Beer Girl

0:00Caroline Foulk:Welcome to the Emerging Brands podcast. Sharing the stories behind brands you'll want to shop next. I'm your host, Kelly Bennett. I am a New York City-based brand strategist for CPG Food and Beverage Brands. In each episode, I'll take you behind the scenes of founders that are building better-for-you products and bringing them to market. it. Also, I talk to brand builders, retailers, industry experts, and tastemakers who help bring those cool products to your shopping cart. You will hear stories of real-life founders, their launch strategies, and practical advice you could use to grow your own brand or simply discover what's next on shelf.

0:42Caroline Foulk:And the best part is you could shop all the brands featured on the show. This podcast is brought to you by Glimpse. Glimpse is an AI powered deduction management tool that disputes and recovers invalid deductions, winning brands, thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours back to founders so that they can focus on what really matters most. If you're a brand selling in retail, go to tryglimpse.com backslash trial for 30 days free and let them know I sent you. Now let's dive into the new episode. Hi everyone. Welcome back to a new episode of Emerging Brands Podcast with Kelly Bennett. Today I have Caroline Folk.

1:29Caroline Foulk:She is the founder of Beer Girl, which is such a fun, cool take on conventional beer that we see almost anywhere. Her beer stands out for multiple reasons. One, how cute is that name? Two, the branding really stands out as well. And three, there's a really unique value prop here too, that it has a lower gluten. It's made with corn. So Caroline, I'm so happy to have you on the show and talk shop about how you are doing something disruptive within the beer industry. Well, first off, thank you so much for having me. I'm so welcome. It's so fun just to talk about the background and how we got here, because I feel as a founder, you're just looking forward all the time.

2:17And how do I go faster? How do I get to the next place to where, you know, talking about the journey and reflecting as always, it's great for me to do as a founder. So yeah.

2:28Caroline Foulk:That makes me happy to hear because to your point, it's so easy to get caught up in the day to day, the next thing you have to do. And that's why I also love having this podcast because many founders also listen to the podcast. And it's really helpful reminders that they're not the only ones navigating this wild world of CPG. that there's now I've had hundreds of founders on, which is so cool that yes, there's going to be some things that are unique to you and your brand, but there's also some similarities of just navigating, getting a product to market. And one of those things that, especially when I work with a pre-launch brand that I'm always looking at first is how will this product and brand really stand out in the market.

3:20Caroline Foulk:And like I said earlier, I feel like the beer industry is so competitive. There's so much product on market. What caught your eye, one, to the beer industry in general, but then two, what was that white space and the gap in the market that you saw that was that light bulb moment of, honestly, beer girl? But what were the things that you were seeing within in the market. Totally. So Beer Girl was founded back in 2023 and it was founded at my family brewery. So my family has a brewery in the central coast, California called Wagon Brewing Company. Yeah, it's awesome. And I was operating it for a few years.

4:04And while I was operating it, I noticed that a lot of women, but also men would come in and ask for seltzer, ciders, wines, tequilas. And I would say, Hey, try one of our 22 beer styles that we can make in house for a multitude of reasons. One, because I believed that they were the best thing that we had to offer on the menu. And two, we made them in house. So they were always going to yield a better margin. So I would try to push people towards them. And this pushback that I would get is that beer makes me feel too heavy and too bloated. And I got to thinking, wow, there's really not aside from gluten-free beer that is like fully just hitting the nail on the head with gluten-free beer, a product that kind of caters to this person that is looking for a better for you option.

4:47And then also for the female demographic coming in and, you know, always drinking beers that are made by men for men, marketed to men. So that was a white space that I saw. I saw a few different things. One, females weren't communicated to in a way that made them feel seen. Number two, women and men were looking for a little bit of a better for you option, something that didn't make them feel so heavy and bloated. And then this zillennial, if you will, it's a new term, I keep saying, right? The gen zillennial. There was all this talk and chatter about, you know, people aren't drinking anymore, where what I would find in the family breweries, people were still drinking.

5:29They were just drinking less and looking for something with a little bit more moderation and a little bit more balance. And that's where the low ABV came into play. Ironically, I also was going through an autoimmune disease at the time. And so a lot of the things that I was creating recipe wise were actually for myself. Oh, interesting. It was really cool in the R &D process because I could kind of find what worked best with my system. and then I found that that translated. So there were a few different white spaces that I found and then also just innovation in the beer space. I find when people are saying, you know, that things are on the decline or, you know, people need, we need more people to drink or all these problems, that's when there's an opportunity to dive in and be innovative.

