Mainebiz

V O L . X X I N O. X X V I N OV E M B E R 1 6 , 2 0 1 5 16 T he year 2012 was a landmark for Rising Tide Brewing. e company started to expand its physical plant and fermentation capacity, and was pumping out 10 barrels of beer per week. It also was when Heather Sanborn, then a lawyer, joined her husband Nathan's brewing company, which they co-own. And perhaps most importantly, it was the fi rst full year a new law allowed on-site tasting rooms to operate and charge for their beer. " ere are 420 operating tasting rooms in Maine now," says Heather Sanborn, who also serves as presi- dent of the Maine Brewers' Guild. Rising Tide plans to greatly expand its tasting room in 2016. e current tasting room at its brewery in Portland's East Bayside neighborhood accounts for one-third of total revenue. Rising Tide's total sales grew 262% from 2012 through 2014, making it Mainebiz's fastest-growing company in the small category, with 25 or fewer employees. e company operates its brewery and tasting room in 5,500 square feet in Portland and its ware- house in 8,400 square feet in Westbrook. e brewery was fi nanced by the Sanborns, who then took out a loan from Bangor Savings Bank. It set up a proof-of-concept operation in 2011 and installed equipment in 2012. Initially, it produced 29 barrels in 2010, which rose to 149 barrels in 2011 and 2,505 barrels in 2014. Projections for 2015 are about 3,800 barrels. A U.S. beer barrel is 31 gallons, equivalent to about 250 pints or 13.7 cases. ough the tasting room was not part of the original business plan, its success has the company planning to double its space plus add bathrooms to accommodate drop-ins and bus and bicycle tours. Sanborn aims to keep her market local instead of competing head-on with larger craft brewers and giant beverage companies like Heineken, which in September bought 50% of Petaluma, Ca.-based craft brewer Lagunitas Brewing Co. for an undis- closed amount. Heineken is not the only giant brewer eyeing the faster-growing craft brewing market. Maine's brew- eries alone sold $92.6 million worth of beer in 2013 and employed nearly 1,500 workers, according to a May 2014 Maine Brewers' Guild economic impact study, which also noted that Maine's brewers plan to double production by 2018. However, the study included only the 35 breweries in operation in 2013; there are almost double that number today, and 80 anticipated by the end of 2016. "We're seeing a trend where larger brewers like Anheuser-Busch InBev, Heineken or other con- glomerates are looking at reasonably small craft breweries to diversify their portfolio and get into the segment of the market that is growing most quickly," Sanborn says. "I don't anticipate it will impact us because our strategy is to grow close to home." She says the company already is growing extremely fast in Maine, and sales are up 30% alone this year, not counting the tasting operation. Sanborn says becoming a successful brewer in Maine requires blending an appreciation for the highest-quality of beer with business sense, experi- ence and working with the bank, regulators and the city of Portland. She says 2015 revenue is on track to be up 45% over 2014. e tasting room revenue is projected to be up 52% over 2014. e room is operating seven days a week for both of those years. Projections for 2016 are very conservative, Sanborn says, "because that helps me sleep better at night. We' re forecasting 20% growth over 2015 in total revenue with 30% growth in our tasting room revenue." L V, Mainebiz senior writer, can be reached a t @ . a n d @ LV SMALL COMPANY Rising Tide's rapid rise Craft brewer is Maine's fastest-growing small company B y L o r i V a l i g r a Rising Tide Brewing Co. LLC 103 Fox St., Portland Founded: 2010 Top leaders: Heather Sanborn and Nathan Sanborn Sales growth 2012–14: 262% Number of employees: 15 Contact: 370-2337 www.risingtidebrewing.com Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions Five questions How would you describe your company's core mission? Our motto is 'beer first.' Our mission is to make great beer first, and the rest of our mis- sion is taking care of our people and community. What were the key factors in your company's growth? The expansion of our physical plant and fermentation capacity beginning in 2012. We had a weekly capacity of 10 barrels of beer a week in 2012 and now have 150 barrels per week. There are 292 barrels in fermentation at any one time. How have you adjusted to the rapid growth? We work a lot and we've hired great people. With the growing craft beer industry there is a lot of opportunity out there. Do you have plans to hire additional employees? We have 15 full-time employees now. We have an open position for a sales representative for Massachusetts and New Hampshire. What can we expect for 2016? We plan to great- ly expand our tasting room in 2016. It contributes about one-third of revenue. P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY Heather and Nathan Sanborn, co- owners of Rising Tide Brewing, in the brew house in Portland.

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