Brewer Magazine Q&A: Emily Olander, Root Shoot Malting

This is a part of a continuing series of Q&As with members of the brewing community from across the U.S.
Brewer Magazine will share business and personal insights from Brewmasters, Head Brewers, Brewing Managers, Sales Directors, QCQA Managers and others each weekend to help you get to know each other better in the industry and learn more to better develop your own brand.

Emily Olander, co-owner​,​ Root Shoot Malting​ — Loveland, Colorado​

BREWER: ​How has your business strategy evolved to help grow and stay competitive?
OLANDER: ​Our focus has always been to produce high quality malting products, all while conserving agriculture land and building long-lasting relationships with our partners. Breweries and distilleries have a strong focus on the local economy and we advocate for those who support craft malt. This partnership helps drive awareness surrounding their brand, and engages their craft consumer.

BREWER: ​Who is your mentor in the industry and why? What have you learned from them?
OLANDER: Our brewers and distillers are the heroes. They are the reason we exist and our success is largely determined by the communication we have and the relationships we build with our craft beverage partners. We continue to be resilient, creative, and most importantly a community advocate during these trying times. Many thanks to our brewers for leading the way and providing mentorship.

BREWER: ​What idea did you or your team come up with lately that has been a big benefit to how your business functions?
OLANDER: Recently, we helped launch the Colorado Strong campaign in collaboration with the Left Hand Brewing Foundation — a benefit beer brewed by over 120 breweries in Colorado to help boost the supply chains and brewing economies while raising funds for those in need. Community involvement has always been a part of our ethos at Root Shoot Malting, and we hope to continue these efforts and solidify our leadership in the industry long past the pandemic.

BREWER: ​If you had one business strategy that you could implement to better the brewing industry, what would it be?
OLANDER: Support those that support you in return — there’s no such thing as too much community involvement.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *