Nigerian Breweries Plc is marking its 80th anniversary by turning its corporate history into a national story archive, inviting Nigerians at home and abroad to document the people, businesses and communities that have grown alongside the brewing company since its incorporation in 1946.
The brewer has launched a nationwide campaign, “Together, Every Moment,” through which Nigerians are being asked to submit photographs and videos showing how the company, its brands, employees, investments and wider economic footprint have intersected with their lives over eight decades.
The initiative positions the anniversary beyond a celebration of the company itself, placing greater emphasis on the ecosystem that has developed around its operations; from farmers and suppliers to distributors, retailers, transporters, employees, entrepreneurs and host communities.
Nigerian Breweries says the archive is intended to capture a history that extends beyond its factories and brands into the businesses, livelihoods and social experiences connected to the company across generations.
The brewer said the campaign is based on the view that much of its history exists outside its formal corporate archives; in family photo albums, business records, farms, markets, communities and personal camera rolls.
Those records could include photographs from weddings, graduations, football celebrations and family gatherings, as well as stories of farmers whose produce found a market through the company’s supply chain, retailers who built businesses around its products and distributors and suppliers whose enterprises expanded alongside the brewer.
The company is calling the initiative the National Story Collection, with submissions expected to form a living archive of the relationships and experiences associated with Nigerian Breweries over the past 80 years.
Thibaut Boidin, managing director and chief executive officer of Nigerian Breweries, said the company deliberately wanted the anniversary to focus on Nigerians rather than become an exercise in corporate self-celebration.
“An 80th anniversary can easily become a company talking about itself. That would miss the point,” Boidin said.
He said farmers, entrepreneurs, retailers, distributors, suppliers, employees and communities had all contributed to the company’s journey and should therefore have a role in telling its history.
The campaign also highlights the breadth of the value chain supporting the brewing industry.
Agricultural suppliers provide raw materials, while transporters, distributors and retailers connect manufacturers with consumers. Employees and service providers support operations, while host communities interact with the company’s investments and economic activities.
By asking participants to document these connections, Nigerian Breweries is effectively seeking to illustrate the wider economic ecosystem surrounding an industrial company whose history has run alongside Nigeria’s own commercial and social development.
As part of the National Story Collection, Nigerian Breweries will select 80 memories, with each selected winner receiving N1 million.
Other prizes will also be awarded, while selected stories will be incorporated into the wider anniversary campaign.
The winning and selected submissions are expected to feature across films, editorial content, social media, outdoor displays, anniversary experiences and the company’s commemorative archive.
The brewer said participation is free and open to Nigerians.
Participants can submit photographs and videos through the company’s anniversary platform or share memories on social media using #NB@80 and tagging @nigerianbreweriesplc.
The National Story Collection forms part of an extended programme planned to mark Nigerian Breweries’ 80th anniversary.
The programme will include consumer engagement, films, media storytelling, cultural experiences and commemorative events built around the people and shared experiences associated with the company’s eight-decade journey.
