BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — After nearly six years on Perry Street, Labatt USA is moving out.
Hunt Commercial said the former Labatt House Headquarters Office and the first floor brewery and tasting room are now all on the market.
The brewery set up shop in November 2018, just across from the KeyBank Center.
Labatt beer is flowing freely at the Labatt House on Perry Street
The company said it is looking for a smaller headquarters, in Buffalo.
The Labatt House has been a staple in the Cobblestone District but the brand's parent company said the move is due to changing work trends brought on by the pandemic.
Nationwide, the work-from-home model became a part of the new normal.
The need for a brick-and-mortar office is declining across the country.
Around 10% of jobs remained fully remote, while 13% of positions in the US are considered a hybrid role.
According to LinkedIn, remote work typically attracts more candidates.
In one month, applications for remote positions accounted for 45% of all applicants using the site.
With the Labatt Perry Street site now available to sublease, questions surrounding the Draft Room's future have begun to circulate.
So 7 News' Pheben Kassahun headed over to the Cobblestone District to learn to fate of the hot spot pub.
Fret not. The Draft Room is staying put.
"We've been here this whole time and we're happy to stay open and see our customers still," Draft Room Buffalo Manager Sam Mallare explained.
Just so there is no confusion, the Draft Room is separate from the Labatt House.
The Labatt House was in the tasting room in front of the restaurant.
It has been closed for more than a year and will remain closed. That is not the case with the draft room.
"We'll be here all summer. We're open for most of the week. Our hours are on our website and we do a lot of events on our own that are separate at KeyBank. If there's something happening at KeyBank, Harbor Center, we want people to come on down. Come see us," Mallare added.
Mallare shared with me that there will also be game nights beginning this month.
"BB's Bingo, she does it around bars in Buffalo and she fills the place. You play Bingo, if you win you do a limbo contest and stuff like that. It's a really fun thing. You get a lot of fun here and it's a really good time," Mallare said.
Mallare also shared the Draft Room is rolling out with four new summer cocktails. One of them features a Loganberry Smash, made with Buffalo's very own Loganberry.
As for all the other space in the complex, Hunt Commercial says the first-floor brewery and tasting room spaces are available for sublease at 79 Perry Street, complete with state-of-the-art brewing equipment.
The brewery and tasting room occupy 3,500 square feet of ground floor space, equipped with state-of-the-art brewing equipment and a dedicated tasting room. The office headquarters on the 2nd floor spans over 11,000 square feet, featuring unique amenities, including 11 private offices, several bullpen and collaboration spaces, a covered outdoor patio, and an indoor bar and kitchen, according to Hunt Commercial.
The office headquarters could be a good fit for a company looking to bring employees back into the office for face-to-face collaboration.
