Northern Brewer - Buyer Beware

[NobleNewt]

I placed an order a week ago online from Northern Brewer and, besides an email that says there's been a "delay", have been unable to get any further update from NB about my order. It's been a week, and the order is still unfulfilled despite their website still indicating that they're shipping most orders in 2-3 business days.

Today, I saw that there were several threads both on HBT and Reddit about the delays brewers have experienced with NB over the past year--some up to two weeks or more!!! I understand that there are staffing issues and other logistics affecting nearly every business, but it makes no sense that NB's competitors can deliver same day while they are struggling in this regard.

For reference, I sent three texts to the textable number provided on the NB website, sent two emails--one for an update, one to cancel the order, and attempted to call the textable number as well as the Milwaukee retail store as there is no number to reach customer service available anywhere that I've been able to find (and I've looked HARD).

Because I've heard nothing back from them, I called my CC company to dispute the transaction. I hate doing this to any merchant, but this lack of customer service and responsiveness makes me lose faith that NB will come through on their promise to either provide the goods I've ordered or refund the money. Quite frankly, I've never experienced such a poor customer service/ordering experience. I'm not the kind of person that expects immediate service or shipping, but I do expect some degree of responsiveness from the merchants I buy from.

I know that there are plenty of quality suppliers out there, and I intend on giving them my business. I'm equal opportunity as I don't have a LHBS anywhere near me, and the one I've always used (Texas Brewing, Inc.) decided to pare down their homebrewing operations and focus on their commercial brewing supplies after covid.

Unfortunately, I have to recommend against anyone ordering from Northern Brewer. My experience was horrible at best. I know that I'm not the only one, and I also know that others have had good experiences, but I need to share my experience to protect other brewers from having a similar experience to mine.

 

[Joeywhat]

Pretty sure they're the ones who bought out my LHBS then blew everyone out and closed down the store (online only now). I have zero interest in them, they can go out of business tomorrow for all I care.

Seems everything today is owned by a single corporation, no more local stores.

 

[z-bob]

I've never had any problems ordering from NB or Midwest Supply, (they are the same company, if you don't know) but I haven't ordered from them in about 3 or 4 years and a lot can happen (usually bad) in that time.

I just placed an order from ritebrew.com Monday night and it was delivered on Thursday. A local brewery offered to let homebrew club members piggyback off his wholesale order for sacks of grain last week, but even with shipping ritebrew was a little cheaper and faster, and I don't have to drive 20 miles out to the brewery to pick it up.

 

[PCABrewing]

I placed an order a week ago online from Northern Brewer and, besides an email that says there's been a "delay", have been unable to get any further update from NB about my order. It's been a week, and the order is still unfulfilled despite their website still indicating that they're shipping most orders in 2-3 business days.

Today, I saw that there were several threads both on HBT and Reddit about the delays brewers have experienced with NB over the past year--some up to two weeks or more!!! I understand that there are staffing issues and other logistics affecting nearly every business, but it makes no sense that NB's competitors can deliver same day while they are struggling in this regard.

For reference, I sent three texts to the textable number provided on the NB website, sent two emails--one for an update, one to cancel the order, and attempted to call the textable number as well as the Milwaukee retail store as there is no number to reach customer service available anywhere that I've been able to find (and I've looked HARD).

Because I've heard nothing back from them, I called my CC company to dispute the transaction. I hate doing this to any merchant, but this lack of customer service and responsiveness makes me lose faith that NB will come through on their promise to either provide the goods I've ordered or refund the money. Quite frankly, I've never experienced such a poor customer service/ordering experience. I'm not the kind of person that expects immediate service or shipping, but I do expect some degree of responsiveness from the merchants I buy from.

I know that there are plenty of quality suppliers out there, and I intend on giving them my business. I'm equal opportunity as I don't have a LHBS anywhere near me, and the one I've always used (Texas Brewing, Inc.) decided to pare down their homebrewing operations and focus on their commercial brewing supplies after covid.

Unfortunately, I have to recommend against anyone ordering from Northern Brewer. My experience was horrible at best. I know that I'm not the only one, and I also know that others have had good experiences, but I need to share my experience to protect other brewers from having a similar experience to mine.

