My younger son was fascinated by beer from a very early age on and when he graduated it didn’t come as a surprise that he wanted to go to Berlin Germany, to become an International Beer-Brew Master. After graduating from the VLB Berlin he worked for the famous (at least in New England) brewery NEBCO, home of the renowned IPA, G-Bot.This week, he fulfilled his lifelong dream, opening up a brewery. Sebastian and two of his friends will open the doors to Tribus in Milford, Connecticut.
But this is not about beer or beer -brewing; it’s about observations on this industry coming from a wine drinker.Beer is not my first choice when it comes to an adult beverage, but I have become to appreciate it more (especially with food pairings) over the years. What I have really become to appreciate is how generous and sharing beer-brewers are in just about everything they do, whether it’s sharing ingredients, sharing best practices, or just simply sharing.
SHARING IS CARING
That's a phrase we teach our children but we hardly every apply it in the business world. In the beer brewing world there is only healthy competition. Beer brewers get excited about good beer, whether they have brewed it, or not. They visit each other’s facilities, where they get
best practices tipsand observe how things could be done differently. They are fascinated by each other’s achievements and they have a unique sense of comradery. When my son and another Beer Brew Master at NEBCO broke the news to the owner about their wish to open up their own brewery, the response from Rob was pride, support and encouragement.A couple of years ago, when Sebastian went to Chicago by car, he packed the trunk with NEBCO beer and stopped at local breweries on the way from Connecticut to Chicago to do a beer swap. That’s what beer brewers do.
NO NEED FOR SECRECY
There is none of the secrecy that you see in other industries, none of the envy or jealousy that one sees in some verticals I can think of.There might be many reasons why there is this sense of broader community. First off, the micro beer-brewing industry is rather young and most of the people involved are Millennials. Maybe that has something to do with it.Beer-brewing is also tough, there is a lot of hard labor involved and maybe that’s why the people involved have a greater appreciation for the efforts.There is also a lot of passion that I can see whenever you talk to a beer-brewer, or beer enthusiasts for that matter.Related:
Why We Need a Common Sales Language WITH CONFIDENCE COMES TRANSPARENCY
But, then there is the confidence that comes from knowing that you have a good product. Beer brewers understand that people like different things and it really comes down to a matter of taste and preference. There are some people who love their IPA’s, while others swear that a Belgium style beer is the best. And there are those who are Bud Light fans (no judgment!)I, myself have always been very open about my process to
sales training, never felt that I had the silver bullet and I am certainly excited when other people do well. A sentiment that I don’t experience often when interacting with other people in my industry.A client once told me “ There is nothing new about your process, but the way you execute is unique and that makes it powerful”. I wholeheartedly agreed.Sales training is sales training and beer is beer. If you are confident that your product is good and that some people (not all) will like it, why not share?Maybe, we should all be more like beer-brewers?!
