What Kona Brewing Company does

Kona Brewing Company (legal entity Kona Brewing Co.) is a craft beer company founded in Hawaii in 1994 and currently headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. The company's flagship product, Kona Big Wave, is a crisp, easy-drinking golden ale positioned through the "Liquid Aloha" brand identity as a lifestyle beer tied to Hawaiian island, surf, and beach culture. Kona is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch, whose brewing, logistics, and national distribution infrastructure the company leverages under a "Founded in Hawaii, Brewed on the Mainland" operating model, while preserving a distinct Hawaiian brand voice and a separate Hawaii Pubs & Brewery hospitality operation at its origin location.

The business operates two revenue streams. The primary stream is wholesale beer sales, with Kona Big Wave distributed through grocery, convenience, and liquor retailers alongside on-premise foodservice (bars and restaurants); a beer-locator tool on the Kona Big Wave website drives consumers to nearby points of sale. The secondary stream is direct-to-consumer merchandise — branded apparel (swim trunks, camp shirts, bucket hats, t-shirts), drinkware, and accessories — sold through shop.konabrewingco.com and shopbeergear.com, including co-branded collaborations with lifestyle partner Reyn Spooner. Marketing is brand-led across Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram, and YouTube, supplemented by an email "Ohana" community program, periodic sweepstakes (e.g., the KBW x Lib Tech snowboard giveaway), and website content.

Kona serves adult legal-drinking-age consumers in the United States who value approachable craft beer paired with an aspirational Hawaiian lifestyle aesthetic, rather than targeting enterprise or specialty accounts. The company's strategic posture is that of a portfolio brand within Anheuser-Busch: leveraging parent scale for distribution while sustaining brand premium through lifestyle positioning, merchandise extensions, and selective co-branded partnerships. The company does not disclose revenue, headcount, or technology stack details beyond traditional brewing methods, and shows no AI/ML, API, or proprietary platform investments.

Name

Kona Brewing Company

Legal name

Kona Brewing Co.

Website

https://konabrewingco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Kona Brewing Company is an Anheuser-Busch-owned craft beer brand producing the Hawaiian-heritage Kona Big Wave golden ale for U.S. adult consumers, distributed nationally via retail and foodservice and extended through branded apparel and lifestyle merchandise sold direct-to-consumer.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Craft Beer

NAICS

Breweries (31212)

SIC

Malt Beverages (2082)

akta.pro primary industry

Beer Brewing & Brands (CRADAIAA)

Keywords

• Craft beer
• Hawaiian beer
• Alcoholic beverages
• Branded merchandise
• Apparel and drinkware

Headquarters

HQ city

Honolulu

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Revenue model

1. Beer Product Sales: Sale of Kona Big Wave beer products through retail distribution channels including grocery stores, convenience stores, and bars/restaurants. Revenue generated from consumer packaged goods (CPG) sales of alcoholic beverages.
2. Merchandise Sales: Sale of Kona-branded merchandise including apparel (swim trunks, camp shirts, bucket hats), drinkware, accessories, and collaborative products with partners like Reyn Spooner. Sold through e-commerce platforms.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Kona Brewing Company produces and distributes craft beer products under the Kona brand, with Kona Big Wave as a flagship offering. The company also sells branded apparel, drinkware, and accessories to consumers through direct-to-consumer e-commerce channels. Beer products reach consumers via retail stores and on-premise foodservice outlets.

Product overview

Kona Brewing Co operates as a craft beer company with its primary product being the Kona Big Wave beer brand. The company sells its beer directly to consumers through its website and retail locations, supported by a branded merchandise and apparel line sold through the Kona Gear shop. A notable partnership with Reyn Spooner produces co-branded apparel items. The company is headquartered in St. Louis, MO with roots in Hawaii, and operates on a 'Founded in Hawaii, Brewed on the Mainland' model.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Kona Big Wave Flagship craft beer offering under the Kona Brewing Company brand, sold to consumers through retail and on-premise foodservice channels.
• Kona Branded Apparel & Merchandise Branded apparel, drinkware, and accessories sold directly to consumers through the company's e-commerce merchandise shop.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Anheuser-BuschcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAnheuser-Busch serves as the parent company and distribution partner for Kona Brewing Company. The website footer references Anheuser-Busch for terms, conditions, and privacy policy. Anheuser-Busch provides brewing, distribution, and operational infrastructure enabling Kona's national/regional distribution while Kona maintains its Hawaiian brand identity.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. Large independent craft brewer with national distribution and a flagship-plus-rotating-SKU model. Comparable on craft positioning, regional identity (California/Northwest), and multi-channel retail and foodservice presence.
• Golden Road Brewing: AB InBev-owned craft brand focused on approachable, easy-drinking beers (Wolf Among Weeds IPA, Mango Cart) with strong lifestyle/marketing investment. Direct sister-brand within AB InBev's craft portfolio and closest in positioning to Kona Big Wave.
• Devils Backbone Brewing Company: Virginia-based AB InBev craft brand focused on approachable lagers and ales. Comparable in scale and craft-within-big-brewer positioning, and operates under the same AB InBev craft portfolio dynamics as Kona.
• Elysian Brewing Company: Seattle-based AB InBev craft brand with a flagship-plus-seasonal portfolio. Comparable as a sister craft brand under AB InBev with similar distribution reach and shared reliance on parent-company infrastructure.
• Lagunitas Brewing Company: Major US craft brand owned by Heineken; known for personality-driven marketing and a flagship IPA-plus-variety portfolio. Similar scale, similar ownership-by-strategic dynamics, and similar reliance on lifestyle-driven brand identity.
• Breckenridge Brewery: AB InBev-owned Colorado craft brewer with a regional-lifestyle identity and broad distribution. Comparable as another craft brand living within AB InBev's portfolio structure with national retail coverage.
• Maui Brewing Company: Hawaii's largest craft brewery, headquartered on Maui with expanding mainland US distribution. Most direct peer: same Hawaiian heritage narrative, similar craft positioning, and overlapping on-premise and retail accounts.
• 10 Barrel Brewing Company: AB InBev-owned craft brand in the Pacific Northwest with national distribution and a flagship-plus-seasonal model. Most comparable in how AB InBev's distribution and marketing infrastructure have scaled an originally regional craft identity.

Broad incumbents

• Boston Beer Company: Largest US-focused craft player (Samuel Adams, Truly, Twisted Tea, Angry Orchard). Comparable on craft industry leadership, national distribution, and brand-led growth model, though with a much broader portfolio that overlaps with Kona only in the craft beer slice.
• Pacifico (Grupo Modelo / Constellation Brands): Mass-market Mexican lager with a beach/ocean-lifestyle identity that targets overlapping consumer occasions (post-beach, outdoor, casual social). Closest mass-market competitor to Kona's aspirational 'Liquid Aloha' positioning, and a key share-of-throat rival on draught and at retail.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/KonaBigWave
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/Konabrewingco
• Facebookfacebook.com/konabrewingco
• Instagraminstagram.com/konabigwave
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kona-brewing-company

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kona Brewing Company