An ongoing study by Dr. Billy Newell is examining how craft breweries find a balance between competition and co-operation.

"Basically I'm looking at how businesses navigate many of the challenges to collectively shape and build new markets," said Dr. Newell, a faculty member in Grenfell's School of Arts and Social Science. "Craft breweries have to navigate the balance between competing to improve their own position in the market, and cooperating with other breweries to shape the market collectively."

Craft beer is a relatively new market in Newfoundland and Labrador, with the majority of the 20 current breweries opening since 2016. During this timeframe, not only have craft breweries contributed towards the province's manufacturing sector; they have drawn visitors to rural communities. Although craft beer's popularity continues to rise, the market has constantly presented challenges for the businesses involved.

"One view of markets suggests that businesses must adapt in order to find a niche, or 'fit,' within a market," he said. "However, another view suggests markets themselves are shaped and driven by the businesses within. This view suggests that businesses are much more active in how markets develop over time, which is exactly what is occurring with Newfoundland and Labrador craft beer."

Shaping markets requires a lot of time and resources. In many cases, it requires the collective action of many businesses to shape the market - not just one. Collective market strategies include lobbying to change legislation, shaping consumer preferences through advertising, or developing associations that can give legitimacy to a new product or service. This presents further challenges, like encouraging businesses to dedicate time and resources to this collective effort. Businesses must also successfully cooperate and compete as market shaping occurs.

Since the study began in the Fall of 2020, Dr. Newell has been speaking with roughly half of the province's craft breweries once per year to examine how they make these collective shaping decisions. Dr. Newell hopes the results will help other businesses shape markets in their own settings, and also inform new government policy to help promote and encourage the development of new markets locally.