CANBERRA, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Popular Australian pale ale Little Creatures is heading a push to tap into the fast-growing craft beer market in China and the rest of Asia.
Regional brewer Lion is seeking fresh revenue streams for Little Creatures and its other Australian brands following increasing interest in the pale ale style in the Asia-Pacific region.
Little Creatures has had a presence in China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region since 2016 when a fashionable venue was opened there, and the brand can also be found at the renowned Jockey Club and more than 120 premium liquor stores.
With its distinctive dancing cherub label, the brand can also be sampled in Shanghai and Beijing at venues in partnership with local hospitality operators.
But Lion is now seeking to create a thirst for its product on a much wider scale.
As mainstream beer sales continue to be flat, the craft beer market is growing strongly.
"The profit in craft beer globally is likely to double over the next three to four years, so there is some significant growth in that segment," Matt Tapper, Lion's managing director of global markets, told The Australian newspaper.
The craft beer share of the broader beer market was about 10 percent in Australia and New Zealand, he added, while in Asia generally it was less than 1 percent.
Tapper said Lion's strategy aimed to plug into a vibrant, increasingly global craft beer community.
"You have parts of the world that are at different levels of maturity when it comes to craft beer," he said.
"However, what is consistent is they are all in significant growth and the millennials group of customers that we are primarily targeting - those aged 20-35 - are looking for new experiences."
Lion now sells Little Creatures in about 30 markets globally. This month it launched the Little Creatures Mohamed Ali Lane in Singapore, comprising a microbrewery, restaurant and bar.