The Craft Lyfe - Marketing and Branding for the Craft Beer Industry

Have you ever dreamed about running your own business? If so, you're not alone. A survey conducted by Inc. Magazine found that 63% of working adults in the United States either own or want to start a business. The opportunity to be your own boss, set your own hours, and spend your days doing what you love is a dream come true. Right?! Sure sounds like it for us!  However, the reality is starting any business model, more specifically, a business model within the craft beer industry is tough. It's a lot of paper work, a lot of dealing with the city and zoning, you've got to plan your buildout and much more! It takes patience, determination, and true passion! Which is exactly what episode 1️⃣8️⃣ is all about! Starting and owning your very own bottle shop and what it takes to do so! Now sit back, grab your favorite beverage, and check out Eddie and Amy Abralde's story of starting and running their very own Craft Beer Bottle Shop!

When it comes to starting your own business, it can be a long process that requires a lot of time and investment. But the rewards are definitely worth the sweat and tears! Without a doubt, opening your own brewery may be one of the most thrilling and terrifying experiences you'll ever go through. During this episode, we take an exclusive look under the hood of 3 Sons Brewing Co.   We learned a bit about the founder, Corey Artanis, what led him into creating his own brewery, the backstory to why he chose the name 3 Sons, the future of 3 Sons, how his brewery ended up on Guy Fieri's hot TV show; Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives… and much more! 3 Sons Brewery is located in Dania Beach, FL. The brewery is retrofitted in a spacious 11,000 square ft, 1940s warehouse, not far from the Ft. Lauderdale airport, with soaring 30-foot ceilings and a clean, modern design. During this episode we explored: ✪  How Corey entered the craft beer scene, what Corey was doing in his life before 3 Sons. ✪  What led him to start 3 Sons. ✪  3 Sons + The Black is Beautiful Stout. ✪  3 Sons take on the direct to consumer model. ✪  3 Sons approach to label design. ✪  The marketing and branding tactics that 3 Sons uses. ✪  The future of 3 Sons Brewing. After this episode, you'll come to the self-realization that with the right resources, skills, and support from people who have been there, your lyfe journey of starting or creating whatever it is that drives you will not only be successful, but so worth it.

During this episode, we took a sneak peak into the life of Haidar Hachem and Marilyn Oroʑco, the founders and creators of Shōjō Beer Co.. We explore what led them into craft beer, their journey & experience in launching their brand new craft beer brand! When creating a craft beer brand it's important to infuse your unique personality so consumers can relate to you – as well as creating unique flavor profiles that speak to your brand! People value authenticity in the brands that they purchase, and that is exactly what went into creating Shōjō Beer Co. This desire for a genuine and unique brand experience isn't going anywhere. If you make quality beer and have a unique perspective to share with the world, then there's a place for you in the craft beer industry. During this episode we explored: ✪ What the founders of Shōjō Beer Co. were doing before the craft beer life? ✪ How Haidar began his journey into the craft beer world. ✪ What led Marilyn into becoming a content creator. ✪ What led this couple into creating their own brand and gypsy brewing. ✪ Where the name Shōjō came from. ✪ Their passion for giving back. ✪ Takeaways when starting craft beer brand.

During this episode we got to take a look under the hood of Pompano Beach Brewing Co. We got to see what makes them tick and learned why they decided to embark on a rebrand of their entire brewery. Before we get started, let's really dive into what a rebrand exactly is. A rebrand is the process of changing your image. It's a marketing strategy of giving a new name, symbol, or change in design for an already-established brand. The idea behind rebranding is to create a different identity from your competitors in the market. Sometimes the necessity for a rebrand is obvious and can begin to feel very pressing. Other times, it can be more subtle. While there's no set-in-stone checklist for knowing when you need to rebrand, we do see a recurring set of criteria leading up to breweries pulling the trigger. During this episode we explored: ✪ Learning a bit more about Adam Feingold the co-founder of Pompano Beach Brewing formerly known as Bangin' Banjo Brewing ✪ What led Adam and the other co-founders in the creation of Bangin' Banjos? ✪ Where the name Bangin' Banjos came from? ✪ How Covid19 aided in the decision to pivot their business model. ✪ The thought process that went into the rebrand here at Pompano Beach Brewing Co. ✪ The rebranding phases of Pompano Beach Brewing Co.

