and on the right.
Petulant Europeans?
Have they ever done anything as petulant as when Republicans renamed the cafeteria's French fries to freedom fries because France wouldn't join our ill-advised offensive war?
As far as Canada goes, I'd say it's a reasonable response to a country that suddenly started insulting and threatening them.
probably the same reason cigarette companies are losing money. Young people don't smoke.
It isn’t tariffs alone, the whiskey market has slowed a bit in recent years.
But tariffs probably pushed this over the edge.
In Canada, a lot of the alcohol sector is also declining for that same reason of reduced consumption, but with two exceptions: Canadian whisky and Canadian wine. Both of those have boomed in Canada because most provinces have completely boycotted the sale of American spirits and wine, so Canadian brands are filling the gap (this doesn't hold for beer, since most of the big "American" brands are actually multinationals that are brewing within Canada for the Canadian market).
Canada used to be the largest single foreign export destination of American whiskey, but the amount that is imported is down a whopping 90% from a year ago.
The article is behind a paywall. Isn't the problem for alco companies that the younger generations drink a lot less, especially hard liquors? Or does the article cite specific government actions or inactions?
I could never get into bourbons, even though good people in Kentucky took me to a tasting of some of the better ones.
Just for future reference, it's pretty easy to bypass them with something like https://archive.ph/. Just plug the URL in, they usually have articles from major publications within hours after posting, but if not it'll take a few minutes for them to scrape it.
You rock! Thanks a lot!
Only quote my phone is letting me format normally for some reason:
“The sudden, steep decline in bourbon sales comes after more than 20 years of expansion in American whiskey, which regularly reached 5 percent in annual growth. It went from about $1.4 billion in sales in 2004 to about $5.2 billion in 2024, according to data from the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, a trade group”
Other highlights from the article: sales drop of 5% in 2025 vs. 2024. Industry expected some kind of correction as COVID era growth has lead to a post COVID inventory boom(no quantification). Movement of youth away from drinking(no quantification). 9% drop in whiskey exports.
My takeaway: a perfect storm of ongoing weakening accelerated by tariffs. Which imo will be the economic story of 2025/Trump’s presidency.
Tariffs suck, except in cases against egregious "beggar thy neighbor" actors.
Answer: no one in government is responsible for Jim Beam. Also, Jim Beam is not failing.
It is pausing production at its flagship location, while still remaining open to the public. They have surplus stock and are also spending money and time on improving its facilities.
I’m sure it’s top-line revenue is down, and that has very little, if anything, to do with the government.
Alcohol is a hyper-competitive industry, with ebbs and flows. There are many niche and local distilleries eating away at the established companies’ revenue. At the same time, overall liquor consumption is falling due to younger generations not drinking as much and when they do, they aren’t heading for the Jim Beam’s of the world as much as the prior generations did.
Are you saying that Trump's tariffs aren't affecting this decision in any way? Hmm
I’m saying that the factors I described are long-term foundational impacts on the industry. I’m sure the tariffs are having some impact, but the factors I described fundamentally changed and/or created the current trend line.
Out of all the things impacting their sales and projections, the tariffs rank near the bottom of the list.
It's possible they're responsible for part of the decline, but unlikely they're a major factor.
And yet, Canada, one of the biggest purchasers of this product has stopped buying, and there's a huge Canadian PR program discouraging purchasing liquors from southern U.S. states. Are you saying this is simply coincidence and has very little to do with his? Hmmmm
Their sales started to decline in 2024, and domestic alcohol consumption has been declining since the peak during COVID. And Gen Z drinks a lot less than previous generations.
[removed]
Removed: Treat other users with civility and respect.
Personal attacks and stereotyping are not allowed.
Yeah, Canada was 30% od sales. That is a hard loss to take and has a direct cause and blame.
And yet sales have not declined by 30%.
Canada isn't a total ban. It is a major contributing factor.
Wait, is it actually Beam? I would've sworn it was Bean.
Me too... I thought I was going crazy trying to google it to find out if that was a typo... nope... I've just never actually bothered to look in the first place.
It's named after James B. Beam, the founder
[removed]
Your submission was removed because you do not have any user flair. Please select appropriate flair and then try again. If you are confused as to what flair suits you best simply choose right-wing, left-wing, or Independent. How-do-I-get-user-flair
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
No one in government is. It’s a market correction. Tariffs may have played a part, but there are other factors.
[removed]
Your submission was removed because you do not have any user flair. Please select appropriate flair and then try again. If you are confused as to what flair suits you best simply choose right-wing, left-wing, or Independent. How-do-I-get-user-flair
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
No named individual. Your article explains the issue.
"It was likely, industry experts say, that a correction was in order as retailers and consumers, flush with inventory, slowed down their purchases and the market returned to normal after the pandemic buying spree."
"Polls show that not only are young consumers drinking less, but they are trading up as well, choosing high-proof, more expensive bottles to drink sparingly. That is a big problem for Jim Beam, which relies heavily on its inexpensive, lower-proof White Label brand for sales."
Did you read your source?
[removed]
Your submission was removed because you do not have any user flair. Please select appropriate flair and then try again. If you are confused as to what flair suits you best simply choose right-wing, left-wing, or Independent. How-do-I-get-user-flair
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
Tell me how Donald John Trump managed to do this.
https://www.distilledspirits.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Letter-from-the-Toasts-Not-Tariffs-Coalition-to-President-Trump-August-6-2025-US-EU.pdf?utm
Thank you.
I wholeheartedly agree with you guys that the federal government should not impose taxes, fees, or regulations on businesses because it impedes their ability to prosper.
Probably one Micheal McDoesntExist. Alcohol is an increasingly competitive market, with local breweries and distilleries seeing increased market access and publicity via the internet. Additionally, alcohol consumption is going down, which impacts the cheapest spirits first since nobody is buying jim beam for a special occasion.
People are drinking less. That’s a good thing. I’m not a teetotaler and I certainly wasn’t in my younger years but alcohol isn’t benign. It destroys families and lives. I’m not trying to sound like a MADD PSA but it’s no good.
Probably the surgeon general who says drinking is unhealthy, which it is
No one
1) Jim Beam is not failing. They just decided to pause production to manage surplus stock and invest in upgrades
2) Spirits are a competitive industry. The sheer number of small craft distilleries (estimated 3,000-4,000 in the US) is impacting profit margins, leading to increased competition. There is no way to determine how much affect tariffs are having.
While not wrong about competition, that’s not accurate about the tariffs. In 2025, a formal letter was signed by 57 alcohol-industry groups, including major U.S. distilled-spirits producers and trade associations, urging the removal of tariffs on EU and UK spirits and wines. This included the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS), whose members represent roughly 70% of U.S. spirits brands, including Beam Suntory, the parent company of Jim Beam. The letter explicitly warned that tariffs and retaliatory trade actions were causing billions in lost sales and threatening tens of thousands of U.S. jobs by suppressing export demand for American whiskey.
Yes, Jim Beam has cited inventory management and upgrades for the production pause, but those inventory surpluses didn’t arise in isolation. U.S. spirits exports declined after retaliatory tariffs hit key markets like Canada and Europe, and the industry has publicly linked those declines to trade policy. Saying there’s “no way to determine” tariff impact isn’t supported by the industry’s own documented actions.
https://www.distilledspirits.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Letter-from-the-Toasts-Not-Tariffs-Coalition-to-President-Trump-August-6-2025-US-EU.pdf?utm_source=chatgpt.com
Trump for pointlessly ticking off Canada.