Starting a micro brewery

[phatboy1123]

Hello all,

I am a home brewer enthusiast and have been for some time, and have recently started looking at setting up my own microbrewery as a full time occupation.

I would be investing in a 6BBL plant from PBC breweries with 2 fermenting vessels - giving the capacity of 192 firkins per month.

I am currently writing up a business plan and a few different cash flow forecasts to secure funding. One of the things that I can't be certain of would be how achievable it is to sell to pubs.

From doing research I would look at selling around £60-65 per firkin, and for the first couple of months would hope to be selling 2 brews (48 firkins) per month, and eventually working up to 6 brews per month by the end of the first 12 months, but is this over estimating what I could push into pubs?

And does anyone know what proportion of pubs, if any, would be happy to setup a regular supply (say 3-4 firkins per week?)?

I'm based in Huddersfield, so there is a mass of local pubs in the West/South Yorkshire area serving real ale.

Hopefully the combined knowledge on this forum can help further my research and business interest and make my dreams a reality!

Thanks
Tom

[Mr. Dripping]

Almost impossible to answer with any degree of accuracy.
You need a list of places that are free of tie. Then you have to get on your bike and go and talk to them.

[masterosouffle]

It will also depend if you beer is any good

[46philh]

How long until there is an over supply from micros ? Got to be close to market saturation soon ?

Unless of course it is Brew Pub


List in Huddersfield already....

http://www.examiner.co.uk/news/west-yor ... ld-4953910

[Subsonic]

Don't forget planning permission..... Sub

[zgoda]

Strange. With such small capacity you'd be unable to make living in Poland at the level of bare existence. 10 bbl weekly is barely enough to feed the family, with the assumption you brew every week, 50 batches yearly.

Good luck.

[Heron1952]

Interesting points about market saturation. I wonder what percentage of beer and lager drunk in UK is brewed in micros and how much is brewed by the mega brewers and how much by the independents.
Judging by the fact that some independents like Hydes have a so called micro brewery in house the market is certainly being shaken up. How much more can be creamed off the large brewers and can the market be extended. Surly even a Fosters drinker could be persuaded to try and prefer say a German pilsner if it was brewed locally.

[WishboneBrewery]

Can I add that other people also make breweries, its worth getting a quote from other Fabricators...

[Blackaddler]

If you haven't already done so, get hold of a copy of the Microbrewers Handbook.

[Belter]

If you haven't already done so, get hold of a copy of the Microbrewers Handbook.

+1. Get that for starters, read it, then ask the questions you have left after.... If... You still want to do it.

[bigdave]

Assuming you get off the ground and your beer's good... A great way to get it out there is to put some kegs into local beer festivals.

It's also worth noting that you can canvas and sell kegs to who ever you want, freehold or tied! It's just the way you supply those kegs that differs. For example to sell to freehold you sell directly to the pub but to sell to a tied pub you sell the keg to the brewery who then sell it on to the landlord of the pub.

[Patterd Ale]

Can I add that other people also make breweries, its worth getting a quote from other Fabricators...

Indeed! "Those" breweries all have the same shortcomings.

[Pinto]

I think looking at a brewpub is the way forward - as it's been stated, there are many, many micro's out there these days, all competing for a smaller and smaller market as the traditional pub trade is bled to death by Count Camerona and his Nosferatu.

But considering a brewpub... There are a LOT of empty pubs out there, calling out for new owners; it provides you with your own outlet, as well as a location for the brewery itself.

[scuppeteer]

To reiterate Zgoda's comment, you would need to be selling at least 2 brews a week not a month in order to make a profit, unless you have other income plans for the first year or 2. A reasonably local micro to me folded earlier this year because he thought he could make money on 2 brews per month, very poor business plan I think was the main problem.
Your main issue would be persuading pubs to take your beer in the first place what with so many others available, you would have to provide a certain amount initially as samples just to get pubs to take it. It also would have to shine over what is already out there for repeat custom especially if you expect them to take 4 firkins a week. The pricing is about right until you are established £60 would be better for starters.
You also must account for raw materials, HMRC, distribution, rates, water, waste, electricity etc, etc. You would be unlikely to be able to draw a wage for the first 12-18months.
You actually have capacity to produce more than your 192 firkins per month if you have conditioning tanks also or were you thinking of racking straight to cask?
Either way a great venture to start out on but make sure you cross the i's and t's before embarking on it.

[stuey]

Also bear in mind to keep your fermenting room cleaner and save continual clearing up you would be advised to brew short at 5 or even 4bbl in the open fermenters from PBC or anyone else for that matter.