Rather than shrinking distribution (primarily Northern California) during the pandemic, their California footprint has actually grown with the addition of distribution in Raley’s Supermarkets, and, most importantly, Trader Joe’s. Everyone was like ‘No problem, happy to help, we’ll get through this together.’” Don’t worry about it.’ It’s almost like Christmas, where everyone’s nice to each other, generous, caring, sharing, giving. Some have been ‘Just pay whenever you can.
“I will say 95 percent of everyone I’ve spoken to has been super cool. ‘Can we push it off by 3 months? Can I push it off by a month? Can I pay you over 6 months? Can we do half now, half later?’” “I cannot tell you how much time I’ve spent emailing, texting, calling vendors and creditors, just getting deals. Lightner also attributes the flexibility of the various vendors he works with as a key to weathering the storm. It’s amazing how many people come and pick up beer.” “The profitability is not the same, but we’re selling through the taproom almost as much beer as we were doing when the taproom was open, volume-wise. They’re spending almost all their time on the curbside program. The taproom team is almost fully employed. All that was left was the can distribution before we started the carry-out program, which we did three or four days into the lockdown, so that part is good. “Business was definitely down, but not as much as I thought it would be. It currently produces roughly 10,000 barrels per year on a 20-barrel brewing system.įor Rob Lightner, East Brother’s saving grace has been its can distribution, adding statewide shipping and, surprisingly, their beer to-go program. Unique in their approaches, they are a great case study of how the pandemic has affected them all in different ways, and how differently they have had to adapt.Įast Brother Beer Company began operations in their 12,000-square foot production facility in late 2016. Richmond is home to three breweries, ranging from nanobrewery to neighborhood taproom to regional distributor. The Bay Area city of Richmond, California, offers several examples of the varied challenges breweries of vastly different sizes have faced. The COVID-19-induced economic shutdown has affected breweries large and small.
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