Craft Brewery Financial Training Podcast

Today on the podcast we hear from Bob Higgins of P3 Cost Analysts. Bob and his team specialize in identifying and reducing over-spending in your business. We talk all things expense management, cost reduction strategies, and share ideas on how your brewery can save money.  HighlightsBob's process for identifying and eliminating unnecessary expenses Biggest cost-saving opportunities that companies commonly overlookThe most surprising savings P3 has been able to secure for clientsTrends in business expenses today, and where breweries will need to focus their cost-saving efforts in the futureResourcesConnect with Bob, bhiggins@costanalysts.comGet the free brewery financial training newsletterReady to transform financial results in your beer business? Learn more about the Beer Business Finance Association, a network of owners and managers working together to build more profitable companies.

This month in our brewery financial round table meeting we take a deep dive into financial standard operating procedures.Financial SOPs help you create complete, timely, and accurate financial statements so that you can make better business decisions.Highlights from our session:Use this hack: Rather than writing out a long SOP, use a screen recorder and show how the process is doneFollow a simple SOP template: Define the goal of the SOP, define how success will be measured, identify a responsible personGrab this Inventory Management SOP templateJoin the conversation with your membership to the Beer Business Finance Association. Monthly financial workshops, access to a library of financial training courses, and network with owners and managers in the beer industry. Ready to transform financial results in your beer business? Learn more about the Beer Business Finance Association, a network of owners and managers working together to build more profitable companies.

In today's podcast we review the Top 12 Financial Challenges facing Craft Breweries. This list was assembled by our network of brewery owners and managers in the Beer Business Finance Association.In the podcast, I review each challenge and provide one thing you can do right now to help overcome the difficulty in your beer business. The Top 12 Challenges:Cost management. How to implement cost controls and identify areas for cost reductionBenchmarking and KPIs. How do we measure up against our peers?Budgeting. How do we help managers own their budget?Employee retention. What can we do to provide more competitive wages and benefits?Succession Planning. How do we thoughtfully implement a succession plan?Gross profit management. What are best practices to actively manage margins?Mergers and acquisitions. How do we evaluate a potential acquisition? Sales compensation. How do we "re-imagine" sales comp to create a system that rewards the right behaviors?Operational efficiencies. How do we achieve improvements in this area and what are best practices?Financial planning. What are the best tools to automate the process?Building a better culture. How do we break down silos across locations and departments so we can operate as one company with a common vision?Financial training. How do we increase financial literacy and understanding of the business?ResourcesGet the free brewery financial training newsletter - financial tips and tactics to help you run a successful beer businessReady to transform financial results in your beer business? Learn more about the Beer Business Finance Association, a network of owners and managers working together to build more profitable companies.

On today's podcast you'll hear the audio version of our brewery lease negotiation workshop. You'll learn strategies and best practices to tackle a lease negotiation (or re-negotiation) for your brewery. Key PointsLease terms, definitions, what you need to knowHow to build 'optionality' into your brewery leaseTriple net lease watch-outsNegotiation strategies and tacticsResourcesJoin the Beer Business Finance Association and gain instant access to financial training courses, resources, and video replays of past training workshopsReady to transform financial results in your beer business? Learn more about the Beer Business Finance Association, a network of owners and managers working together to build more profitable companies.

Today on the podcast we hear from Dave Williams, the Analytics Czar from Bump Williams Consulting.Dave provides a recap of 2024 beer industry data, trends, and insights. We also cover “Dave’s Top 7”. These are the hot topics that he's been hearing about recently in the beer business.Key PointsGrowth in non-alcohol beer and ready-to-drink productsOn-premise resultsHealth guidelines and the impact of tariffsTrends in cannabis and crossover brandsResourcesConnect with Dave, dave@bumpwilliamsconsulting.comSign up for the free Craft Brewery Financial Training newsletter. Financial tips and tactics to build a stronger brewery, delivered straight to your inbox.Ready to transform financial results in your beer business? Learn more about the Beer Business Finance Association, a network of owners and managers working together to build more profitable companies.

In today's podcast you'll hear the audio version of our workshop on brewery expense management and cost cutting tactics. We hold these workshops monthly for our Beer Business Finance Association members.  If you'd like to join 150+ other breweries in financial success, learn more about membership packages here. Key Takeaways2 cost analysis models to identify and reduce unnecessary spending5 cost cutting tactics to reduce expenses5 initiatives to implement right away to quickly lower costs ResourcesOne of the best books out there on cost-cutting: Double Your Profits in 6 Months or Less, Bob FiferFree brewery financial training newsletterReady to transform financial results in your beer business? Learn more about the Beer Business Finance Association, a network of owners and managers working together to build more profitable companies.

Today on the podcast Chris Overlay from Get Hoptimized delivers a master class in brewery marketing. You'll learn how to build your brewery sales forecast and super charge results with a best-in-class marketing plan. Key PointsSales forecasting best practicesBrewery revenue drivers and key metrics to simplify planningTools and models to build a comprehensive marketing planTactics to align sales and marketing to achieve revenue goals ResourcesConnect with Chris to super charge your brewery marketing plan, chris@gethoptimized.comLearn more about the financial education network of brewery owners and managersReady to transform financial results in your beer business? Learn more about the Beer Business Finance Association, a network of owners and managers working together to build more profitable companies.

In today's episode you'll hear the audio version of our 2025 Brewery Budgeting Workshop. We cover questions ranging from how to build your payroll plan to what key metrics to track to the best way to forecast beer margins.  Key Points3 steps to supercharge your 2025 financial planBest practices for building your financial key metrics dashboard6 questions to ask before building your budget to ensure successResourcesJoin the network of brewery owners and managers focused on driving financial resultsGet the free brewery financial training newsletter delivered weekly to your email inboxReady to transform financial results in your beer business? Learn more about the Beer Business Finance Association, a network of owners and managers working together to build more profitable companies.

Today on the podcast we hear from Jake Lohse from Presidential Brewing in Portage, Michigan.Jake has written a new book which serves as a road map for folks looking to open up a new brewery:In Shifting Gears: The Ultimate Roadmap To Crafting Your Legendary Brewery Or Restaurant, I will show you step by step how to pull it all together. Leveraging experience from having built a legendary brewery myself, I will share practical next steps, lessons learned along the way, and tips and tricks to help fast forward the amount of time it takes you to go from zero to 100 miles per hour.Key PointsThe characteristics that set legendary breweries apart from the othersAdvice for new brewers who want to stand out in today's marketHow and when to scale your breweryResourcesCheck out Jake's new book: The Ultimate Roadmap to Crafting Your Legendary Brewery or RestaurantLearn more about the Beer Business Finance AssociationReady to transform financial results in your beer business? Learn more about the Beer Business Finance Association, a network of owners and managers working together to build more profitable companies.

In today's podcast I share the 5-step process that I use to assess our financial position, create our goals, and build a road map to success. This process is designed to help you create timely, accurate, and complete financial statements so that you can make data-driven decisions in your beer business. Key TopicsHow to create a process for predictable financial resultsHow to build a plan that allows you to work ON your business not IN itOne book you must read to build a better business plan, and one book you must read to build a better businessResourcesFree mini-course: 5-Step Process Brewing Financial ExcellenceFree Craft Brewery Financial NewsletterReady to transform financial results in your beer business? Learn more about the Beer Business Finance Association, a network of owners and managers working together to build more profitable companies.