6:15So that's when we thought, okay, let's give this a go. So cool.

6:20Caroline Foulk:So how long has your family been in the brewery industry? since 2020 so it was a family um dream of ours to open up a brewery and ironically we started working on it in 2019 and then COVID happened wow okay time to open a brewery right but we made it through we actually started with contract brewing so contracting and just locally you know distributing it to other breweries and then we opened up our own tap room in 2022 when we were actually able to get people in the doors, you know, and have people and things were just more open. So when you first initially came up with the concept, what a great place for you to R &D, get real data from customers.

7:12Caroline Foulk:I mean, my market research brain is like so thrilled with this situation that you had, what were some of the initial reactions when you started sampling or talking about how you were experimenting with a beer that would check a lot of those boxes? What was some of the initial reactions? Totally. So, well, one thing that I found, we had a Mexican style lager, a few different ones at the time. And I had always had a preference for Mexican style lagers because I know that they're made with corn. not wheat. But a lot of times the consumer didn't know that they were made with corn and not wheat. And so before we even put beer girl on draft, I would push them towards our Mexican style lagers and create that education story and say, hey, these are going to be easier in your digestive system if you're worried about bloating, because the wheat is really what makes you kind of blow up after you drink a beer and not corn.

8:12So Modelo, Corona, Pacifico, those are all corn based, but people just didn't know. So I found that that education was really, really helpful. And then when we actually made the beer girl product that took the gluten down to as low as it could be while still being produced in a facility with wheat, the reception was amazing. One, I think when people were drinking it, thinking this is a gluten reduced product, they expected it to be less flavorful or watered down or something.

8:41Caroline Foulk:Yeah. And it's not at all. It It is an amazing flavor, but because it's lower ABV and because it's made with corn, it doesn't have that aftertaste left on your tongue. It's a little bit effervescent. And so it's just a really easy drinking. Well, we now have a light lager and an amber lager, our two hero SKUs. But we started with the light lager and people were just so impressed by how they could have one, two, three of them and still feel okay afterwards, which also, you know, was part of the low ABV story as well, because people could have a few of them and not, you know, need to stop drinking because they were, for lack of a better term, um, couldn't, you know, control themselves after one or two beers.

9:26Totally.

9:26Caroline Foulk:So what was your background prior to the family business and beer girl? Yeah. So my background, I actually went to school for writing, songwriting and music. So yeah, completely different. My entire life I was singing, songwriting, and I actually graduated from college in 2019. And for about a year, I was touring, doing all of that until 2020. And at the time my family was wanting to start this brewery and my whole world was postponed. You know, we couldn't do anything. The only way I was making money was going out and being an opening act on different tours. And so I went and said, you know what, I'll learn about this other business.

10:13It was super interesting because I've always loved entrepreneurship. And through building the brewery, we saw so many different facets of the industry from operations to finance to construction. I mean, we constructed it from the ground up. And so it was amazing. While I thought I would be in it for six months, I ended up falling in love with it and then having this idea for Beer Girl. And really interesting, I've been able to pull from the creative space that I was in before and bring that into the category, which I also felt was missing from a branding perspective and kind of seeing things through a different lens and with a new perspective.

10:52Caroline Foulk:That doesn't surprise me that you have such a creative background because just looking at your packaging and the photography and just the whole brand world that you've built, I definitely got a very creative sense from whoever is behind this. So that is really cool to see how those dots have connected. Totally. It's crazy how things just work out, you know, and how you could be in a completely different place than where you projected yourself. I mean, that's a huge turn and especially graduating college with a certain degree and a whole vision and then the whole world shuts down. Proud of you for really leaning into a pivot because I'm sure that was a lot to digest.

11:38Totally. Totally. But you know, you reinvent and I've always been a very type A driven person. And so I was never going to be the type of person that kind of sat around and waited for the next thing to open up. I, you know, very much thought I'm going to create my own opportunity here. So why not?

11:57Caroline Foulk:I love that. That's a good entrepreneurial spirit to have. So how did you start then distributing Beer Girl? What were some of those steps? Obviously, you're in a great space to test, to brew the product, such an advantage to go to market. But what were some of the things that you started doing? because you were, I'm sure, needing to work with more traditional beer distributors, but also you're doing something super different. I would love to hear how those early conversations started. And I know you just were traveling, opening up new doors, which is so exciting, new markets. So I'd love if you could take us through those early days.