I had a delayed shipment within the last month.
They sent a message saying it was delayed, then added a $10 coupon (which I promptly used).

I did get a written response to my email asking the cause of the delay.
The responder stated that they are having a lot of trouble getting reliable help lately. I don't doubt that given what I hear from colleagues and others in the business world.
So while I was PO'd about the delay they did make good on the order and the subsequent one using the coupon went through in normal time.
You can tell there is a problem when the order sits in the queue unchanged for over a week.
When I think about it, 2-3 days for an order is actually a relatively new experience.
I can remember when anything you ordered took 2+ weeks to get (yeah I'm old).
So while I wasn't happy, I did get what I ordered.
I'm not going to stop patronizing NB, they have a pretty complete catalog. I'll just order keeping the experience in mind.
I'm not happy about the slow service I get at restaurants lately either, but I still patronize the ones I like.
I know it is a tired excuse, but the pandemic owns a lot of the blame for the lack of workers willing to put in a full days work, much less report to a physical facility. At some point it is going to change, layoffs are already starting so job opportunities are going to start drying up.
I'm just glad my hiring days are behind me.

 

[wepeeler]

It's a known issue for a few months now. They claim being understaffed.

I Tweeted at them that they need to have a notice up on their site about delays and they Tweeted back

Same for my last 2 orders. I send them texts just requesting an update and both times I got "staffing issues and warehouse issues". Apparently the warehouse was backed up almost 2 weeks, so they are playing catch up. I Tweeted them as well. All I asked was for a head's up for the delay. Hard to plan a brew day...

View attachment 774335

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/northern-brewer-closed.701830/#post-9299010

 

[NobleNewt]

I got the $10 coupon also. Sorry, but that's not what I was looking for. I placed an order last Saturday anticipating that it would be in for me to brew on the following Saturday (today). That isn't even a remote possibility at this point and became clearly evident that it wouldn't be by mid-week.

My first-ever homebrewing kit came from NB, so they had a special place in my homebrewing heart, but considering that you can get next-day or second-day processing with two-day shipping from almost any other supplier at better prices, it's a no-brainer at this point.

And I fully understand that the pandemic has changed business in so many ways, but the fact that NB's competitors can still follow through on their promises to their customers says something about NB's inability to roll with the punches.

All said, did they try to make it right? Maybe, but giving me $10 for a future order is a long way from getting my order delivered in a reasonable amount of time. Furthermore, if you've had "known issues" of slow order fulfillment and delivery, wouldn't you make those updates to your website as @wepeeler said? Instead, their website still says 2-3 day order fulfillment. If it's gonna be 2 weeks, you need to let your customers know that before they place their orders.

I'm a business guy, and I can think of at least a dozen ways NB could handle this better and make it happen to keep customers coming back. I can't imagine they'll remain in business much longer with 10-day order fulfillment in today's next-day delivery generation.

 

[z-bob]

Amazon is not doing next-day anymore in some markets. I'm paying for Amazon Prime (I might let it lapse) and lately it's taking a week to get orders, if I get them at all. Then it takes a week to get a refund on an order they never shipped; they just generated a tracking number and abandoned it. I've talked to several people and businesses in this area and they're experiencing the same thing.

Who owns NB now? For a while it was AB InBev (Budweiser). Maybe there's something nefarious going on? I love a good conspiracy theory, but I don't put much stock in them.

 

[NobleNewt]

Amazon is not doing next-day anymore in some markets. I'm paying for Amazon Prime (I might let it lapse) and lately it's taking a week to get orders, if I get them at all. Then it takes a week to get a refund on an order they never shipped; they just generated a tracking number and abandoned it. I've talked to several people and businesses in this area and they're experiencing the same thing.

Who owns NB now? For a while it was AB InBev (Budweiser). Maybe there's something nefarious going on? I love a good conspiracy theory, but I don't put much stock in them.

Not sure who owns them anymore. I think it’s an investment group.

I’ve got Amazon Prime too, but I still get most of my stuff in a couple of days at worst. Maybe my standards are too high, but I expect to get most in-stock items from a seller within a week. I don’t think that’s unreasonable, but maybe it is.

 

[z-bob]

Not sure who owns them anymore. I think it’s an investment group.

