Craft Brewery Financial Training Podcast

Today on the podcast I'm joined by Jack Kessler and Steven Welborn from Ohanafy - the only brewery and wholesaler software platform built on SalesForce. If you're interested in growing beer sales (and learning about the financial aspects of the beer business) this podcast is for you. Key Topics Why it's crucial for beer producers to understand the financial intricacies of their busi...

If you're ready to get serious about improving brewery profits and cash flow, the Beer Business Finance Association is here for you. The association is a network of brewery owners and managers who come together to share ideas and best practices to help run a financially successful beer business. In today's podcast, I'll share why the network came to be, and how you can join and tran...

Today we talk variable compensation and incentives with Aaron Gore, Director of Partnerships and Community at Arryved. Key Points 99% of breweries in the U.S. see taproom operations as the biggest profit driver How to align employee compensation and incentives with top brewery objectives Examples and benchmarks to follow when setting up incentives First steps to implement a variable comp plan in y...

Michael Varda from Craft Beer Advisory Services joins the podcast and shares early insights on 2023 taproom data trends.  The goal of Michaels data is to show you why customers come to your taproom and what you can do to keep them coming back.  Key Points The #1 factor in negative experiences: It's food.  What the "Food Ladder" can teach you about a customer's likelihood to com...

Today on the podcast we hear from Brynn Keenan from Grist Analytics.  Brynn and I talk all about brewery data and key metrics to track to ensure cost effectiveness in production.   Key Topics Case studies of how Ninkasi and New Belgium cut production costs and increased tank capacity KPI's used to track efficiency, throughput, resource utilization and equipment performance Resources Connect w...

Today on the podcast we hear from Justina Marcial, Director of Operations at Cape May Brewery.  Justina shares Cape May's story of selling their distribution rights, how they build a strong culture with their 7 core values, and how they take company communication to a new level with a structured process.  Key Topics Cape May's financial and business planning process, software stack and 2...

Today on the podcast we hear from Dave Williams, VP of Analytics & Insights at Bump Williams Consulting. Dave shares tips on how to create a portfolio strategy for the new year . He highlights several areas where beer is "winning" and how breweries can take advantage. And we dig into pricing and price sensitivity at retail. Pricing is a big deal. Dave shares what you need to know abo...

In today's podcast we share tips and tactics to build your taproom financial plan. The process of financial planning (budgeting) can be long and arduous. Today, we talk about how to make it easier and maybe even enjoyable! Key Points How to motivate your taproom manager to tackle the budget The first steps you should take when starting your plan Models and explainer videos to guide you throug...

Today on the podcast we hear from Scott Birkner from Dogwood State Bank. If you're looking to fund a startup brewery or expand existing operations, you'll want to listen to this podcast. Scott shares all the details you need to know about SBA lending and how to position yourself to get the best loan possible.  Key Points Types of SBA loans available to breweries  Eligibility requirements...

In today's podcast Bump Williams shares an early read on the BWC growth strategy survey.   The results are...surprising.  The survey is sent to hundreds of retailers, wholesalers and breweries, and asks one simple question:  What are your strategies for growth in the upcoming year? The results are tallied, sorted by the most common answers, and analyzed to determine overlap amongst the compan...

Today we hear from Andrew Coplon, founder of Secret Hopper, a mystery shopping service for taprooms and brewpubs. Andrew has tons of data to share from over 6,000 unique taproom visits. Examples include adding paper menus to increase guest spending by 25% and increasing to-go beer sales by 5x with one simple question.  Key Takeaways The most important taproom data points to measure and manage   Ta...

Today on the podcast we hear from Metazoa Brewing Vice President Lauren Frederick. Lauren's background is in sales and marketing, but she shares her tips and tactics to learn the financial aspects of running a brewery. Many brewery operators are non-financial managers. In today's episode you'll hear Lauren's journey from sales rep to vice president and the financial knowledge s...

Today on the podcast we review a tool you can use to amplify cash flow in your brewery, it's called Melio . Melio is one of the fastest-growing B2B payments companies in the U.S. and is reinventing the way customers and suppliers pay each other. You'll hear from Aaron Gervais, CEO and co-founder of Otherwise Brewing, a gluten-free brewery based in San Francisco. Aaron uses Melio to strea...