12:41Definitely. So it's really interesting launching a beverage product in California because California is one of the only states where we can self-distribute. So beer beverage laws make beer and the alcohol world very difficult from a route to market perspective. So you can either be the supplier, which is what Beer Girl is. you could be the retailer or you could be the distributor, but you can't be even two of them in most states. But in California, we can sell as the manufacturer supplier directly to retail. So rather than going through a traditional beer distributor, we went directly to retail.

13:25And the reason being that these distribution contracts, they take 30 % of generally, like that's kind of, you know, the general number of whatever you make in their region. And so you need to be really attractive to them. Oftentimes you need to already come to them with a book of business, either buy in from a retailer. I have X amount of, you know, when you go to another state, it's buy in from retailers, but in California, it was going to be, these are how many retail doors I've opened myself. So we actually started self-distributing. So while I was operating the family brewery, I started, you know, putting feelers out there to other on-premise retail accounts.

14:06So we have the on-premise, the off-premise, but another advantage that we have in beverage is rather than, you know, your traditional chains, like an Albertsons, Vons, Target, Walmart, we have bars and restaurants that we can go service and really see, okay, how are people going to receive the brand in these outlets? And because I had worked at the family brewery, I knew how these on-premise locations worked. So I would go sell in Beer Girl into these bars and restaurants locally. And then when it started to work, I actually went to my husband and said, this is something I need to do full time and actually pulled him into the fold as well.

14:44And we started self-distributing in Southern California, quickly opened up close to 600 doors, just ourselves where we were distributing everything out of a van that we purchased. And we ended up hiring three employees, three supplier reps who were going and opening these doors. And basically we knew if we could create enough buzz, we would get the attention from the beer distributors that we needed, not only in California, but in these different states across the country to say, okay, if this brand is working here, it can also work here. And also to have data to go and pitch to the retailers to say, you know, San Diego, I'm selling X amount in XYZ on-premise locations.

15:28So if you put me in your store, you're going to see velocity move because so many people have tried the brand already at these bars and restaurants. So the strategy that we had, and we had that goal, 600 doors, and then we would start pitching distributors and that's what we did. And then distributors in other states, you have to go through the distributor. But because we had this buzz in California, we've been able to open amazing beer wholesalers that wholesale some other products that, you know, in one state where with distributors that distribute Anheuser-Busch products and another one where they distribute Molson Coors products, which is amazing that we're now getting the exposure into that world.

16:15Caroline Foulk:That's super impressive and really clever how all those things lined up so well. Yeah. That the fact that you're in California and that you could sell directly to retailers and then also the on-premise to then use that data for retailers, I'm obsessed with this strategy. I love this. It was just how do we do that? How do we actually get there? Because you would go to the retailers and they'd say, well, who's your distributor? And then you'd go to the distributors and you'd say, well, what's your retailer? And it's like, where do I even begin? So you have to get a little bit creative and scrappy with how you start if you want these people to eventually believe in you.

16:58Obsessed.

16:59Caroline Foulk:So after you got that buzz going and after you got the attention from the distributors that you want to get the attention of, How have you been then opening up new markets and just growing and scaling the brand? Because now there are more competitive competitors, I should say. And it's gotten more competitive with this more niche space of more women in particular. How have you been like standing out and just kind of owning your own lane in what you're building? well I think leading with the story and leading with what what was our intention why did we set out to create this product what are the offerings that make us different which are the fact that we're low abv made from corn not wheat gluten reduced but then also our branding that it's fun and it's inclusive and it caters to both men and women we've really been able to lead with that story when we go into these new markets and being able to stand out in that way.

18:04And then additionally, when we move into these markets, you know, we're focused on, you do have to lead with retail in most other states. So like, what are your chain anchors? What are these doors that you know you're bringing to your distributor? But then what also makes us unique is that we have this on-premise availability, which a lot of brands will start in packaged and not in draft, where we offer both draft and packaged. So when we launch into a new market, we also have kegs that we sell into bars and restaurants. So if we were to launch in Sprout stores, if we were to launch in Albertson stores, we could then be in these bars and restaurants creating brand trial.