I’ve got Amazon Prime too, but I still get most of my stuff in a couple of days at worst. Maybe my standards are too high, but I expect to get most in-stock items from a seller within a week. I don’t think that’s unreasonable, but maybe it is.

That's perfectly reasonably. Except I'm paying over $100 a year to get 2-day deliveries and Amazon's not even close anymore. (that's on Amazon Prime items sold by Amazon, not some 3rd party. The 3rd party sellers are doing a better job lately) My brother lives in Texas and he says he gets most of his orders in 2 or 3 days and sometimes overnight. Maybe it's a regional problem.

I also wanted to use this thread as an excuse to give a shout-out to Ritebrew.

 

[NobleNewt]

That's perfectly reasonably. Except I'm paying over $100 a year to get 2-day deliveries and Amazon's not even close anymore. (that's on Amazon Prime items sold by Amazon, not some 3rd party. The 3rd party sellers are doing a better job lately) My brother lives in Texas and he says he gets most of his orders in 2 or 3 days and sometimes overnight. Maybe it's a regional problem.

I also wanted to use this thread as an excuse to give a shout-out to Ritebrew.

I appreciate your Ritebrew plug!

I’m in Texas too, and we’ve had good luck with Amazon. You’re right, though. For the price, is it really worth it? That, and they’ve gone to free shipping over something like $25 for non-Prime members. Although, we stream quite a bit too.

 

[bracconiere]

this is why i malt my own....

 

[Bobby_M]

... Furthermore, if you've had "known issues" of slow order fulfillment and delivery, wouldn't you make those updates to your website.

This right here is 100% correct.

 

[Teufelhunde]

I placed an order a week ago online from Northern Brewer and, besides an email that says there's been a "delay", have been unable to get any further update from NB about my order. It's been a week, and the order is still unfulfilled despite their website still indicating that they're shipping most orders in 2-3 business days.

Today, I saw that there were several threads both on HBT and Reddit about the delays brewers have experienced with NB over the past year--some up to two weeks or more!!! I understand that there are staffing issues and other logistics affecting nearly every business, but it makes no sense that NB's competitors can deliver same day while they are struggling in this regard.

For reference, I sent three texts to the textable number provided on the NB website, sent two emails--one for an update, one to cancel the order, and attempted to call the textable number as well as the Milwaukee retail store as there is no number to reach customer service available anywhere that I've been able to find (and I've looked HARD).

Because I've heard nothing back from them, I called my CC company to dispute the transaction. I hate doing this to any merchant, but this lack of customer service and responsiveness makes me lose faith that NB will come through on their promise to either provide the goods I've ordered or refund the money. Quite frankly, I've never experienced such a poor customer service/ordering experience. I'm not the kind of person that expects immediate service or shipping, but I do expect some degree of responsiveness from the merchants I buy from.

I know that there are plenty of quality suppliers out there, and I intend on giving them my business. I'm equal opportunity as I don't have a LHBS anywhere near me, and the one I've always used (Texas Brewing, Inc.) decided to pare down their homebrewing operations and focus on their commercial brewing supplies after covid.

Unfortunately, I have to recommend against anyone ordering from Northern Brewer. My experience was horrible at best. I know that I'm not the only one, and I also know that others have had good experiences, but I need to share my experience to protect other brewers from having a similar experience to mine.

Your experience with NB is far from unique nowadays. I used to order from them all the time and they were outstanding, but since they grew, they are f'd up. They keep saying "labor issues", "problems getting help". They have had ample time to figure it out. Because of this, I have switched to morebeer.com and couldn't be happier. A bit cheaper prices as well.

YMMV

Lon

 

[Teufelhunde]

, but the Government response to the pandemic owns a lot of the blame for the lack of workers willing to put in a full days work

fixed it for you.....

 

[passedpawn]

I placed an order a week ago online from Northern Brewer and, besides an email that says there's been a "delay", have been unable to get any further update from NB about my order. It's been a week, and the order is still unfulfilled despite their website still indicating that they're shipping most orders in 2-3 business days.

Today, I saw that there were several threads both on HBT and Reddit about the delays brewers have experienced with NB over the past year--some up to two weeks or more!!! I understand that there are staffing issues and other logistics affecting nearly every business, but it makes no sense that NB's competitors can deliver same day while they are struggling in this regard.

