Virgin StartUp of the week: G2 Brewing
Our Virgin StartUp of the week is G2 Brewing, a microbrewery serving up delicious beers crafted in the Kent countryside. We catch up with them to discover more about what they do!
We choose one Virgin StartUp company to be featured on Virginstartup.org each week. We ask our startups of the week to deliver the ultimate elevator pitch. What would they say if they had one minute in a lift with Sir Richard Branson? Please answer the questions below, keeping each answer to five sentences max.
Ground to floor 1 – Explain what your business does
G2 is a micro or craft brewery - basically, we make great beer! Our aim is not only to brew excellent beer but also to think more creatively about the whole process of brewing - from the materials we use, to how we combine them, and in what way we deliver the beer so that it tastes, looks and smells great! We want our customer to be fully immersed in the G2 experience.
Floor 1 to 2 - Where are you based?
We have located our brewery in the hops garden of England; one of the true traditional beer counties in Ashford, Kent. It is perfectly situated so that we have great connections to London with its close proximity and high-speed rail links, so that we can tap into the largest market in the UK without paying London prices.
Floor 2 to 3 – What’s the business model?
G2's main focus will be on creating great-tasting, great-looking, and great-smelling beer, so that when our customers drink it they'll have the full G2 experience - which we're sure will make them come back for more. We'll focus on delivering our beer to pubs, bars and restaurants initially across London and Kent to ensure that we can generate sustainable growth, whilst targeting the largest audience possible.
Floor 3 to 4 – Who are your competitors?
In recent years there has been a resurgence of micro or craft breweries. Pubs, bars and restaurants have been able to provide a choice offering to consumers of a large variety of beers; this means that micro or craft breweries producing beer to be sold as a guest ale would be our major competitors. Companies such as Sambrooks and Brewdog we have a large amount of respect for, as they have both managed impressive growth feats. We hope to replicate what these and others in the marketplace have done, so that we ourselves can become a market leader.
Floor 4 to 5 – What’s your USP?
G2 will create an experience for each customer by piquing their natural curiosity with forward-thinking beer, and reinforcing it with clever branding and marketing. We want to move beer away from the image of blokes eating crisps and watching the football game down the pub that's characteristic of beer culture, and instead create a culture of customers that enjoy great beer and are inspired to talk to each other instead of staring at a screen.
Floor 5 to 6 – Where did the idea come from?
Between us we have over 10 year’s experience brewing beer. Admittedly it's on a smaller scale - however, we all start somewhere. When we discovered our passion for brewing beer (and drinking it!) we joked about starting a business in beer. This “joke” got more serious, and we both thought, well - why not? If you're going to be a success, you might as well do something you love!
Floor 6 to 7 – How much funding did you receive from Virgin StartUp?
Thanks to Virgin StartUp we are now able to make our dream become a reality with the £25,000.
Floor 7 to 8 – How are you going to use it to grow your business?
The money will allow us to complete the buyout and refit of our brewery, and let us focus full-time on getting our product name out there! We've just received all of the relevant permissions, which means we are now able to begin brewing - so thanks to the money it's full steam ahead, meaning that we will be able to begin ensuring that our beer is in pubs as soon as possible.
Floor 8 to 9 - What's your workspace like?
Our workspace is what could be best defined as a “work in progress”. It includes a brewhouse, the fermenting tanks, the casks (and cold room) and - of course – the obligatory bar in the office. Although it's not the prettiest at the moment, thanks to the finance from Virgin StartUp we're able to really put a stamp on how our business is going to look, and with a bit of hard work and elbow grease it'll be looking great in no time.
Floor 9 to 10 – where will your business be in 12 months’ time?
In 12 months’ time we'll be providing our beer through more channels so that it can be enjoyed by a wider customer base. We'll also be introducing it to more cities throughout the UK, and looking to get finance to open the first G2 bar. Further to this we'll introduce a bottling line so our beers can be enjoyed in the park with your friends, at home with a nice meal, or wherever you feel like it. The next 12 months are going to be an exciting journey!
To find out more about G2 Brewing check out their website, or connect on Twitter and Facebook. G2 Brewing are supported by Virgin Startup delivery partners Enterprise First.
Image source: Flickr Creative Commons