18:47And truly that's where I believe brands are created because there is so much competition when you go into the beer aisle. there's especially you know in places where craft is still dominated you you look at the beer sets and you're like oh my gosh what do I even choose there's so many different ones but if you've seen a brand at a bar and restaurant that you love and you've tried it you're more likely to go and buy

19:12Caroline Foulk:it in the retailer that's such a great point and something that I wanted to then ask next is for someone who's super early on, like I said earlier before hitting record, I work with founders who have a product concept. Maybe they've been R &Ding in their own kitchen and they've been talking to friends and family of like, okay, I think I have something here. But taking that product idea and making that into something people could shop in retail is a huge journey. So much to get done to make that happen. What would you tell that entrepreneur who's in the very, very early days, something helpful to keep in mind or to just have in the forefront as they're strategizing, bringing a product to market?

20:06Caroline Foulk:I would love to hear from your perspective, anything that you would share for that founder. Totally. Well, one, I think what's interesting when you're going and pitching retail is how do you add in? I'm so sorry. I'm actually, if you heard my dog bark, I have him today. Oh, no worries. Okay, we'll just make sure he's quiet. Okay, but going back to your question, like how do you create value for these retailers? You really need to create incremental value. And how do you do that? I think a lot of people, when they have a product, they can go to a retailer distributor obviously it depends on which lane you're in in cpg if you're in food if you're in um bev but they say hey take this product and swap it for this other product a retailer isn't necessarily or a distributor going to be as interested in that as hey this is incremental value this is pulling in somebody who's not currently shopping in your aisles this is something that you don't need to swap another product for because what they all want to see is revenue in the door.

21:14They want to see higher basket sizes. So you need to, you know, be positioning yourself to not say swap me out for a competitor, but bring me in as an incremental ad. That's something that we've really found has been huge for us, especially when we not only have to win over the retailer, but we also have to win over the distributor. And I do believe that Beer Girl is incremental. So it's an easy sell, but that's something I kind of identified at the beginning was this is something where all these distributors, these retailers, odds are you don't have something like this, or maybe you have one other low ABV brand or one other gluten reduced or one other that is including women in the narrative, but there aren't a lot.

21:55And so we are adding to the category. And then two, I think the biggest thing I'd say is like, take it in bite-sized chunks. Like I was talking about first getting into 600 doors in Southern California. Like while I had this big vision for the brand, sometimes thinking about that big vision can be very overwhelming. It's like how do I do in bite-sized chunks to actually make it possible for me? Like what are these attainable goals? My three-month goal, my six-month goal, my 12-month goal. And then when you get there, you start to see all of these other doors open and you have so many light bulb moments.

22:34And so not feeling like you need to have this perfect five-year plan, but just start and things evolve as you go, I think is the other thing I've really learned.

22:47Caroline Foulk:That's a good way of thinking about it. Also, what you touched upon about getting creative. I'm obsessed with that. I think that was such a great point too, of thinking outside the box of how everyone else is moving and seeing how you could kind of get creative to make your brand aware to your ideal target audience, either that's the retailer, the distributor, or the consumer in your own way that tells your brand story. I think you did that so well. Thank you. And yeah, I think not being so married to one thing, you know, even when it comes to design or formulation, like it has to be genuine and authentic, but you can also cater it to be creative, you know, like what's working.

23:33Low ABV when we started, people thought that I was crazy, but now everybody in the beer space is talking about low ABV. So we're like, wow, that's something that we're going to, I did it because I love low ABV products, but we didn't necessarily include it in our decks. Now it's included in all of our decks because people identify that as, you know, something that they want in their stores. So that's just interesting.

23:58Caroline Foulk:Yeah. And something else that you just touched upon when you go to market and you're ahead of the game, right? You're doing something that you see coming to market, but you're one of the first keeping that competitive edge, I'm sure also is a lot of work. And do you have any advice to a lot of the brands who are listening? They are usually the first to bring a certain style of product to market or like one of the early innovators on something, but then they see other people coming to market similar. Do you have any advice there too? That's interesting. I was actually just speaking with my husband about this yesterday, but I think just keeping like, obviously being aware of what's happening in the market, but staying in your own lane.

24:48And again, going back into why did you start this? Like build, build your own, like you're building your own concept and these competitors are building their own concept. And a lot of times the noise that comes out about competition, because it is so hard to really grow these businesses and to see them through to whatever your finish line is, they're just distraction, you know, and you could spend all your time just listening and listening. And then all of a sudden you're not building your own brand. So you need to just keep building your own brand and stay focused because that's inevitable. And it also means that you're onto something.

25:27And in the same breath, if people are coming on and creating brands that, you know, are, have similar offerings or similar, whatever it may be, they're also building the category with you right and so there's something to be said about that as well so I think just not being um distracted and keeping strategic blinders on yes well said I'm