For reference, I sent three texts to the textable number provided on the NB website, sent two emails--one for an update, one to cancel the order, and attempted to call the textable number as well as the Milwaukee retail store as there is no number to reach customer service available anywhere that I've been able to find (and I've looked HARD).

Because I've heard nothing back from them, I called my CC company to dispute the transaction. I hate doing this to any merchant, but this lack of customer service and responsiveness makes me lose faith that NB will come through on their promise to either provide the goods I've ordered or refund the money. Quite frankly, I've never experienced such a poor customer service/ordering experience. I'm not the kind of person that expects immediate service or shipping, but I do expect some degree of responsiveness from the merchants I buy from.

I know that there are plenty of quality suppliers out there, and I intend on giving them my business. I'm equal opportunity as I don't have a LHBS anywhere near me, and the one I've always used (Texas Brewing, Inc.) decided to pare down their homebrewing operations and focus on their commercial brewing supplies after covid.

Unfortunately, I have to recommend against anyone ordering from Northern Brewer. My experience was horrible at best. I know that I'm not the only one, and I also know that others have had good experiences, but I need to share my experience to protect other brewers from having a similar experience to mine.

well, I guess I'll be the contrarian. Of course, being an Amazon fan, I like to get my purchases at my door 4am-8am the next day.

They did respond and tell you it was delayed. Yes, I'd be annoyed to. But I do remember when 6-8 WEEKS was normal for getting your decoder ring when sending in the boxtop from the cereal box, plus a couple of bucks. You think you're impatient? Imagine 6-8wks to a kid who NEEDS the decoder ring. Geez.

 

[z-bob]

well, I guess I'll be the contrarian. Of course, being an Amazon fan, I like to get my purchases at my door 4am-8am the next day.

They did respond and tell you it was delayed. Yes, I'd be annoyed to. But I do remember when 6-8 WEEKS was normal for getting your decoder ring when sending in the boxtop from the cereal box, plus a couple of bucks. You think you're impatient? Imagine 6-8wks to a kid who NEEDS the decoder ring. Geez.

Or X-ray glasses. Or sea monkeys.

 

[Teufelhunde]

Or X-ray glasses. Or sea monkeys.

I remember seeing those when I was young....LOL

 

[Dancy]

Pretty sure they're the ones who bought out my LHBS then blew everyone out and closed down the store (online only now). I have zero interest in them, they can go out of business tomorrow for all I care.

Seems everything today is owned by a single corporation, no more local stores.

If the small stores are dwindling, why wouldn‘t you care if they went out of business tomorrow?? Let’s hope they figure things out.

Yesterday, I received the dreaded email for a delay as well and I live across town from them in a Mpls suburb. Their store hours during the week are my work hours so I ordered last Sunday figuring their sale would lessen the shipping costs for me. Their site stated a Friday, 10/7 delivery, in time to brew today — no such luck though.

 

[Somesaymybeerisdrinkable]

I don't have a LHBS anywhere near me, and the one I've always used (Texas Brewing, Inc.) decided to pare down their homebrewing operations and focus on their commercial brewing supplies after covid.

FYI. BrewHound in west Fort Worth, and North Texas Homebrew Supply in north Dallas are both good options if you want to buy "local".

 

[Brewdog80]

I'll chime in also. I bought simple 4 items, all equipment, no supplies that had to be weighted and bagged up. Was 2 weeks getting to me. Yeah, $10 coupon. Should have applied the coupon to this order. Mt issue is that they immediately are charging your CC for the goods. I'll most probably not be buying from them for a while.

 

[Steveruch]

I've never had any problems ordering from NB or Midwest Supply, (they are the same company, if you don't know) but I haven't ordered from them in about 3 or 4 years and a lot can happen (usually bad) in that time.

I just placed an order from ritebrew.com Monday night and it was delivered on Thursday. A local brewery offered to let homebrew club members piggyback off his wholesale order for sacks of grain last week, but even with shipping ritebrew was a little cheaper and faster, and I don't have to drive 20 miles out to the brewery to pick it up.

ritebrew

 

[Steveruch]

While I did just find a good deal on Amazon for some yeast most of the prices for home brew items are shockingly high.

