When to DIY and When to Ask for Help: The Small Brewery Dilemma

Sara Watson and her husband Brent turned their dream into reality with Vacancy Brewing in Austin, Texas, combining his brewing expertise with her hospitality marketing background to create a community-focused taproom experience.

• Building Vacancy Brewing after a six-month road trip across North America to find the perfect location
• Hiring a taproom manager to allow the founders to focus on business development instead of daily operations
• Implementing tighter beer loss and discount policies with transparent communication to improve margins
• Tracking weekly taproom net sales compared to both prior year and budget to stay proactive
• Creating the Vacancy Collective membership program to transform loyal customers into brand ambassadors
• Balancing innovation with consistency by maintaining core beer styles while rotating specific recipes
• Successfully navigating lease renewal challenges by gathering knowledge from multiple real estate professionals
• Finding the sweet spot between doing tasks yourself and knowing when to bring in outside expertise

Visit Vacancy Brewing in South Austin, find them online at vacancybrewing.com or on social media @VacancyBrewing to learn about their events including karaoke, trivia, music bingo, and more.