h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've run into a small problem, the brewery's too small.

Orders have been coming in from all over the place and I can't meet demand. Everybody is very relaxed about it, but I kinda feel I'm letting them down. Which is annoying really as when I set out to start up this brewery, the idea was that I'd be brewing to order with a full waiting list. Now that this has happened, I'm aware that I need to expand.

I don't just want to expand into a unit and hide the brewery away though, one of the things I've really enjoyed about running it so far is everyone's interest and enthusiasm in it. I think the fact that it's the same size as a lot of home brewer's kit, and gives them hope that they can go commercial too, has something to do with it.

But I want the new larger brewery to have some of this in it, I want other people to feel involved in it, and in its growth.

So while I'm looking to raise the bulk of the money needed in the normal way (loans), I'm also going to be offering crowd funding options. But I want them to actually be worth something! Too many of the crowd funding stuff you see is people just looking for free money with no real return on it. Whereas I want people to actually get their money's worth from it.

As an example, the entry level I'm thinking of would be £5, and would get the person a ticket to the launch party and a couple of free pints (maybe more if there's some going spare). £5 for a couple of pints is very cheap, however it would only be costing me a couple of quid to make. So whilst I'd be making some money on that level of investment, the investor would also be making something from it.

And that's how I want to organise all the investment levels, that you actually get more out than you put in, as well as getting the feel-good-factor.

The actual plans for what I want to do with the larger brewery are also kinda cool. I'm intending to install my current kit in it, and allow people to use it to brew their own cask of beer for parties, etc. At a price of course. I'm also intending to offer home-brewing courses on it, showing people that it's not as scary as it first seems. Also, I'm intending to sell malt and hops on to the home brewers. I'll be paying a lot less for them than they are, so I reckon I can make some profit there.
Additionally I'm looking at having both and on and off licence, and setting up an area as a bottle shop/bar where people can hang around, taste beers, see the brewery working, and generally relax, or can stop by to pick up some bottles of beer from pico-breweries around the country, as well as specialising in the Manchester breweries.

So there's lots of stuff I can do. I just need to find the right premises and the right kit, at the right price.

And then raise the cash.

Need an architect?

I wish I was building it from scratch! Most likely setting up in a railway arch.

Well, that could be fun, too.

In the meantime, stamp the bottles "Limited edition", number them consecutively and triple the price.

Love the idea of setting up under a railway arch. I found the ones in Manchester quite charming, especially the ones across from The Font with their murals.

Well, I've now put in an initial offer on what I believe to be an ideal kit in an ideal location.

Going back tomorrow with t'other half so she can have a good look around (especially as she's stumping up a lot of the cash) before confirming the offer. We won't know until August whether it's been accepted or not, but we should get an idea tomorrow whether it's being seriously considered.

If things go well, we could end up having a h2g2 meet in a brewery

I was brought pleasantly, briefly, vicariously, back to Manchester yesterday watching reviews for a motorcycle dashcam. I recognized the Arndale mall as the reviewer walked around showing off the camera's video quality.

http://youtu.be/aObCaFWvDzs?t=10m30s

Looks like a pretty decent camera!

Maybe... the reviews are very mixed. It's apparently a very nice camera... if you get one that works properly. The company has some issues with support and quality control.

Two issues you have to get right. If you've got dodgy quality, good support can help you out of it.
Mess up both, you might as well sell the business.

Unless you're the only one making a product and that seems to be the case here. No one else is making a proper dashcam for motorcycles, and even this one is truly waterproof. I'll probably go ahead and order one if I can find a reliable vendor. Unfortunately the seller on Amazon only sells one specific version and I'd rather have one with a capacitor rather than a battery due to the local heat.


But I digress.

Did you find a suitable railway arch?

"this one ISN'T truly waterproof.

A very suitable arch, and a very suitable kit. Proper visit tomorrow, then a couple of weeks hopefully before we know.

I hope it works out! (and I hope we'll get pictures when you own it)

Don't worry, you will

In fact... this is what it looks like at the moment: https://www.flickr.com/photos/pasteyh2g2/19894574891/in/dateposted-public/

So it already is a brewery? Or did they use it only for storage? (and what did they do with the golden wheels?) Looks quite large, that's good.

It is a fully working brewery, ready for me to walk in, turn on the taps, flick some switches, and start brewing!

The guy who currently owns it is selling up, so he can go and rebuild steam trains. Yes, those wheels are from an old steam engine, not sure if they come included with the brewery though