Why don't more of you guys open your own breweries?

Just curious. Some of you guys on here, based on pics, and comments by others, seem to be able to make incredible beer. Beer as good as a brewery's product. Why don't you guys go into the business? Too hard an industry to get into? Not the right time of your life? Rather just homebrew and enjoy it without having to endure the stress of running a business? Not enough capital?

Just curious?

Im going for it. Taking an online class and volunteering and interning at breweries.

Making great beer is completely different from running a successful business...

Take food for example. Can you make a meal cheaper than McDonalds that tastes better?

I know I can make a hell'a better hamburger for that price, but I know absolutely nothing about what it takes to run a franchise.

AZ_IPA said:

Making great beer is completely different from running a successful business...

Take food for example. Can you make a meal cheaper than McDonalds that tastes better?

I know I can make a hell'a better hamburger for that price, but I know absolutely nothing about what it takes to run a franchise.

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true that, So I'd prob be better off going to college for a business degree, brew on the side, and just educate myself as much as possible about creating a business plan and executing it, if I was interested in opening a brewery?

Or become a hell of a brewer and align yourself with business people you trust...

And think about scale & repeatability. Sure, we can make a great batch of beer at the 5-gallon scale.

Can you do that over and over and over at the 20 BBL scale? And how do you do that? Are you buying packs of yeast from Austin Homebrew?

And again, I'm not trying to be a downer; I'm just trying to paint a realistic picture....

All of us have "dreams" of "wow, I make great beer; how awesome would it be to run a brewery."

I think the site is probrewer.com where they have lots of discussions about it....

I hope to one day...I'm in the process of learning business on the side while learning all I can about brewing. Capital will be a major concern for me.

aggiejay06 said:

I hope to one day...I'm in the process of learning business on the side while learning all I can about brewing. Capital will be a major concern for me.

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Yeah - from what I've seen/read/heard/etc. the limiting factor to opening a brewery is NOT the actual brewing. Sad, but true...

There are a number of barriers that prevent a lot of people from going into brewing professionally (and I should note: I don't include myself in said group; I'm still practicing ). As others have noted, business sense is one issue. Capital another. One thing to keep in mind: a hobby has a tendency to lose its luster once you're trying to make a living from it. I enjoy making beer for my own (and friends') enjoyment. This *might* extend to commercial production, but it's a hell of an investment on such a gamble.

I think a lot of folks are just happier enjoying, and knowing that others also enjoy, the fruits of their own labor.

I think I'd prefer to actually start with a brewpub, though of course that needs a lot of capital, too. I think having that customer interaction as they drink your beer would really help keep the passion burning. Well that is unless they hated it .

I thought about working in a brewery for awhile, but decided the likely end result is that I would work a lot harder for less money and maybe stop enjoying a hobby I really love.

I've been in the brewing industry for several years in one capacity or another.

Capital, business knowledge (employee hiring, wage laws, labor laws, taxes, marketing, advertising, AP/AR, accounting, sales, etc) brewing science to scale, consistency, customer service, market placement, product placement, taxes, regulations on federal level, state level, local level, politics of being in business. It all comes into play. There are certain people that are cut out for it and most people aren't.

I've seen and worked in more breweries that have come and closed than still exist today. The surest way to ruin a great hobby is to make it a business.

I've seen more brewpubs fail than breweries. In breweries you only focus on the beer. With a brewpub, you focus on a restaurant and a brewery. A restaurant is a headache of its own and you're combining that with a brewery now. Both are separate management problems that must be managed successfully in order for the pair of them to be successful and maintain or grow that success.

I maintain that a taphouse is the best plan. You can brew your own, but if no one else likes it, customers can go for commercial brews instead. No reliance upon your own ability to cater to their whims, while still having the freedom to experiment to your heart's content.

weizenwerks said:

the surest way to ruin a great hobby is to make it a business.

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+1

I'd be the first to do it if I wasn't so drunk all the time.

