The New England Craft Brew Summit, the region’s only business-to-business event for the brewing industry, recently announced the 2019 roster of workshops taking place March 1 at the Holiday Inn by The Bay in Portland, Maine.
Expert speakers in brewing, agriculture, hospitality, tourism, law, human resources and marketing will delve into issues impacting today’s craft brewer with interactive workshops and lively panel discussions. Attendees will have various options for the business, technical and front of house learning tracks during each session, including a new-for-2019 track devoted to new and small breweries.
Session 1: 9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
- Oh, The Places You’ll Grow! – Real Estate 101 ½: This panel discussion will include a comprehensive overview of legal and practical business considerations of real estate.
- Food Safety Modernization Act: Understanding the new FDA requirements can be challenging. Learn how to navigate the new food safety reality and plan for full compliance.
- “What do you have that’s light?”: Learn strategies for welcoming new craft customers in a way that earns customers for life.
- Best Practices in Social Media: From overall strategy to complying with copyright law, this presentation will help you build an effective (and on-brand!) social media strategy.
Session 2: 10:45 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.
- Tasting Room Management: HR and legal experts share tipping, staffing, and employment considerations to know as you grow.
- Balancing Supply and Demand: Longtime brewery owners discuss weathering industry cycles and offer advice for today’s brewers.
- Current Trends and Opportunities in Malt: A conversation about adding local grains to your batches, understanding buying options, and figuring out the malt bill.
- Beyond Beer: A conversation about increasing your average customer receipt, creating multi-channel revenue, and diversifying your business.
Session 3: 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
- Partnering with Distributors: How to build brewer/distributor partnerships that benefit both sides.
- Wood in Brewing: Explore the unique flavor profiles and characteristics of wood species other than oak, including birch, ash, maple, and more.
- Do’s and Don’ts in Equipment Procurement: Learn about important considerations to know as you invest in new equipment for the brewhouse.
- Tourism Economy and Your Brewery: How to understand the New England tourist, build a destination and harness the power of the tourism industry to help your brewery grow.
Session 4: 2:15 p.m. – 3:15 p.m.
- International Distribution: Learn about expanding your distribution to new international markets.
- Hop Industry Update: Information on the current state of the hop market and an exploration into buying options for hops and the value of visiting fields.
- SOPs in the Brewhouse: A discussion of standard operating procedures (SOPs) throughout the brewery, from the brewhouse and cellars to packaging and more.
- Don’t Go Viral: From bad reviews to getting caught up in a hashtag movement, social media and crisis communications experts will present online crisis scenarios in this hands-on workshop.
Session 5: 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
- Standing Out in a Crowded Marketplace: Public relations, branding and marketing strategies for differentiating yourself amidst a sea of competition.
- Safe and Legal: An interactive session that dives into the responsibilities and liabilities related to serving alcohol in taprooms, brewpubs and beer festivals.
- Scaling Up Small Batches: Considerations and advice for taking beer recipes from pilot batch to production.
Registration is now open. Click here for more information. Registration is required for all events as space is limited.
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