Whether you're a craft brewer or a brewery owner, you know that events are a vital part of a breweries marketing strategy. We truly believe events are one of the most powerful ways to build a brand and a community! On this episode, we got to kick it at my favorite brewery, Tarpon River Brewing to chat it up with one of South Florida leading planners of beer festivals, happy hours, bar crawls, and home brew competitions - Stuart Skopit From SFLHops! Stuart truly knows how to put on an amazing craft beer event. His events are so awesome that they got the attention of South Florida's most popular entertainment news series, Deco Drive - which showcases trendy restaurants, events, and businesses right here in the South Florida area! During this episode we explored: ✪  Positive community impact of craft beer events. ✪  Why Stuart created SFLHops. ✪  The benefit to local breweries working with SFLHops or other event planners to host different craft beer events. ✪  The process that goes into creating events. ✪  SFLHops's recipe for success. ✪  Why he thinks it is important for homebrewers to enter local competitions such as his Curated Craft Carousel Beer Festival.

The craft beer industry is an industry unlike any other. Brewers collaborate on recipes, trade ingredients, and encourage customers to visit neighboring breweries. While it may seem like some markets are oversaturated with craft breweries, it's this shared sense of community and camaraderie that allows these businesses to thrive. With that in mind, are there any benefits to starting up multiple breweries, (different locations - with different ideologies, design, theme, and most importantly, different beer styles) versus one brewery? The person best equipped to answer this question, is none other than John Falco! If you don't know who John Falco is, let me tell you. John is the cofounder of 3 fantastic breweries - Lincoln's Beard Co, Strange Beast, and Maxwell Bro - each with its own theme, feel, and vibe! This is exactly what we dive into on Episode 13 of The Craft Lyfe! Highlights of this episode: ✪ Why the number 13 is special episode. ✪ John's back story - before the craft beer lyfe. ✪ The start of Lincoln's Beard. ✪ The benefit of starting multiple small breweries. ✪ Marketing approach for each brewery. ✪ New venue alert - 4th location.

Beyond just a memorable logo - good branding has the ability to increase the value of your company, provide your employees with direction and motivation, and helps makes acquiring new customers that much easier. So what exactly is a brand? This is exactly what we dive into on this episode of The Craft Lyfe! We chat it up with Daniel Pfaffenbach & Denielle Mizrahi the founders of Yeasty Brews Artisanal Beers. We discuss why communicating your brand story consistently is so important + we learn the exact formula they used to propel their brand before they even opened up their brewery! Highlights of this episode: ✪ Home-brew to professional brewing ✪ Why the name “Yeasty” ✪ The backstory of Yeasty Brews ✪ The creation of Banana Slinger ✪ Getting attention is a new currency - Tap Handles ✪ Distribution of their beer prior to opening their brewery ✪ Their relationship with Lincoln's Beard Brewing

Success doesn't happen by accident and can't be sustained by luck. You can't build a great business, achieve a massive goal, or rise to the top of your profession by just going through the motions. It takes a ridiculous amount of hard work and consistently showing up every single day! The only way to get ahead in life is to hustle harder than everyone else and always staying on top of your grind! This is exactly what we dive into on this episode of The Craft Lyfe! We chat it up with Davy, Head Brewer/Co-Founder of Orchestrated Minds. We discuss the hustle, the grind, and the mindset it takes to go after what you want and how to turn your dreams into a reality! Highlights of this episode: ✪ What it means to hustle. ✪ Working through adversity. ✪ What the word failure means to Davy. ✪ Recipe for success. ✪ Working hard vs working smart. ✪ The mindset needed to start a business.

On this episode of The Craft lyfe we chat it up with McKay Ferrell one of the founders of Gulf Stream Brewing. Gulf Stream Brewing Company opened its doors in Fort Lauderdale in 2018. Their 10 BBL brew house is housed in a 5,300 square foot warehouse in the Middle River Terrace neighborhood in  Fort Lauderdale. For us, Gulf Stream Brewing is and always will be an iconic place for The Craft Lyfe. Not only have we spent a lot of time here, but this is the brewery where we won our first home brew competition with SFLHops. During Episode 10, McKay discusses what led him and Ty to the creation of Gulf Stream and what the founding principles are that guided them to stand true to Gulf Streams brand! We also dive into the following: ✪ McKay's background ✪ Why MaKay and Ty choose Fort Lauderdale as the home to start their brewery. ✪ McKay's outlook on social media. ✪ The impact of social media marketing to a breweries overall growth. ✪ Gulf Streams brand founding principles.