 

[z-bob]

While I did just find a good deal on Amazon for some yeast most of the prices for home brew items are shockingly high.

I buy 10-packs of wine yeast from Amazon sometimes. I have so many packets of yeast I don't know why I save jars of yeast slurry in the fridge. Or if I need just one thing and don't want to order from ritebrew or farmhouse, etc. I'll get it from Amazon. But mostly Amazon is overpriced for brewing supplies. Unfortunately there's no LHBS here; there used to be 2. (I used to buy half of my stuff locally even if it cost more, and half online)

 

[tracer bullet]

The semi-monthly new thread about NB being slow.

There are certainly other options, check them out. NB will survive.

I'll put in a plug for Ritebrew for ingredients and Brewhardware for equipment. But there are many good shops.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

The semi-monthly new thread about NB being slow.

^^^THIS ^^^

There are certainly other options, check them out.

Here's a recent list from the late Sept thread (link) on NB being slow:

Here are some possibles: Atlantic Brew Supply, Home Brew Ohio, Label Peelers, More Beer, Rite Brew, Williams Brewing. There are others and, depending upon where you live, a local shop my be good. Check the pricing and availability of what you want from some places other than Northern Brewer.​

NB will survive.

I hope so. The last time my travels took me through either St Paul or Minneapolis, their 'in-person' stores had really nice grains rooms.

I'll put in a plug for Ritebrew for ingredients [...]

Ritebrew + the regional delivery service has been a good combination for me over the last couple of years.

I haven't ordered from them in a couple of months - but it looks like product and shipping prices haven't changed much over the summer / fall.

 

[D.B.Moody]

If the small stores are dwindling, why wouldn‘t you care if they went out of business tomorrow?? Let’s hope they figure things out.

Let's hope they don't. If the private equity firm that owns NB finally manages to swallow AIH and AHB and realize the savings and extra income from closing those stores like they did Midwest years ago, they'll have money to leverage another buyout of another place, close that store, and raise the prices for on line ordering. Their problem with staffing is that they closed the other stores without having the capacity/capability of handling the business from the one warehouse.in Minnesota.

Rite Brew is great, but they don't carry Muntons DME and yeast. Home Brew Ohio does, and it also carries the label paper I use. Currently, my ordering is from Rite Brew, Home Brew Ohio, and my local, Missouri Malt.

 

[Steveruch]

I buy 10-packs of wine yeast from Amazon sometimes. I have so many packets of yeast I don't know why I save jars of yeast slurry in the fridge. Or if I need just one thing and don't want to order from ritebrew or farmhouse, etc. I'll get it from Amazon. But mostly Amazon is overpriced for brewing supplies. Unfortunately there's no LHBS here; there used to be 2. (I used to buy half of my stuff locally even if it cost more, and half online)

I got a ten pack of Muntons for $16.90. I like Muntons for three gallon batches of bitter and mild, but it is getting harder and harder to fibd.

 

[catalanotte]

I hate to see NB trashed here because I have nothing but great things to say about them, but I am in the Milwaukee area and only buy from their store in person. Great selection, grain room, and awesome staff. Hard to compare this experience to mail order.

I do know the ownership of NB changed in 2016 and began the mega chain of shops discussed above. I had no idea that they were owned by a subsidiary of AB InBev (linked article below). Guess the big breweries figured out how to capture some of the profit they lost when people switched to craft beer and home brewing.

https://growlermag.com/big-beer-buys-northern-brewer/

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

.... Oct 2016

https://growlermag.com/big-beer-buys-northern-brewer/
... July 2019:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/h...tal-Holdings-LLC-Acquires-Northern-Brewer-LLC

 

[catalanotte]

... July 2019:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/h...tal-Holdings-LLC-Acquires-Northern-Brewer-LLC

That make sense. I remember the folks in the local shop complaining about the 2016 move but then things got better with some corporate change a few years later. Never knew what happened.

 

[D.B.Moody]

I had no idea that they were owned by a subsidiary of AB InBev

They are not currently owned by AB InBev. AB InBev sold them to ZX Ventures, an affiliate of Blackstreet Capital Holding in 2019.

Edit: Didn't know answer was being posted by @BrewnWKopperKat while I wrote mine.

