Brewpub: how to open one and how much investment is needed?

There are several ways to open a brewpub, depending on what you intend to sell there, from exclusively beer to beer and food, like a bar/restaurant. The heart of this business must be the beer made right there, and that will be the main factor behind its success or failure. That said, let's now look at how to open a brewpub and how much investment is needed:

Opening a brewpub: first steps

Are you set on building a brewpub? The first step is to decide where it will be located and how many liters you want to produce. Once that is done, you can start looking for locations.

Look for a location to open the brewpub

Rent a space that already has a bar or restaurant license: This is the simplest option, because if you already have a license, you will have no trouble producing beer and selling it on the same premises. Either way, it is advisable to go to city hall and report this “extension” of the activity

Rent a space: this option can be a bit more complicated. Before spending money on an engineer or architect, you should check with city hall to see what requirements they ask for and whether it is possible to obtain a license for the space you are interested in.

Decide how much beer you want/expect to produce

You need to decide how much beer you will produce in order to choose a place that is big enough. The size depends a lot on your ambition and the type of equipment you want to use, but on average, it is not advisable to take spaces under 130 m².

A brewhouse with a 250-liter system and three fermenters, plus the stock of kegs being produced, the raw materials and the rest of the production equipment, will require at least 70 m². The remaining area should go to restrooms, the bar, and tables and chairs for customers.

Is it possible to make a brewpub in a smaller space? Certainly, but the capacity to receive people will be much smaller, around 6-8 customers… in that case it is very likely that the numbers at the end of the month will not be as positive as expected, besides having to work in a small space.

What is the investment to open a brewpub?

Once the location and the production volume are decided, the key question comes: how much does it cost to open a brewpub?

The most common choice when setting up a brewpub is batches of 250 to 500 liters. To give you an idea, here is a list of basic equipment:

– mill;
– mash kettle and boil kettle;
– lauter tun;
– hot water tank;
– glycol tank;
– hot/cold water mixer;
– service platform;
– heat exchanger;
– wort aerator;
– control panel;
– fermentation and conditioning tank;
– pressure and serving tank;
– transfer pump;
– kegs.

It is very hard to give an exact amount to invest, because you need to consider the type of production, the volume, the region, the legislation and so on, but according to people who already know the market, the amount to invest in a brewpub ranges from R$ 200 thousand to R$ 250 thousand, but that is a complete projection that covers several stages, and all of these factors can change depending on your circumstances, how you set it up and with whom your business will operate.

Open a brewpub or a brewery? What is the difference?

What is the difference between a brewpub and a brewery? State laws are a major reason for the different market segments in the craft beer industry. Most breweries go through a three-tier sales process (brewer to wholesaler, wholesaler to retailer, retailer to consumer).

The biggest difference between a brewpub and a brewery is that a brewpub can sell its beer only at the place where it was made, while a brewery can sell its beer in supermarkets, stores and the like.

The advantage of the brewpub here is that it eliminates all the logistics costs of distributing and selling the beers, making the whole process cheaper. So, if you want to open a brewpub, be aware that your beer will not “conquer the world” and that you will still need to obtain all the registrations and licenses that a brewery requires.

Another point people often confuse is taxation. It does not matter whether you are Ambev or a micro producer who chose the MEI regime; either way, you will need all the licenses and registrations from city hall and so on.

And if you are torn between opening a brewpub or a bar, check out our material on opening a bar. Whatever you choose, myTapp has a smart solution to increase your profits!

And if you are already prepared and want to learn more about myTapp and how we can bring technology to your establishment, request a contact!

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