The stubby beer bottle, retired four decades ago, is being reexamined as a tool for protecting Canada's brewing industry from American competition. Heather Thompson's research suggests that the stubby, introduced in 1961, was a form of economic self-defense, not just a cultural artifact. Its design made it less appealing to foreign brewers, thus lowering market entry costs for domestic companies. With current trade tensions and rising tariffs, the stubby's legacy offers insights on maintaining a national industry in a complex economic environment.
"At the time, the Big Three, [Canadian Breweries Limited], Molson and Labatt's, they see the Americans coming and they knew they were very interested in the lucrative Canadian market. They needed something..."
"In today's climate of rising tariffs, 'buy Canadian' policies and deepening trade tensions, the story of the stubby might feel less like historic footnote and more like a blueprint for how Canada can still navigate life beside..."
Collection
[
|
...
]