Planning for the big time

[Thor the Mighty]

Anyone know how much money *roughly* it would take to open a nanobrewery? I'm in the midst of trying to figure out a business plan and if anyone has numbers and or advice for me, i would be extremely grateful.

cheers.

 

[weirdboy]

I happen to know some folks who managed to go from paper to having their beer on tap in local bars for less than $80k, but they put in a LOT of sweat equity. They have a 7bbl system with 3 fermenters.

 

[Thor the Mighty]

I happen to know some folks who managed to go from paper to having their beer on tap in local bars for less than $80k, but they put in a LOT of sweat equity. They have a 7bbl system with 3 fermenters.

who was it? i wanna talk to them. if i can get a brewery off the ground for 80k, it would be a huge relief haha. thats including a license and all??

 

[mrtrav]

That's impressive to get a 7bbl system up and running for only 80k. Most used systems of that size will run you around 50k.

California is very pro-opening a brewery. We have a lot of laws that allow us small guys to self distribute and sell beer on premise. However the cost to run a business in CA is absurd. A member on here just opened one out of his shed, I think is name is Healdsbrew. However I don't believe he is above 1bbl production.

If you want to do it as a side job to make some cash as a second income, 3bbl or less would work just fine. I have been running the numbers for awhile and nothing less then 7bbl seemed to make sense from a pure businesses perspective. I have decided on a 15bbl system (10bbl if I can find a great deal). I am planning on raising 300-500k to get it off the ground. There are a few resources of guys like us working on opening their own. You can find them here...

www.510brewing.com - mine
www.healdsburgbeercompany.com - another guy from this forum
www.entrebrewer.com
www.mondaynightbrewery.com

If you have any questions on what planning we have done thus far, just shoot me an email....I'd be happy to help.

 

[I_B_Mongo]

Check out HBBoss's post in the DIY forum. He's doing exactly what you're planning. I'm sure he could give you tons of info.

Good luck! Living the dream! (hopefully!)

 

[MikeRLynch]

+1 to starting with 7bbls or more. It will take you almost exactly the same amount of time to make 7 bbls as it will to make 1. Your profit margin with 14 half barrel kegs will be much greater than your margin on 2 half barrel kegs.

This being said I'm starting a 1 bbl brewery I figure it will be a good way to figure out process, consistancy, and recipes. When things are looking good, I'll be able to shop that beer around and see if there is interest. If it looks viable, I can drum up investors and loans to get the bigger system, keeping my 1 bbl as a pilot.

The whole brewery right now is a non-commercial, private homebrew system. We're paying for it with savings and change, and cobbling together anything we can find in our spare time. However we plan on using it as a stepping stone into a full, commercially viable system if the environment seems good. This way we'll have our beer production down, and will be able to focus on making a business happen. Honestly I don't think I could handle legalities and licencing while simultaniously trying to get my mash tun to lauter.

 

[weirdboy]

Talked to one of the guys with the 7bbl system last night and he said they're up to about $105k now in startup costs.

 

[MultumInParvo]

I love brewing, but from a business perspective I would have to say that it would be brutal to open one up and stay successful. I am not saying that it can't be done, but between the barriers of entry, extreme competition, and rising costs, it would be hard to make any substantial money.

That being said, it would be really cool, and if its your dream you should chase it. Just don't expect to get rich doing so. (it doesn't sound like you are)

Best of luck to you, report back on what you find.

 

[metaltim]

you know, as a musician who would love to make a living playing music, let alone make it big.. i have to say it seems very similar to brewing. both are an art.. and to make it work and make a living you need a good portion of people in your area to like your art.
to make it big, you need a lot of people nationwide to like your art.