ABSTRACT
The Miller Brewing Company began in 1855 when German immigrant Frederick Miller bought Plank-Road Brewery in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for $8,000. Within 20 years it had 4,130 competitors in the United States. The number eventually decreased amid consolidation that paved the way for behemoths such as Anheuser-Busch, Pabst Brewing Company, and crosstown rival Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company. Although the number of breweries dwindled during Prohibition (1913 to 1933), Miller survived the 18th Amendment by producing soft drinks, malt syrup, and nonalcoholic products for home brewing. It spent World War II providing U.S. troops with Miller High Life, having discontinued its other brands. Sports, spending, and segmentation tell the story of how the small-time midwestern brewer came close to being the number-one U.S. brewer by the late 1970s but then embarked on a two-decade-long slide. The company ended the 20th century as the number-two brewer in the United States.