 

[PCABrewing]

I hate to see NB trashed here because I have nothing but great things to say about them, but I am in the Milwaukee area and only buy from their store in person. Great selection, grain room, and awesome staff. Hard to compare this experience to mail order.

I do know the ownership of NB changed in 2016 and began the mega chain of shops discussed above. I had no idea that they were owned by a subsidiary of AB InBev (linked article below). Guess the big breweries figured out how to capture some of the profit they lost when people switched to craft beer and home brewing.

https://growlermag.com/big-beer-buys-northern-brewer/

At the time of the InBev acquisition I pondered if it could be one move in a conspiracy to crush or diminish the HB market.
Buy the big stores, help them grow resulting in the small LHBS whithering, then squeeze the life (and value) out of the big store while pointing to the failure of the small stores as evidence the the market is drying up.

Obviously this falls into the category of "conspiracy theory", but isn't it possible.
I'm not saying that is what is happening, but it is one reason we have anti-trust laws.
Problem is, our "hobby" market is probably too small to get the attention of regulators.


The defense to that tactic is the proliferation of other successful independent stores.
In that case the market changes but doesn't dry-up.

 

[matt_m]

Pretty sure they're the ones who bought out my LHBS then blew everyone out and closed down the store (online only now). I have zero interest in them, they can go out of business tomorrow for all I care.

Yes, they bought and dismantled AIH.

Apparently Cap N Cork in Macomb county is closing too. I believe that leaves us with just Cadillac Straights in Madison Heights in all of SE Michigan. They actually just expanded their brew supply shop.

 

[Ironbottom]

Northern Brewer is also charging a fuel charge and the charge doesn't appear till check out. You are supposed to be warned of the fuel charge before the check out. It's only a $1.00 Just didn't like seeing it after I checked out without my knowledge.

I ordered on Sept 23 and received my two beer kits on Oct 8. I went back and forth trying to find out when the kits would be shipped and all I got was they are short on manpower. Did not get a $10 coupon. Pumpkin ale to late to brew for Halloween now.

What do you think of MoreBeer.com?

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

@PCABrewing: A couple of observations:

1. Home brew supply stores are a retail operation (commodity process) selling items for cooking that come from multiple suppliers (commodity products). I'm not seeing a profitable reason to attempt to vertically integrated the entire home brewing "industry".
2. Privately held specialty businesses have a 'business lifecycle'. Mrs Fields® Original Cookies Inc may be an interesting example on how a niche businesses evolves through that 'business lifecycle'. Wikipedia has the high level overview.

Spoiler

They didn't crush making chocolate chip cookies at home.

 

[Dancy]

Let's hope they don't.

I take your points after your opening statement but I live in the Twin Cities and there really aren’t small store alternatives to NB and Midwest. I am NOT assuming some nice mom and pop homebrew shops are going to pop up and take their place if they fail. Frankly, if the hobby becomes too expensive, I’ll move on to something else. This hobby has people involved on many levels as evidenced here on HBT, from those on a shoe string to others who spend a lot on the latest equipment and build dedicated spaces in their homes, garages and backyards to brew in. I find it gratifying to brew my own but I don’t brew as often as many of you here because I don’t entertain and I keep 98% of what I brew. The thing is, I drink a beer or two after work, occasionally more and sometimes I skip a day or two and don't drink alcohol at all. As a result, I don’t brew every couple of weeks or even monthly. I might if I didn’t live in a one bedroom condo.

My point is, there are plenty of people like me in the hobby who are not spending as much proportionate to our income as some of you who brew way more often and more than 5G at time. I am not well off, but if I spend $15+ more on ingredients at Midwest or NB than I did a year ago, I really don’t care because I’m not a high volume brewer. I understand that’s prohibitive if you’re a high volume brewer.
I’d like to know the number of home brewers at the upper level of volume and dollars spent all the way down to people like me. Then the question is if the market comfortably supports the small LHBS or is it going to be the big boys? Can they coexist?
I started home brewing in the mid 90s — thank you Charlie Papazian — and left it after 4 years due to a divorce and no space before coming back to it 15 years later thanks to electric brewing. Back then, there was NB and MW as well as a 2-3 (?) small shops (in the Twin Cities where I live). I am sure there were relatively more small (5G) batch brewers than there are today. I think the number of homebrewers spending more on high level gear and brewing with greater frequency has increased a great deal since then. Can the small local shops thrive today? Go ahead and wish NB and MW to fail but will there be a LHBS to take its place or will I have to order online like I do so many other things in my life? I like Midwest as a store and if you ever set foot in it, you’d see it’s pretty nice. I’d like it to succeed.

