Starting a tiny Brewpub/Craft Beer Bar

A good designer will be able to adapt to your vision rather than trying to fit your vision into their style. If she shows you results of her previous work and they all look similar, that's what's happening. Time for a different one?

 

OP, I'm in NKY and am kicking around a similar idea of a beer bar and nanobrewery. I wish you the best of luck and hopefully once you're up and running I'll be able to stop by, have some beers, and learn a thing or two.

 

OldWade, I have read your OP and replies and it sounds to me that you should go ahead and see how it goes. I think you have left enough "outs" if it doesn't pan out. I am impressed with your thought process and I am a CPA with 32 years of experience. You are starting out small with modest expectations and I think you can succeed. Best of luck to you. P.S Don't over analyze this you impress me as someone with a good head on their shoulders.

 

How can it be a brew pub in a 10x 25 space? If you call yourself a brew pub you should be, are you going to brew off site? Kinda like the top and bottom of the logo, they work, I'd kill the art in between it's too busy IMO. You have your name and a city skyline that identifiable. Just my opinion. I understand nice and cool, but you also want to be female friendly, if your designer is considering your local demographic I'd work with her. A beer bar for guys will kill you, especially so IMO with the very tight confines. If women come so will the guys, and that means variety for me, cocktails and or a wine bar also.

 

I don't know your demographics and/or the disposable income of your target clientele, but pretty girls IMO = money, at least if your target is mid 20's to mid 30's. At least decent wine selections seem reasonable. I would want want a place where two female friends could be comfortable having a glass or two of wine after work, and not have their only choice be chugging beer. jJst me here.

 

Ah, ok, makes no sense, but rules are rules. A dude bar of hard core beer geeks it is.

 

I'm sensing that you are ignoring the possibility that women may like things other than what you think they should, and that a bar with good beer might be attractive to them also.
They can handle it.

 

There are women in our beer group too, they are tickers, and one is a certified Cicerone, I don't over look that women like beer, there's more than a few on this site. But legal issues aside variety is better, it caters to everyones mood and taste, and it expands your customer base.

 

True, nc41, but I don't know that he has the space available to expand his customer base! If he doesn't need to, it may just create more headaches than it's worth.

And yes! - Women like beer, too!

 

IF you know YOUR market for what your going to sell? no one wants what your selling in that area, then you have to attract from other areas. Most of these newly done downtown's have tax breaks and things to lure folks back to the city center. I mean if your the only bar downtown you got it made, but if your one of 50, well.....

It works in the Temple bar area in Dublin....but there are LOTS of tourists.

 

Just wanted to post and say that this has been an awesome thread and I really hope your bar does well.

 

Best of luck to you, wish I was close enough to check it out.

 

He probably won't help you differentiate yourself. Not sure how distro is where you are but if you want to be different then deal with as many of the small guys as possible. Be careful of order minimums and keep in mind it will be pretty hard to get the good stuff right off the bat. If you want anything specific try dealing with the brewery rep rather than the distribution rep. Feel free to shoot me any more in depth questions or concerns you may have.

Source: Certified Cicerone and Brewery Distribution Rep. myself.