Location Location Location

[apoxbrew]

This is kind of a piggy-back on another thread posted recently... but the question was more about cost in the other than a general question about location and new nano/micro-brewery startups.

The old adage for retail businesses in general is that location is key. This generally means popular (e.g. downtown), high traffic areas are critical (or at the very least... exceptionally helpful) when it comes to finding a space to operate in.

However, someone else mentioned (here) that for the brewing industry, customers will seek out your product (assuming it's good anyway) and that depending on what you're going for as a proprietor, a more industrial type feel in a grittier part of town might actually be an attractant for customers.

I was just seeking some feedback on this. We're currently looking for locations for a nano and tasting room (pint and growler sales), and while we originally wanted a space in a warehouse in an industrial section, we've actually been focusing on more retail oriented spaces in the popular downtown area of the city. Obviously, though, these spaces are more expensive and if it will actually serve our purpose better to go back to plan A, I'd certainly be pleased as this fits with our original concept much more closely.

[defenestrate]

i can only comment as some one who is still in planning, but i would steer clear of retail locations. overhead is one of many things that will crush a small brewery. you'll be paying that high rent for months while getting set up and licensed and that can really hurt you.

IMO, you won't get enough walk ins to justify paying for the location. you obviously don't want to be in a wasteland... but ive seen some pretty booming small breweries in pretty lame areas.

one thing you can look for is "back of the house" locations in that downtown area... lots of businesses with extra space nowadays.

just my .02.

[Brewtopian]

You know there is one other creative solution. The guys over at Captured By Porches have their brewery located way outside of town in about the least expensive place on Earth but have a presence all over Portland with a mobile brewpub. They took an old school bus and installed taps in the side and they park it in parking lots all over the city on different nights of the week and operate a little tap house under a tent with picnic tables.

[SRB]

... They took an old school bus and installed taps in the side and they park it in parking lots all over the city on different nights of the week and operate a little tap house under a tent with picnic tables.

Gotta LOVE Portlandia...and the food truck movement in general!!

[yap]

I think Portland is probably one of very few places where that idea will fly. Sounds cool though...

[Brewtopian]

I think Portland is probably one of very few places where that idea will fly. Sounds cool though...

You'd be surprised. Here in Idaho for example you can pull a $60 catering permit that identifies the location that you plan to hold your "event" and you can pour on any piece of private property that you want so long as you have permission from the property owner and identify the specific area where alcohol is permitted. All that is required to meet that standard is a rope strung along a perimeter with signs saying "No Alcohol Beyond This Point".

If you think about it this makes a lot o sense and will be legal in virtually every city otherwise special events and the companies that put them on would never be able to operate. The only thing is like here in Boise if you pull a permit day after day in the same location you're probably going to loose the right to operate in that space eventually so as long as you keep the truck moving throughout the area only hitting the locations a couples times a month you should be fine.

[yap]

I'm in Ohio so sometimes I forget there are many more progressive places than this. Here you can get one day permits to serve at festivals etc, but if you just wanted to get a random permit to serve in a random parking lot on a random day they wouldn't let that fly for very long....

[Brewtopian]

I'm in Ohio so sometimes I forget there are many more progressive places than this. Here you can get one day permits to serve at festivals etc, but if you just wanted to get a random permit to serve in a random parking lot on a random day they wouldn't let that fly for very long....

Don't get me wrong, its far from random. You have to have an exact address for a specific day and you have file more than 30 days in advance so it can get cumbersome. On the upside, if you're good with planning things you can know 2 or 3 months in advance where you're going to be and pull your permits accordingly. I wouldn't be surprised at all if you could do something like this in your town.

[Bierkoenig]

The problem with this approach (in Oregon anyway) is that the holder of a brewpub license is only allowed 31 special event days per year. CBP has three of these buses (or at least has parked a bus at three locations I'm aware of) so 31 days doesn't go very far.

[defenestrate]

i thought about the "beer truck" idea early on- selling drafts and home made pretzels i dismissed the idea simply becuase i didn't think it would be feasible, too good to be true- i never actually pursued it.

[apoxbrew]

while the truck thing is a unique and interesting idea... it's not really what i had in mind.

in terms of physical (non-mobile) location - how willing do yall think customers are to visit a "destination" location vs. something right downtown. are the cost trade-off's worth the higher rent on a retail space vs. a warehouse space??

[einhorn]

...in terms of physical (non-mobile) location - how willing do yall think customers are to visit a "destination" location vs. something right downtown. are the cost trade-off's worth the higher rent on a retail space vs. a warehouse space??

I'm not sure anyone here can answer that, as all markets are local. There are places that survive and thrive on both ends of the spectrum, and there is no silver bullet.

[Brewtopian]

while the truck thing is a unique and interesting idea... it's not really what i had in mind.

in terms of physical (non-mobile) location - how willing do yall think customers are to visit a "destination" location vs. something right downtown. are the cost trade-off's worth the higher rent on a retail space vs. a warehouse space??

One of the things I'd consider in a piece of property would be ease of access for the customer. Because you're selling beer most of your traffic is going to start rolling in after 4pm which means its people on their way home from work. Selecting a space on the outbound side of busy commuter corridor will mean that your customers don't have to sit at stop lights or in turn lanes waiting to cross lanes of traffic. This may sound trivial but which side of the road you're on can make or break you. There's a reason Starbucks places their stores on the inbound side of the road to get those folks driving to work in the morning.

If you're in a downtown location you'll want to consider the parking situation and complimentary businesses around you.

You might also want to consider a third option, is the burbs. There's lots of outlying areas where you have a lot of population but limited options for eating and drinking so you could have an audience all to yourself. On top of that you might find a nice middle ground on the real estate prices since it won't be prime real estate downtown but may be just slightly higher than bring in a industrial park.