James Watt, co-founder and former CEO of Aberdeenshire craft beer firm BrewDog, said in a social media post he plans to launch a new beer business called Second Best — with free shares for “Equity Punk” investors who were wiped out in the sale of BrewDog to Tilray Brands.

Watt issued an “open invitation” to the “Equity Punk” investors who were left empty-handed in the recent bargain-price sale of BrewDog to beer and cannabis firm Tilray.

“I am planning to allocate up to 19.3% of Second Best for you,” wrote Watt on LinkedIn. “You can claim the exact stake you once held in BrewDog, for free.”

Watt said: “No catches, no cash required, and your equity in Second Best will always rank alongside my own.

“You’ll own it. I’ll fund it. And I’ll dedicate myself to building it.

“You’re not shareholders this time. You’re Second Founders.”

Watt’s full post read:

Thousands of people trusted me to build a brilliant beer business and create value for them. 
 
It was an obligation I took very seriously.
 
And I, for one, am not done with that obligation. 
 
So today, I am introducing my plan to launch Second Best – a new beer business and an open invitation. 
 
If you were an Equity Punk investor, I am planning to allocate up to 19.3% of Second Best for you. You can claim the exact stake you once held in BrewDog, for free. 
 
No catches, no cash required, and your equity in Second Best will always rank alongside my own. 
 
You’ll own it. I’ll fund it. And I’ll dedicate myself to building it.
 
You’re not shareholders this time. You’re Second Founders.
 
We are going to start small, build from the ground up and focus on making the best versions of we can of our favourite beer styles.
 
I am determined to build a world class beer business that we all collectively own. 
 
We don’t have a launch date quite yet – we will launch as soon as we can and when we have all the relevant licenses and legal consents in place.

Because that may take some time, we are initially launching a really interesting alcohol adjacent concept (more on this soon). And you will also have the opportunity to own part of this exciting new brand for free.

And of course, we will mark the official Second Best launch with an amazing beer event when the time comes.
 
And as for the name, well if we get this right then the second beer business that we build together might just be the best one.