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Estimating Brewery Buildout Costs?

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  • Estimating Brewery Buildout Costs?

    We are working on our plan for a production brewery. We feel pretty good about most of our assumptions, however, the one that keeps nagging at me is the estimated buildout cost. I'm not talking about purchase cost of the brewing/packaging equipment. I mean installation of equipment, retrofit, construction, improvement etc. of the space to accommodate the needs of a brewery with a tap room. Our going-in assumption is that we'll be in a "typical" warehouse, approximately 7,500 square feet.

    What's a reasonable improvement/buildout assumption? $75/sqft for the taproom space and $50/sqft for the brewing and packaging operation?

    Thanks in advance. We appreciate any words of wisdom you can offer. I feel like I've looked through the entire interwebs and can't seem to find a brewery-specific benchmark.
    Last edited by Birdman; 04-04-2016, 02:43 PM.

  • #2
    Ours came to $53/sqft if you dont include the cold room which was considered equipment. 1/3 of the space was a taproom and 2/3 is the brewery. The big name construction companies were quoting us way above that - luckily we found a smaller outfit that specializes in breweries and knows how to keep costs down.

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    • #3
      Originally posted by briangaylor View Post
      Ours came to $53/sqft if you dont include the cold room which was considered equipment. 1/3 of the space was a taproom and 2/3 is the brewery. The big name construction companies were quoting us way above that - luckily we found a smaller outfit that specializes in breweries and knows how to keep costs down.
      Thanks for sharing. Very helpful. Any others willing to share?

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      • #4
        Honestly, every situation is a little different. I'm a Registered Architect, and a brewery owner, so I feel qualified to comment on this.

        Your build-out costs can vary greatly given the fit and finish that you decide to have for your project. We went with a "Cadillac" level and have received nothing but high praise from the folks who have visited us so far, but my wife and I own the property and since our Tasting Room is in a historic structure we felt obligated to do something worthy of the context. If I were a renter, I may feel differently.

        Your cost assumptions seem reasonable, assuming a utilitarian level of fit and finish. Upgrades to either the water or sewer facilities can blow that out of the water, though. It all adds up very, very quickly.
        Kevin Shertz
        Chester River Brewing Company
        Chestertown, MD

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        • #5
          Thanks Kevin. And I'm hopeful there would be some level of Tenant Improvement allowance for a lease situation, but I understand that can vary widely as well.

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          • #6
            Our buildout (so far) is running $75 psf, spread between a ~1900sqft taproom and a ~750sqft brewery. We are doing a fair amount of the flooring and carpentry ourselves, to try to further reduce the buildout cost.

            Tennant improvement allowance is tricky. It really depends on what your landlord is willing to do for you. We negotiated our TIA for a long time, before signing the lease. We wanted him to get a good feel for how we wanted the space to look, and that we didn't want to be the brewery in the shopping center that looked unfinished or cheap. Your LL wants you to do well, for obvious reasons, so encourage him or her to help you create a nice space. All said and done, our LL is paying for 33% of our buildout via TIA...but it took a long time and a lot of beer to get there. Good luck!

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            • #7
              Architect fees

              Originally posted by ChesterBrew View Post
              Honestly, every situation is a little different. I'm a Registered Architect, and a brewery owner, so I feel qualified to comment on this.

              Your build-out costs can vary greatly given the fit and finish that you decide to have for your project. We went with a "Cadillac" level and have received nothing but high praise from the folks who have visited us so far, but my wife and I own the property and since our Tasting Room is in a historic structure we felt obligated to do something worthy of the context. If I were a renter, I may feel differently.

              Your cost assumptions seem reasonable, assuming a utilitarian level of fit and finish. Upgrades to either the water or sewer facilities can blow that out of the water, though. It all adds up very, very quickly.
              Hey Kevin, since you're an architect I was really hoping to get your thoughts on the proposal I just received from an architect I've been working with. He's quoting my $36k for a 1800sf nano brewery/taproom. I know there are a million variables, but this sounds extremely high to me. He does note that in speaking with the GC we plan to use, the GC is "requesting fully engineered documents to bid his sub work". But $36k?! I would really appreciate your thoughts on this! I can't upload the actual proposal because it's too big for probrewer, but if you'd be willing to look at it I'd be more than happy to email it to you.
              best,
              grant

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              • #8
                It greatly depends on many factors

                I can't see a true TI running less than $100/SF. My tenant improvement ran $110/SF for constructions costs only. I renovated a shell warehousing/manufacturing facility. No fire alarm, no drains or slopes, no walls, no bathrooms, no nothing. If you had a decent amount of infastructure, then maybe it could be done for less. I installed a 10 bbl steam boiler system in 4800 SF facility with large cold storage. No bells or whistles. It just isn't cheap to get started, plain and simple. My bank made me test fit the space and submit to contractors for true budgets before moving forward with negociations on the loan.

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