How can a traditional brewery sustainably increase its visitor numbers and tap into new target audiences? This was the question tackled by sixth-semester students of the Bachelor’s Program Management & Entrepreneurship during the summer semester 2026, working together with Ottakringer Brauerei AG.
As part of the field project, the students developed strategic concepts to scale Ottakringer Brewery tours to up to 50,000 visitors per year by 2030 in a financially viable way. The project was commissioned by Martin Eicher, Authorized Signatory & Head of Marketing & Innovation, and Andreas Jansch, Brewery Tour Team Leader. The project was supervised by project coach Sara Tanzmeister.
Hands-on consulting focused on growth and experience orientation
Over eleven weeks, the students analyzed existing visitor offerings, target groups, market potential and communication measures of the Ottakringer Erlebniswelt. Methods and tools from marketing, innovation management and strategic business management were applied – including customer journey analyses, personas, social media analyses, as well as competitor and tourism research.
The concepts developed focused especially on:
- new B2B formats for companies,
- tourism target groups,
- digital marketing measures,
- international booking platforms, as well as
- innovative visitor experiences.
From “After-Work” formats to international marketing
A central part of the strategies was the creation of new experience formats such as “Ottakringer After-Work” for companies, as well as targeted measures for the international positioning of brewery tours. In addition, the teams developed digital campaign concepts – including Google Search and Meta campaigns – which, according to simulation, could already provide significant growth impulses from 2027 onwards.
Furthermore, the students devised specific measures to improve the utilization of existing tours, optimize the customer experience, and scale the offer economically.
Final presentation to Ottakringer management
The final strategies were presented to the project clients Martin Eicher and Andreas Jansch. The students particularly impressed with their practical relevance, data-driven analyses and creative solutions for further developing the Ottakringer Erlebniswelt.
Martin Eicher on the results: “The fresh perspective of the students, as well as the inspiring exchange, were extremely enriching for us. Especially valuable is that the project also produced very concrete ideas, which we will incorporate into the further development of our offering.”
Martina Zöbl (Department of Management & Entrepreneurship) and FHWien der WKW would like to sincerely thank Ottakringer Brauerei AG, especially Martin Eicher and Andreas Jansch, for the excellent cooperation and the exciting insights into one of Vienna’s most traditional companies, as well as Sara Tanzmeister for supervising the students.
>> More information about the Bachelor´s Program Management & Entrepreneurship