Commercial Direction & Growth — KBC Head Brewer Hub

Commercial Reality

KBC is a small craft brewery. It must be commercially sustainable — this is a business, not a hobby. Every keg brewed must be sold. Every ingredient purchased must be used. Every hour of your time must create value.

Barry runs multiple businesses. KBC must operate independently on a day-to-day basis, with the Head Brewer taking full ownership of production, quality, deliveries, and paperwork. Barry sets the direction — you execute it.

Think like an owner. If this were your money, your reputation, your brewery — would you be happy with how it’s running today?

Current Accounts

These are KBC’s current stockist accounts. Maintaining these relationships is critical — every keg delivered on time and in perfect condition builds trust.

Account	Location	Notes
Lock 13 Brewpub	Sallins, Co. Kildare	KBC’s home venue. Primary account. Always fully stocked.
The Silken Thomas	Naas	Long-standing account. Consistent reorder pattern.
Cliff at Lyons	Lyons	Premium venue. Quality and presentation must be impeccable.
JP Healy’s	Straffan	Local pub account. Reliable volume.
Fletcher’s	Naas	Naas town account.
33 South Main	Naas	Naas town account.
Kavanagh’s	Naas	Naas town account.
Killashee Hotel	Naas	Hotel account. Quality expectations high.

New accounts will be added over time as KBC grows. You may be involved in deliveries to new stockists and should always represent KBC professionally.

Growth Targets

KBC’s growth depends on three things:

Consistent quality — accounts reorder because the beer is reliably excellent. One bad keg can lose an account. Your brewing standards directly drive revenue.
Capacity utilisation — the brewery has a maximum capacity. We need to be brewing efficiently, minimising waste, and using every brew day productively. Empty fermenters are lost revenue.
New accounts — Barry and the sales effort will bring in new accounts. When they arrive, the brewery must be ready to supply them without disrupting existing commitments.

Growth is not just about selling more. It’s about having the production capacity, the quality consistency, and the operational discipline to support more accounts without dropping the ball.

Cost Awareness

Every Head Brewer must understand the cost of what they produce. You don’t need to be an accountant, but you must know:

The cost per keg for every core beer — use the Brew Cost Calculator
Ingredient costs and how they fluctuate — malt prices, hop prices, yeast costs
Packaging costs — kegs, cans, labels, CO2
Waste — how much is lost in each brew? Trub, spillage, short fills. Minimise it.
Utilities — water, electricity, gas. They add up. Be conscious of usage.

If you don’t know what it costs to brew a keg of Chapel Lane Lager, find out. That number should be in your head.

What the Head Brewer Needs to Know About Sales

You’re not a salesperson — but you need to understand how KBC’s beer gets to market. The more you understand the commercial side, the better decisions you’ll make in the brewery.

The Trade Sell Sheet is what buyers see. Know what’s on it.
Trade pricing and margins — understand why we price the way we do. See the Pricing Calculator.
When a stockist has a quality issue, that’s a brewery problem first. Own it, investigate it, fix it.
Seasonal demand — some beers sell more in summer, some in winter. Plan production accordingly.
New product requests — if a stockist asks “do you have a stout?” that’s market intelligence. Pass it to Barry.

The Bigger Picture

KBC is building something. Not just making beer — building a brand, a reputation, and a business that generates real revenue. The Head Brewer is central to that. Without consistent, high-quality production, nothing else works. You’re not just filling kegs — you’re building the foundation that everything else sits on. Take that seriously.