We’ve brought up this name quite a bit on the podcast... 

We believe Ekos is the quintessential software for craft beverage businesses. That’s why we are super excited to welcome the guest for this week’s edition of Friends of SBS.

Today we’re talking with CEO of Ekos, Josh Mckinney.

Josh tells us how Ekos found and filled a void in the industry, the biggest challenges of working in multiple countries, and he gives a piece of advice to breweries who may be struggling. 

Enjoy!

We’re back with one last edition of Office Hours before we drop some guest content in anticipation of Season 3.

Breweries are no strangers to the concepts of generalization versus specialization. So today’s episode is all about niche firms and specialization.

We’re talking with another superstar here at SBS, Michelle Ryan, a Brewery Accountant and Tax Specialist. Having worked at a generalist firm and now with us as a specialist, she has an excellent perspective on the implications of niching down.

She tells us about this past year and the moving target we call taxes, some of the major differences between general firms and niche firms, and the importance of sharing and fine-tuning an organization's collective knowledge.

Enjoy!

As you may or may not know, both Small Batch Standard and The True Craft Podcast operate entirely remotely. And of course, due to recent events, working remotely has never been more relevant and practical. 

Today's episode of Office Hours is all about remote work. 

We’re joined by one of our many stellar Brewery Accountants, Allie Donovan.

We talk about what the pandemic has shown us about working remotely, establishing communication channels from a distance, and being deliverable driven versus time driven.

Enjoy!

We want to continue to peel back the curtains here with another look into some of our internal processes, and another edition of Office Hours.

Office Hours' primary goal is to share the value and insight of the many extraordinary people who keep the gears turning here at Small Batch Standard.

And this time around, we’re talking to our Onboarding Manager, Derek Smith.

Derek gives us an introduction into his role working with breweries, he tells us why he loves putting out metaphorical dumpster fires, and we take a behind the scenes look at the process of onboarding a brewery.

Enjoy!

We’re still recording and putting on some finishing touches on Season 3, so in the meantime here’s another episode of Office Hours with our COO Tom Miller.

In Episode 7 of Season 2, Chris and Jen spoke with Matt Katase about the true definition of the term culture, and all of the things that come with cultivating a healthy brewery environment. 

And today, we’re diving even deeper into the concept of culture.

Chris and Tom talk about vulnerability and what happens when you fail to be vulnerable, what it’s like building a team that’s aligned with a similar vision, along with a quick practical step for questions that you may not have the answers to.

Enjoy!

Links:

The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle

The Power Of Vulnerability by Brene Brown

Season 2 has officially come to a close! 

We couldn’t be more thankful to our guests, listeners, and of course Jen Febre, our amazing Season 2 co-host.

In the final episode of our second season, Chris and Jen take a look at what we learned throughout the past nine episodes. 

They talk about Doug from Societe and barrel aging, Buckstin Brewing and their small town success, Four Saints and their techniques for empowering employees, and much more.

Give it a listen, and of course, stay tuned for Season 3 coming up soon!

Links:

MacLeod Ale

This episode is all about family-run breweries.

Jen starts us off by discussing what led her to opening a family-run brewery, what her family was up to before MacLeod opened, and how she’s avoided nepotism.

Then we bring in our guest for this episode, Brian Avery from Brävery Brewing Company out of Lancaster, California.

Brian tells us what motivated him and his family to start a brewery, what forming a business plan with his father was like, and the process of adding a food kitchen.

Enjoy!

Links Mentioned:

Brävery Brewing Company

MacLeod Ale

Today’s episode is all about the rebirth of draught.

Jen sits this one out as MacLeod is currently focused on taproom sales, so Chris starts this episode off with a talk about decision making.

Then we bring in our guest for the episode, Chris Smith, co-founder of The Virginia Beer Company out of Williamsburg, Virginia.

We talk about Virginia Beer Co’s packing split pre and post covid, cooperage arrangements, and the comeback of draught and distributor orders.

Enjoy!

Links:

The Virginia Beer Company

MacLeod Ale

Today we’re exploring the concept of brewery culture.

We start with a quick overview of Jen’s bagpiping skills, how to see eye to eye with your founders, and we take a look at what we’re really talking about when we use the word culture. 

Then we bring our guest for this episode, Matt Katase from Brew Gentlemen out of Braddock, Pennsylvania. 

Matt explains the dynamic culture of a brewery experiencing expansion and growth, we talk mission statement versus mantra, and Matt tells us how music fits into the mix.

Enjoy!

Links:

Brew Gentlemen

MacLeod Ale

Today we have something a little different for you.

Chris starts the episode off by diving into the topic of case equivalents (CE’s). He covers what CE’s even are, the number of CE’s your sales rep should aim for, and how that changes if you’re self-distributing or going through a distributor.

Then we bring in Matthew Wallace from Oliphant Brewery out of Somerset, Wisconsin.

We discuss the use of a distributor versus self-distribution, Matthew walks us through a typical delivery day, and tells us the biggest hurdle to overcome as a self-distributor. 

Enjoy!

Links:

Oliphant Brewery

MacLeod Ale