Well...we've got investors considering us now here at Hob Knob...so we may be hitting the big time sooner rather than later - and have some very big decisions in front of us
My question is a simple one. We're considering either finding a location with a tasting room or without a tasting room. What do you guys think (feel free to the pros/cons lists below)?
Tasting Room - Pros
*Big revenue boost - in visiting other breweries, they say around 50-60% of their revenues come from their tasting rooms & indoor sales
*Greater exposure
*Would enjoy watching people enjoy my beer and interactions with the customers
*May have better presence in the media since there would be a location people could visit
*Increased revenues from paraphernalia sales (mugs/tshirts/etc)
Tasting Room - Cons
*Limits locations - you need a highly visible location
*Upfitting costs & rental costs go through the roof
*Additional licensing
*More employees
*It would only be open 3 days a week - fri/sat/sun
*Increased costs would dictate an investor be brought on board or I'd have to go all in with an SBA loan.
*an additional 1000sq ft minimum space would be required for the tasting room
*DRAM shop laws are a huge consideration - you can be sued for up to $500k if you fail to police peoples intake of your brews and they end up hurting someone. (What a joke...I'm a brewer, not the police!)
No Tasting Room - Pros
*More locations available - you can get a 1500 sq ft hole in the wall for $800/month w/ water. Retail - you're talking $2k+ for rent.
*Less risk - you're not diving in head first, and instead can start and grow at your own pace.
*You can put more funds into production rather than outfitting a location.
*Less hourly requirements.
*Startup costs would be around $20,000 versus 5x that for a location with a tasting room
*More time for brewing since you don't have to open a tasting room for 20+ hours/week
*More time with family
*No need to worry about DRAM shop laws (where you can be sued if one of your patrons injures someone because you failed to cut them off)
No Tasting Room - Cons
*Decreased revenue stream
*Less contact, interaction, & feedback from customers
*Reduced profit margin since you aren't selling directly to customers
*Decreased sales from paraphernalia like t shirts/growlers/mugs/etc
DANG IT! Forgot the poll...just post your vote below - Tap room or no tap room?
My question is a simple one. We're considering either finding a location with a tasting room or without a tasting room. What do you guys think (feel free to the pros/cons lists below)?
Tasting Room - Pros
*Big revenue boost - in visiting other breweries, they say around 50-60% of their revenues come from their tasting rooms & indoor sales
*Greater exposure
*Would enjoy watching people enjoy my beer and interactions with the customers
*May have better presence in the media since there would be a location people could visit
*Increased revenues from paraphernalia sales (mugs/tshirts/etc)
Tasting Room - Cons
*Limits locations - you need a highly visible location
*Upfitting costs & rental costs go through the roof
*Additional licensing
*More employees
*It would only be open 3 days a week - fri/sat/sun
*Increased costs would dictate an investor be brought on board or I'd have to go all in with an SBA loan.
*an additional 1000sq ft minimum space would be required for the tasting room
*DRAM shop laws are a huge consideration - you can be sued for up to $500k if you fail to police peoples intake of your brews and they end up hurting someone. (What a joke...I'm a brewer, not the police!)
No Tasting Room - Pros
*More locations available - you can get a 1500 sq ft hole in the wall for $800/month w/ water. Retail - you're talking $2k+ for rent.
*Less risk - you're not diving in head first, and instead can start and grow at your own pace.
*You can put more funds into production rather than outfitting a location.
*Less hourly requirements.
*Startup costs would be around $20,000 versus 5x that for a location with a tasting room
*More time for brewing since you don't have to open a tasting room for 20+ hours/week
*More time with family
*No need to worry about DRAM shop laws (where you can be sued if one of your patrons injures someone because you failed to cut them off)
No Tasting Room - Cons
*Decreased revenue stream
*Less contact, interaction, & feedback from customers
*Reduced profit margin since you aren't selling directly to customers
*Decreased sales from paraphernalia like t shirts/growlers/mugs/etc
DANG IT! Forgot the poll...just post your vote below - Tap room or no tap room?