The steps of starting a brewery business share many similarities with other industries, but it’s crucial that you have an idea of what you should expect when creating your own specific business. There’s an audience out there, ready to tantalize their tastebuds with hoppy new drinks, so what should you expect?
A plan is always crucial
It’s the same advice you’ll get when you start practically any business, but it’s worth keeping in mind: you’ll need to focus on planning. Specifically, you should create a business plan to outline the expected costs, how you intend to do business, and how much you need to sell to break even and start making a profit. Some excellent business plan websites can deliver templates to customize to your needs, and some even have industry-specific business plans to find the brewery business plan that you can tweak to fit your circumstances and goals.
Space is key
You will naturally need some space to start brewing your drinks. Finding the right property for your brewery is vital, but you should be thinking beyond what you need just now. Does the space that you’re looking at offer some space for expansion? If not, you might have to go through this process again once you start steadily selling your drinks and need to expand further.
Invest in good equipment
If you’re going to be a good brewer, you also need to be meticulous in managing your workshop. Using effective brewery machinery and your dedication to cleaning and maintaining them will be crucial to creating a consistent product for your customers. Do your research on what brewery equipment you might need. Ensure that you choose a supplier that can provide replacement parts when required and support you in helping you take the best care of your equipment. This will be one of your highest costs, so ensure you know what you need before looking at financing.
Get an idea of the legal side
Alcohol is not a product anyone can buy, and, as such, it comes with some pretty strict legal obligations you’ll have to get a good idea of. Similarly, it comes with product safety regulations for all food and drink products. If you want to ensure that you’re staying on the right side of the law, it’s always a good idea to work with a legal advisor with experience in your area.
Start building your route to market
How are you going to sell the drinks that you bottle? It would help if you had a pretty good idea of this before you earnestly get into production. It’s a good idea to start networking with bar owners and craft beer supporters through networking events and conferences specific to locally-brewed beers. Start talking with people who might potentially carry your product and get in touch with local stores that carry alcohol as well. Then, of course, you can always establish your taproom, but it comes with challenges that need more detail than we will get here.
Know what skills you need to build a brewery
Investing in the proper setup, ensuring you have an airtight plan, and finding the right partners are all well and good. However, some of the business’s success will come from your skills and abilities: the business owner. As such, if you have yet to do it, you might want to look into the possibility of getting some business education to help you get a better idea of what to expect from running a business. Knowing how a brewery is run isn’t enough; you must also know business realities.
The tips above are just a few of the first things you should anticipate when starting a brewery business. The challenges of starting a business can change from company to company, so staying flexible and being ready to identify and cut off obstacles can be crucial.