 

[PCABrewing]

@PCABrewing: A couple of observations:

1. Home brew supply stores are a retail operation (commodity process) selling items for cooking that come from multiple suppliers (commodity products). I'm not seeing a profitable reason to attempt to vertically integrated the entire home brewing "industry".
2. Privately held specialty businesses have a 'business lifecycle'. Mrs Fields® Original Cookies Inc may be an interesting example on how a niche businesses evolves through that 'business lifecycle'. Wikipedia has the high level overview.

Spoiler

They didn't crush making chocolate chip cookies at home.

Who said anything about Vertical Integration??
I was laying out a hypothetical based on the premise that one entity wanted to reduce or eliminate competition from another. Edit; In this case the "other" competition would be the Homebrew Market itself.

I never said it was plausible....

 

[redrocker652002]

I have only ordered a few things from NB and that was a while ago. We have a Morebeer about 30 mins from me,, and the guys that work there are super helpful. One guy is an assistant brewmaster at a small startup in Holister. He invited me to come by and have a look but that is a bit of a ride. I can order what I need online, have it sent to the store free and then look around a bit. One of these days I might bring a bottle or two of my brew in to see what they think but I don't know them all that well yet. Either way, they are good guys to talk to and seem to have a wealth of knowledge.

 

[bike2brew]

I placed an order a week ago online from Northern Brewer and, besides an email that says there's been a "delay", have been unable to get any further update from NB about my order. It's been a week, and the order is still unfulfilled despite their website still indicating that they're shipping most orders in 2-3 business days.

Today, I saw that there were several threads both on HBT and Reddit about the delays brewers have experienced with NB over the past year--some up to two weeks or more!!! I understand that there are staffing issues and other logistics affecting nearly every business, but it makes no sense that NB's competitors can deliver same day while they are struggling in this regard.

For reference, I sent three texts to the textable number provided on the NB website, sent two emails--one for an update, one to cancel the order, and attempted to call the textable number as well as the Milwaukee retail store as there is no number to reach customer service available anywhere that I've been able to find (and I've looked HARD).

Because I've heard nothing back from them, I called my CC company to dispute the transaction. I hate doing this to any merchant, but this lack of customer service and responsiveness makes me lose faith that NB will come through on their promise to either provide the goods I've ordered or refund the money. Quite frankly, I've never experienced such a poor customer service/ordering experience. I'm not the kind of person that expects immediate service or shipping, but I do expect some degree of responsiveness from the merchants I buy from.

I know that there are plenty of quality suppliers out there, and I intend on giving them my business. I'm equal opportunity as I don't have a LHBS anywhere near me, and the one I've always used (Texas Brewing, Inc.) decided to pare down their homebrewing operations and focus on their commercial brewing supplies after covid.

Unfortunately, I have to recommend against anyone ordering from Northern Brewer. My experience was horrible at best. I know that I'm not the only one, and I also know that others have had good experiences, but I need to share my experience to protect other brewers from having a similar experience to mine.

Cooling the wort for a stout using LME obtained from, NB on Friday. Order placed 10 days previously.

 

[kevin58]

Amazon is not doing next-day anymore in some markets. I'm paying for Amazon Prime (I might let it lapse) and lately it's taking a week to get orders, if I get them at all. Then it takes a week to get a refund on an order they never shipped; they just generated a tracking number and abandoned it. I've talked to several people and businesses in this area and they're experiencing the same thing.

Who owns NB now? For a while it was AB InBev (Budweiser). Maybe there's something nefarious going on? I love a good conspiracy theory, but I don't put much stock in them.

InBev sold Northern Brewer in 2019. It was bought by company called Blackstreet Capital Holdings. Blackstreet recently bought Adventures in Homebrewing and Austin Homebrew Supply - closed both stores and now operate online only.