Have you ever thought about becoming a social influencer or using one for your business? You may be asking yourself, “What does it even mean to be a social influencer?”, right? Well, an influencer is a person who is a thought leader in a particular niche/industry and through their passion they create dynamic content that results in creating a following! On Episode 9, we chat it up with Christy Jo aka Beer.Brat as she's known on Instagram. During this episode, we discuss why she initially embarked on her journey of documenting her passion and creating amazing content of craft beer, fancy dresses, and unicorns! We learn how she created an audience that finds value and trust in the content that she creates. We also dive into the following: ✪ The benefits of becoming a content creator/social influencer. ✪ Things you should consider throughout your steps to becoming an influencer/creator. ✪ The different levels of social influencers. ✪ The difference between a social influencer and a brand ambassador. ✪ Why businesses obtain huge advantages by using content creators/social influencer. If you're eager to build an influential personal brand and become a thought leader in your industry  - sign up for our FREE video series by visiting: brandbuildersgroup.com/fsf/sp/

Have you ever wondered what goes into rebranding yourself or your business? There is a lot that goes into this - and a large majority of it are things that can't be visibly seen by you or your target audience. This week, we had the honor of interviewing Renée Tovar and César Cabrera - who are Creative Directors at Spotdly Square, a creative agency that led the complete rebranding process of Bousa Brewing Company to become Focal Beer Café. So what is a rebrand exactly? Well, for starters a rebrand is the process of changing your image. It is a marketing strategy that normally requires a new name, symbol, or change in design for an already-established brand. The idea behind rebranding is to create a different identity for a brand from its competitors in the market. Sometimes, the need for a rebrand can be obvious and other times, it can be more subtle. While there's no set-in-stone checklist for knowing when you need to rebrand, we often see a recurring set of criteria leading up to you pulling the trigger for a rebrand. On Episode 8, we get to chat it up with Spotdly Square, the team that led the entire rebrand process of Focal Beer Café to learn the following: ✪ When is it necessary for a rebrand? ✪ Things you should think about prior to doing a rebrand. ✪ The difference between a rebrand and a refresh. ✪ The internal dialogue and process during a rebrand. ✪ What are the main components of a rebrand? If you're interested in learning more about how far the rabbit hole goes in personal branding - sign up for our FREE video series by visiting: brandbuildersgroup.com/fsf/sp/

In this day and age, social media has become a highly effective marketing and advertising tool. It has also proven to be one of the most effective digital marketing strategies and one of the main reasons is because anyone with internet access can set up a social media profile - completely free of charge. With this access, they instantaneously gain admission to a boundless amount of potential consumers. It's important to know a few tricks to effective social media marketing and this episode is all about that!

We all like to hear great stories, right? The ones that begin with all odds stacked against a person and through grit and hard work - we see them defy all odds, rising and achieving the goals they set out to do! If you've ever dreamt of embarking on a dream or accomplishing something that you never thought was possible - this is an episode you do not want to miss! During this episode, we chat it up with Jeremy Logan, the Founder of Misfits Brewing and hear his Misfit Story: from Homebrewer to Brewery Owner. Jeremy embarked on his craft beer journey back in the early 90's as an avid homebrewer. His hobby for crafting grew into a passion that led him to where he is today - in the process of launching his own brewery! Highlights of this episode: ✪ Learn what it takes to turn your dreams into reality. ✪ The do's and don't's of taking your craft from hobby to career. ✪ How the name and design of Misfits Brewing came to fruition. ✪ Why creating a community is important. ✪ The benefit of networking and how it can lead to new business opportunities. If you're interested in learning more about how far the rabbit hole goes in personal branding - sign up for our FREE video series by visiting: brandbuildersgroup.com/fsf/sp/

Episode Five of The Craft Lyfe is all about your personal brand and why it's important for everyone to develop it! On this episode, you'll join your host, Samuel Phanor, a hobbyist home brewer who loves to brew stouts, a brand and marketing strategist, and owner of The One Lyfe clothing brand, as he interviews his good friend and co-worker, Kristen Hartnagle. Kristen is a personal brand strategist with the Brand Builders Group and is a Jedi when it comes to all things branding. Kristen will be discussing why personal branding is important for everyone and how it's applicable regardless of the industry you are targeting or who you are as a person. For our home brewers, brewers currently employed at a brewery, and brewery owners, you'll gain a fresh insight into why it's important to ignite your personal brand and how your personal brand can open up doors that you never thought were possible. Key takeaways from this episodes: ✮ The benefit of personal branding. ✮ Clear the confusion surrounding developing your personal brand and your companies brand. ✮ How your personal brand and company brand are massively different, but complimentary to each other. ✮ Actionable steps you should take right now to start the process of building your personal brand. ✮ How to access a FREE video training series on personal branding. If you're interested in learning more about how far the rabbit hole goes in personal branding - sign up for the FREE video series by visiting: brandbuildersgroup.com/fsf/sp/

