[NEWS BITES] Bell's buys back all shares, will not sell the company

Big news from Bell's Brewery!

Remember when Larry Bell threatened to sell the brewery and people went nuts thinking Bell's would go the Goose Island route and end up in the clutches of the evil AB-InBev, the international conglomerate that owns Anheuser-Busch? Turns out that was just a clever ploy to get Bell's shareholders to sell their ownership back to him. Bell's is now (once again) a 100% family-owned and -operated Michigan brewery with every intention of staying that way. After decades in the business, Larry now has the financial resources to operate completely independently without additional shareholders, and will continue with expansion plans. I guess all I can say is: told you.

Also in the works, a new sports bar from Bell's in the old general store in downtown Kalamazoo near the Eccentric Cafe. The working title is "Larry Bell's Super Intelligent [something something] Ultimate Sports Bar." Or something. Long story short, Bell plans on opening a sports bar.

And for those of you already going through Eccentric Day withdrawals, the next Eccentric Day -- which will be the 13th anniversary of the annual event -- will be held on Friday, December 13th, 2013. Why yes, that is a lot of 13's. As if Eccentric Day could get any weirder.