Indeed Brewing Company’s Director of Experience Ryan Bandy steps up as the brewery’s Chief Business Officer, effective November 20. Indeed Brewing has grown alongside the rising popularity of craft beer since 2012 with Ryan Bandy as an instrumental player in the brewery’s growth in both the market and its Minneapolis and Milwaukee taprooms. Co-founder Tom Whisenand is stepping aside from the day-to-day business operations to pursue a career as an airline pilot.
“The people of Minneapolis and Milwaukee and our neighborhoods have been good to us. We want to make great beer and provide good jobs. We’ve built a business that allows us to give back to employee-chosen nonprofits. We’ve navigated a pandemic. And over the past several years we’ve built a professional management structure that’s allowing me to step away from the typical brewery model where the owner/founders run everything,” said Tom Whisenand, former CEO. “I’m stoked for Ryan to lead us into the next era and look forward to transitioning into an advising role and Indeed beer drinker.”
Bandy’s move to lead executive highlights the brewery’s commitment to its people and creating unique growth opportunities for employees. Bandy joined Indeed over 10 years ago, getting his start in packaging, snapping pak-techs onto cans and waxing tops of bottles. From back of the house to taproom, then out the front door, Bandy’s gained experience in various positions from cellaring and bartending to field sales, events, and sales management.
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In 2019, Bandy stepped in as sales director, leading the brewery’s distribution and sales efforts. Last year he helped navigate the brewery’s Twin Cities in-house distribution move to Hohenstein’s, a family-owned, independent business with a focus on craft beer. In 2022, Bandy was promoted to Director of Experience, and his innovative approach to beer and insights into the evolving tastes of beer lovers has been influential in the expanding Indeed beverage portfolio, growing the community impact of Indeed’s events, and creating welcoming taproom spaces in Minneapolis and Milwaukee.
“I’d be hard-pressed to find someone who cares as deeply about all things Indeed than Ryan—its people, its products, the experiences it creates and shares, its staying power,” said Kelly Moritz, Indeed Brewing Company’s Chief Operating Officer. “We’re all going to benefit from his depth of experience, knowledge, and passion for what we do as a company, and after nine years of working side by side in so many different ways, I’m excited to embark on this new chapter together.”
Indeed was one the first breweries to open a taproom in Minneapolis in 2012 and has maintained its commitment to innovation, quality brews, community-oriented taprooms ever since. With annual events like Whirlygig in Minneapolis and weekly Indeed We Can nights in each taproom, which have raised more than $750,000 for local nonprofit organizations, Indeed is working to continue building a company around good people, good beers, and good experiences.
The brewery continues to innovate its offerings, adding new brands to its year-round and seasonal portfolios, revamping packaging to support distribution channels, and expanding its beyond beer lineup with the introduction of THC, hard seltzer, NA beer, hard kombucha, and more. Indeed’s growth in 2023 is led on-premise by the popular flagship Pistachio Cream Ale and supported at retail by vibrant variety packs that feature a mix of fan-favorite Indeed beer brands.
“The craft beer industry has evolved enormously since we started in 2012—we were the 16th brewery in the state when we opened, and now there are well over 200, and I think that’s awesome,” said Bandy. “Breweries are super cool companies, and not just because of the beer, though I do love a cold beer—they’re an amalgamation of so many different jobs and people. Indeed has professionals in manufacturing; packaging; warehousing; food science; art, branding, and marketing; taproom experience and hospitality; small- and large-scale events; and accounting and finance. Those professionals are all very different types of people, and that’s cool as hell! Within that range of personality traits lies a lot of power. Of course it can lead to friction or challenges, but it’s what can make breweries very cool small businesses. I think Indeed’s growth proves that.”
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