In today's podcast we talk brewery insurance with John Round and Shannon Prescott from the Richards Group. John and Shannon share their insights on loss prevention, creative benefits, industry specific coverages to be aware of, and trends in the industry. Key Topics How breweries can use creative benefits as a recruitment tool Insurance cost reduction tactics for breweries Areas where a broke...

Today on the podcast we talk about grant seeking and grant writing with Tranice Watts If you are a brewery owner or operator and you're interested in finding grant money you'll want to listen to this podcast Tranice takes us through the state certification process, how to search for grants, and how the application process works. Key Points How to search for grants (state and local) Types...

Beer businesses are always on the lookout for ways to reduce costs and increase sales. In today’s podcast we talk with Bud Dunn from VxP, who shares a tool that you can use to reduce finished product loss by 50% or more, and increase gross profit per CE by 20 cents or more . Key Topics Volume is good, profits are better, how to use VxP to increase both How to align sales rep incentives with overal...

In today’s podcast we dive into the magical world of distributor contracts, and provide Five Steps you can follow to a better contract for your brewery. The distributor contract is a big point of contention between craft breweries and distributors . Before any beer is delivered, the contract has to be reviewed, debated, negotiated, and eventually signed. The challenge with most contracts is that b...

Today we learn all about SBA loans with Scott Birkner from Dogwood State Bank. If you need to borrow money to start or grow your brewery, then you need to listen to this podcast. Scott breaks down all the details of SBA 7A and 504 loans and shares his advice on how to best prepare for the loan process. Key Topics Financing trends in the brewing industry How to prepare for an SBA loan: When to star...

Today we talk with Roger Kissling, VP of Sales for Iron Heart Canning. Roger shares all the details you need to know about mobile canning services. Iron Heart has 28 warehouses in 27 stats, and packaged approximately 100 million cans last year.  If your brewery is thinking about canning solutions, Iron Heart may be the answer.  Key Topics Logistics of mobile canning Pricing, contracts, expectation...

Chris Holden is Director of Sales and Marketing for the Hop Guild and a grower in New York state.  In today's podcast, Chris shares his insights on the state of the hop industry, recent trends, and talks about a new product called HOPSAUCE . "HOPSAUCE® is The Hop Guild‘s proprietary hop oil developed to replace traditional hop products on the hot side and in the whirlpool. HOPSAUCE® will...

In today's podcast we talk lessons learned starting, running and selling a brewery with Jeremy Cowan, founder of Shmaltz Brewing. Jeremy's advice to those who want to start a brewery?   "Don't."   "100% do not start a brewery. Go find a really cool brewery where the owners are spread a little thin, and go buy one, or become a partner...before you ever start your own b...

Today we talk cash flow with ResolvePay co-founder and CEO Chris Tsai.  ResolvePay is a tool that takes the guesswork out of credit checks, and helps you manage and improve cash flow. Whether you are a brewery in self-distribution or a supplier servicing the beer industry, ResolvePay can help your business improve cash flow.  Key Topics How to use "buy now, pay later" to increase sales a...

Today on the podcast we hear from Jeremy Cowan, founder of Shmaltz Brewing and Coney Island Brewing.  Jeremy shares his journey from starting to selling his breweries and lessons learned along the way. Jeremy talks about one of his passions: Helping breweries to lose less money . This may not be the most optimistic way to frame the problem (losing money) but it can be a very practical first step f...

In today's podcast you'll hear the audio version of our webinar with Kegshoe on Managing Your Keg Fleet: The Hidden Costs and Opportunities. The old saying goes that "kegs have legs", and they tend to go missing. On average breweries lose 5-10% of their kegs each year, which can add up to a lot of dollars. However, breweries using Kegshoe lose only 1% of their kegs each year -...

On today's podcast we hear from Tess Gorman from Attensi, the global leader in gamified training simulation. Brewery owners are always on the lookout for ways to improve employee training, and Attensi just might be the solution. Key Topics How to connect brewery KPIs to training so that you can see measurable improvement Train staff to increase sales using the upsell Training programs to redu...