Have you ever wondered how the aesthetics of a physical location plays a role in the overall brand identity of a business? The brand identity is the visual language that tells a brand story. This includes many more components than you may think, such as the logo, typography, and the design of the packaging being used, among other things. When it comes to the aesthetics of a business location we're talking about the combined effects of the buildings shape, size, texture, color, balance, and a slurry of other things. A business location, if client facing, is one of the strongest touch points of your business because it not only helps to tell your brand story, but it further exudes your companies brand essence. In episode 4 of The Craft Lyfe we're interviewing Pete Lopez the Director of Brand at Copperpoint Brewing. During our interview, we will break down how their location plays a huge role in their overall brand identity. During this episode you'll learn: ✭ The history of Copperpoint Brewing. ✭ How the design of your location plays a vital role in your brands identity. ✭ The  role that appearance plays in influencing consumers. ✭ How design can revitalize your brand image. ✭ How appearance goes beyond just aesthetics. Let's get crafting!

Over the past two decades, the word sustainability has become a hot topic of discussion. More and more businesses, including the craft beer industry, have begun taking new approaches in developing methods to increase their efficiency, while taking on an ecological responsibility. Having a sustainability program is more than just a fad or buzz word to grab your attention and make you feel good. When a sustainability program becomes part of your organizations brand essence, it has the ability to improve your brand image, all while creating a competitive edge. This happens because today's customers are more aware of environmental concerns and they are more apt to buy from an organization that is known for practicing sustainability. During episode three of The Craft Lyfe, we get to chat it up with the Head of Operations at Saltwater Brewery, Justin Jeffers. We get to learn all about his brewing journey and all of his duties at Saltwater Brewery. From there we get into the nitty gritty of Saltwater's sustainability program, as well as their efforts in helping to maintain the oceans health and all of the lifeforms that it supports. What you'll take away form this episode is: ✮ The benefit of starting a sustainability program. ✮ Why Saltwater's goal exceeds just crafting great beer. ✮ What sparked the creation of the Eco Six Pack Rings. ✮ How their sustainability program has helped the distribution of their beers.

Join us for Episode Two of The Craft Lyfe as your host, Sam Phanor, a hobbyist home brewer who loves to brew barreled aged stouts, a brand and marketing strategist, and owner of The One Lyfe Clothing Brand, interviews Alan Espino - Cofounder and President of Beat Culture Brewery, as they navigate the waters of the thought process behind designing the artwork for your products. During this episode, you'll be motivated and inspired by the details of how Beat Culture Brewery was created. We will take a trip down memory lane and discover how Alan embarked on his journey in the world of craft beer. We will end the episode by going through the process of creating artwork for your products. During this episode you will learn: - How to gather and organize your ideas by creating a visual display. - Overcoming the issue when you are unable to articulate the design you're trying to create. - Why it's important to understand your objective before crafting your label. Sit back, relax, and let's get crafting!

Join us for Episode One of The Craft Lyfe as your host, Sam Phanor, a hobbyist home brewer who loves to brew stouts, a brand and marketing strategist, and owner of The One Lyfe Clothing Brand, as he interviews Kevin Abbott, one of the founders and owners of Barrel of Monks, as we take a dive through the reasons why breweries love to collaborate and the impact collaborations have on a breweries brand. During this episode, you'll learn how Kevin began his journey in the world of craft beer, his early experience as a brewer for Funky Buddha, and how this led to him becoming a co-founder/co-owner of a brewery that exclusively brews Belgian-style beers. From there. we will dive into brewery collaboration, why breweries collaborate, and how collaboration can help your brands position, awareness, and reputation. Sit back, relax, and let's get crafting!

Join Sam Phanor, brand and marketing strategist and owner of The One Lyfe Clothing Brand, as he interviews Matt Manthe, the founder and owner of Odd Breed Wild Ales on how your business's logo plays a vital role in your overall brand. Sam and Matt will then begin to conceptualize the ideas and decision making on the possible design directions. Matt dives in depth into the processes he underwent in creating Odd Breed's logo and how it improved the feel of the overall brand. From there they discuss the thought process that one should go through when creating a logo which properly highlights the company's brand.