I won't do it for several reasons. Heading the list is that I refuse to turn a pastime I enjoy very much into work. That makes all the other reasons superfluous....starting with the fact that I don't have a half-million lying around to capitalize it. If I borrow, I'm just working for someone else.

All of the above. I'm looking to work in the alcoholic beverage industry from the science side of things. That way I am involved in something I'm passionate about but at the same time I get to keep my homebrewing hobby a little piece of enjoyment on the side. The faculty and classmates at the school sometimes call me "yeast obsessed".

The disheartening thing about starting a brewery is that the equipment is EXPENSIVE. Then to retrofit a building to your needs is a lot of work. Then to maintain everything is costly. The legal knowledge needed to wade through the regulations is mind boggling for a startup (and costly). My dream is to run a brewery/distillery but it will never happen.

Irisndfan2 said:

Not enough capital?

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Bingo.

I would do it if it there was a nanobrewery niche in the legal system. That way I could self distribute on a very small scale, to a few bars maybe, maybe a couple bottle shops, and of course have a taproom(prolly only open a few days a week)in my pole barn that I brew in.

Weizenwerks said:

The surest way to ruin a great hobby is to make it a business.

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I have hobbies that I love- boating, fishing, hiking, brewing, soapmaking, etc.

But that's the point- they are hobbies. Fun things to do for relaxation and enjoyment.

If you enjoy working on classic cars, you know what I mean. You don't want to do it for money, under pressure. I don't care if brewing is profitable, fast, efficient, etc. I do it for fun, just like guys who are spending thousands of hours working on restoring a car.

Brewing gives me great satisfaction, and it's fun. That's why I do it.

I'm semi-retired, though, so I have time to do many hobbies just for fun!

I understand why there aren't a lot breweries springing up when I see guys like Jamil who've been in the homebrewing community forever, created everything from podcasts to books, been passed through the wringer a few times, and are just now starting a brewery. It's a lot to commit to. I think for the guys with families it's probably harder because they have to be sure that they don't put their family in a bad situation. I think another consideration is personal confidence in brewing, and having enough validation that the persons beer is good enough to go commercial with it. Homebrewing competitions help some with this, but there's also the need to brew with consistency. As a homebrewer, the loss of a bad batch is not as significant as what you would lose in a brewery.

I think if this whole "sell your homebrew" thing takes off like we've been hearing about, you'll see that more people are willing to go pro, knowing that people are willing to buy their beer. People will slowly start to increase batch size until they literally need a new facility to brew in...and before you know it they'll be a brewery!

I was sitting with my nephew at the Bavarian Lodge. "Uncle, you should open a brew pub," he said, sipping an Oktoberfest.
"No, YOU should open a brew pub, I said. "And YOU should hire the staff, who call in late, don't show up. And you should order the food and supplies and stay late and get up early and generally work your a$$ off worrying about money. I'll be your fat uncle who sits at the end of your bar, drinking your beer, and eating your food, and when the real brewer goes home, maybe I can use your awesome equipment."
He smiled and took another drink.

A friend of a friend who aspired to "go pro" in the bass fishing world, asked Bill Dance (bass fishing legend for the last 40 yrs.) "What advice could you give me about going pro"? Bill replied, "If you truly love the sport, Don't go pro, when you turn it into a business, it takes most of the aspects that make it you passion out of the picture.

i would love to. the best way would be to already own a restaurant, and serve the batches you brew there. like my situation, i am trying to buy a bowling alley close to where i live, can't get financing, it's cheap enough though. it's been closed for 2 years. this would be the perfect place to sell my brew and see how it does. granted i'm new to brewing, but i'm gonna keep on doing it. i'm also gonna keep trying to get the bowling alley.

Not taking a pay check for 6 months to a year. Maxing out credit cards and tearing though savings to keep it going until its solvent. Working 7 days a week 14+ hours a day. Putting everything else in my life on hold while I build a business.

Maybe worst case scenario but realistic. Starting a business from scratch isn't easy. Even if you have the capitol that doesn't mean you have what it takes to make it succeed.

Hey, if anyone wants to open a brewery down here in North Florida, I know where there is a Coca Cola water bottling plant up for sale for $22M. No gas there, but plenty of electric is available for electric brewing equipment.

