In a quest for more shelf space and feeling frustrated and constrained by the three-tier alcohol sales and distribution system here on earth, breweries across the US are rocketing upward, going boldly where no beer has been brewed before, outer space. Brewers Guilds and Associations are following suit by joining the Brewers Space Guild, banding together with brewers guilds across the country to send their work into orbit, a frontier without tiers. While space breweries will have to contend with issues such as the lack of CO2, zero gravity and wet burps, they’ll find relief in gaining the ability to brew and bring their own products to the interstellar markets – all while horrible alcohol laws (HAL 9000) continue to stifle the growth of Earth breweries and restrain their ability to self-distribute their beer. 

On Earth, breweries are often restricted by law in how they may package their beer. In space, breweries will be free to package their product however they like – in different sized cans, growler materials or keg sizes – and float it out of their pod bay doors for sale. Space breweries may also ship beer directly to the citizens of any planet, including those in galaxies far, far away.
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WHAT: The Association of Brewers Guild Professionals is a 501c3 membership-based organization of the country’s brewing industry association leaders and staff. The goal: To provide networking, educational and professional development opportunities to advance state brewers guild executive directors and their teams. 

WHO:  State brewers guilds and associations are nonprofit trade organizations formed to provide a united voice for protecting and promoting the interests of brewers in a given state or region. All 50 states have some form of brewers guild. Many states also have regional or city-based guilds organized to address local issues and promotional endeavors. Guilds stand at the front lines of a powerful and organized movement to successfully implement, protect, and maintain beer policies at the state and federal levels – and they accomplish all of this with small teams of typically one to two people. Guild employees must become experts in a complex and heavily regulated industry while also driving traffic and tourism to their state’s breweries and executing festivals, state beer weeks, and educational conferences. Each Guild director brings their own unique professional background and lens to the role – whether it be marketing, public relations, legal, lobbying, event planning, nonprofit management, sales, or fundraising. The Association of Brewers Guild Professionals aims to pool together the collective expertise of the nation’s executive directors to benefit the greater whole.  

HOW: The Association of Brewers Guild Professionals will work to identify and build an educational curriculum to develop Guild professionals. An industry that thrives on collaboration, its board and committees made up Guild leaders and industry experts, will create events and opportunities to bring together the nation’s 65 executive directors and other paid professional staff for networking, support, idea exchanges and knowledge sharing. Funds raised through events and dues will help to provide scholarships for continued learning and offset travel costs for smaller Guilds to ensure equal participation and access to the tools and resources available. The Association of Brewers Guild Professionals will amplify the mission, message and strength in unity of the country’s brewery associations. 

WHY: State Guilds played a vital role throughout the pandemic. They gathered information from the federal government, state government, Small Business Administration, and Brewers Association – and worked to curate that information in a timely and easy to understand manner. They advocated for their breweries throughout every phase, step, rollback and new COVID regulation. State Guilds were essential in ensuring that the breweries they serve were deemed “essential” and could remain open. While the pandemic showed the value of these associations – it also exposed how fragile many of them are. More than 250 brewing industry events were cancelled in 2020. Event revenue is the lifeblood of these organizations, and without it layoffs ensued and some associations did not survive. The Association of Brewers Guild Professionals hopes to provide Guild leaders with the tools, resources and partnerships they need to shore up their nonprofits in the event that hard times return.