This is a part of a continuing series of Q&As with members of the brewing community from across the US. 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.
Cory King, Brewer/Owner, Side Project Brewing — St. Louis
BREWER: How have recent challenges in your position helped make you better? What were those “pain points” and how did you solve or adjust to the issue?
KING: When Karen and I started Side Project, we never imagined having nearly 40 employees. Every decision was about “now” or “tomorrow,” not about years in the future. My challenge has been grasping the added responsibility to not only ourselves, but the people who rely on us to run a successful brewery (and business!) so they can have a secure income and the quality of life we all hope to create. I rely more heavily on others for advice, my education is focused more on the business as a whole and not individual tasks, and as far as we can tell, these adjustments are working.
BREWER: What has been your brewery’s most recent accomplishment and how is it going to improve your business going forward?
KING: This is kind of boring, but organizationally we have really made headway this last year or so in fine-tuning our processes, our roles, our direction, and our goals. When COVID hit, everything was thrown against a wall and we came out the other side better, but we were less organized. It took our small operation some time to find its proper feet again.
BREWER: How did you start in the industry and why do you still want to be a part of it?
KING: I started as a homebrewer, but my first paid job in the industry was in wine sales. That evolved into beer sales and then working for another local brewery. I have seen everything from craft beer being nothing in the portfolios on the big distribution house, to our uprising, growth, and stealing of market share as we all continue to just do what we wanted — making delicious, fun, exciting things to drink along the way. I want to continue to be part of this industry because it is so open, inclusive, innovative, and inviting. We (the brewers and breweries) are so diverse, broad, and now ingrained into so many towns and neighborhoods, it is amazing to see the impact on culture we have made.
BREWER: What are you sippin’ on right now from your brewery that you really enjoy?
KING: Everything, ha! But seriously, as the warmer months have arrived, Drew — our resident Lager brewer — has been killing it with everything from Maplewood’s Best (our Rice Lager) to Simpatico (our Hoppy Lager). I also never skip a chance to enjoy Grisette, an approachable Foedre-Aged Farmhouse Ale, and our other low-gravity Saisons for their real purpose, to be refreshing on a hot day.
BREWER: Be it in styles, ingredients, business strategies, or sales & marketing techniques, what are some recent industry trends that you’ve tried or are excited about trying this year?
KING: As far as cutting-edge or industry trends, Side Project has always been a slow adopter. We, maybe to a fault, continue to stay small and brew eccentric styles we love. I am very happy our industry is finding ways to evolve and find new trends to keep or entice the new drinker. Using seltzers as a channel for all of the different techniques for utilizing fruit and for using them as a base to be aged in a spirits barrel first, is interesting and has produced some of the better-tasting “trendy” things I have had recently.
BREWER: What are some adaptations to business practices in the industry that you’ve observed over these past few years, and how has your brewery adjusted to stay competitive?
KING: The Brewer’s Association recently noted that even as sales in our industry have stagnated or softened, the on-site sales in the tasting rooms are where the growth is. We have always done a vast majority of our sales over the bars in our locations, so this is something that we are very familiar with. To try to drive that point home, however, we have invested in a new food program at our locations, to be more inviting for everyone, even those who do not want a beer or drink. This has also made our places more hospitable for many of our employees and ourselves, those of us who have children and need a place to sit, relax, and give our kids some fries and a board game to enjoy. Cheers!
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