The guys at work all ask me what are you doing here. Why don't you open a brewery. I tell them I would love to but I don't know the first time about running brewery, how about you just donate to my grain bill and ill just give you some beer. So far no takers on that idea.

If I hadn't gotten married (to a fantastic girl - don't regret it for one second) I would have definitely opened a brewery. Around here, craft beer is still on the rise and the local movement is gaining momentum. Find an assistant brewer at a great brewery and steal him away. If you do food, keep it simple and good with a few interesting twists. It's a pretty simple equation.

All the brewpubs around here ton it, and only a few make good beer.

But I definitely recommend the idea of getting a business degree first.

Nothing worth having ever came easy! Or so they say .

There is a nano brewery in Warren, VT that brews on a 1/2 barrel scale, I think. He sells at one store and one or two farmers markets only. There is always a line and the batches sell out instantly. Lawson's Finest Liquids. Cool business model for those of you thinking of pro brewing.

There was a recent article in the 7 Days Tabloid from Burlington, VT.

Teromous said:

I understand why there aren't a lot breweries springing up when I see guys like Jamil who've been in the homebrewing community forever, created everything from podcasts to books, been passed through the wringer a few times, and are just now starting a brewery.

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See, that's not neccesarily true. There were over 100 micros that opened in 2010 with 600+ more in the planning stage.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/thebeerhere/2011/03/nothing_but_good_news_for_us_c.html

No interest.

Heretic Brewing Company is also just an alternating proprietorship with EJ Phair. What that means is EJP owns the equipment and premises, but JZ and crew use it to make beer under their brand. It's a lot less risk and financial commitment than your own brewery. If Heretic fails, it's a fairly quick and easy walk away.

Jamil had to buy his own tanks, register, etc, he has high 5 figures in this. In this lending environment that means probably 30% of high 5 figures as equity capital. That's college for one of his kids, he has skin in the game.

Jamil used to say the same thing about opening a brewery that I did 2 posts up there. He would have done it earlier if it was his dream all along.

I'd love to be involved in a brew pub... The things holding me back is funds, partners (that I can trust) and other logistical items... It would probably be far easier to simply get a job at one of the already established brew pubs, or small breweries, and go from there.

I do think that the brew pub is a better way to go, compared with just selling beer through channels. For one thing, you don't need to worry about producing tons of brew time and again. You can change up what is available to fit what you want to brew. Just make enough to offer a decent selection and you're set.

I did turn one of my passions into my career already... It didn't take the fun out of it at all. If anything, it opened up additional areas to me. I get to play with the big toys at work, that I never would have been able to afford on my own. :rockin:

Some of us are trying very hard to go pro.

Huh. "...Beer as good as a brewery's product." I would hate to settle for that!

In my state (Ohio) I would say it would be the financial aspect that would hold me back given all other aspects are covered.

Fees in Ohio for a micro brewery are in the $5k range annually. This sucks, considering the cost of a winery's annually to the govt. is under $100. You almost need a established restaurant to absorb the start-up costs of a brewery.

I thought about it for about a week. Then I realized it's a tough business and it would take all the fun out of brewing for me. A lot of what I enjoy is experimenting and not feeling bad if I miss mash temps by a degree or two. You can't do that because you have to produce volume and it needs to be precise.

it is easy to get good amaking beer, and maybe even the outside/structure of a basement brewhaven... .

the business end of brewing is a *****... frankly the businsess end of any business is a *****... Taxes, Licesncing, 'inspections' by agencies (OSHA, BAFTE, Dept of Health, etc), employees, suppliers, getting customers, keeping enough operating capitol, on and on it goes...

Now Beer (and alcohol in general) is a good business to be in the profit margin once going can be about as high or higher than any other... it is the getting going. I agree with one of the first poster, I could easily make a better hamberger than McDonalds for not much more $$ but I couldn't run a McDonalds...

And yeah, my 'lottery job' is opening a LHBS+BOP place for people to buy, learn etc.