Why It’s So Hard for Celebrities to Run Their Own Breweries | VinePair

Opening a brewery isn’t a get-rich-quick gambit. Beer is a volume business with lower margins than spirits or wine, increasingly expensive raw materials, fragmented distribution partners, slow-to-develop brands, and a fickle customer base that wants brewery owners who are bought in with more than big bucks.

This makes it difficult for celebrities to move beyond partnerships and start their own brands. Craft brewing is largely a “culture- and authenticity-driven industry,” says Aaron Gore, the senior director of business development for Bevana Partners, which produ

ces and distributes beverages for brands in Newton, N.C. By putting in hours on the brew deck, brewers can become celebrities. Can celebs flip the script?

I tackle the topic for VinePair.