A: Well, I think the very first day I met my husband, he said that some day he wanted to brew beer, but I had no idea that it would ever happen on this scale, or what this would end up being. We started planning the business in January of 2012, found and rented the space on April 1 of that year and then it took a year of physical work to get ready. We opened the taproom on April 13 of this year.
Q: So far, so good?
A: Absolutely, it has exceeded our expectations wildly. We are very, very thrilled with the interest and support we've gotten from local Yellow Springs folks and the Miami Valley, but it's even been from beyond that – people from Columbus and Cincinnati have heard of us. It's partly because Yellow Springs is a destination town, no doubt, but a lot of our customers are also beer geeks who talk to one another. Also, social media has been an amazing tool for us. We had 1,000 Facebook "likes" before we even opened. People were hungry.
Q: Or thirsty, as the case may be.
A: Exactly.
Q: Talk a little more about social media, and how it’s affected the business and how you run it.
A: I wasn't a Facebook user until about six months ago — I really resisted it. But as soon as I got an account and started getting my news feeds from other businesses, I realized that having a conversation from one business to another, social media-wise, was an incredible way to advertise each other, talk and share with each other. We are now very connected from one type of business to another, and I think that interconnectedness we now have is so much better and easier. That's the undercurrent that runs through everything anyway — my artwork and my life — this interconnectedness we have.
Q: Amplify on that idea.
A: Well, in my artwork, that is the main theme, and I think that's the appeal it has to others. Connecting people with words. I make mosaic and tile ceramic pieces, and in my ceramic pieces, I connect with and collect words that I read on paper that mean something to me and spark something in me — and I turn those words into ceramic pieces, certain that another person out there will also connect with them and get that spark, that it will happen to them, too. That sharing is what I really love.
Q: Seems those ideas have come together at the brewery, too. Intentional?
A: Oh, yes. That was a very conscious part of our business plan, to create a place where people could gather, almost like a pub in England, a family living room where the whole family gathers and talks and shares. I mean, it's easy to connect through social media, but what brings people into our space, I think, is that it's about conversation, connecting with each other…. We don't have any TV sets, we have board games. We want people to come in, sit down, communicate, just be human to each other.
Q: What is it like these days to be an entrepreneur or small-business owner? The economy is still a bit shaky.
A: I am a graphic designer, originally, and I was a partner in an advertising agency for 12 years. Then I transformed to my own personal artwork for several years. I guess I am a bit of a risk-taker in general, and I really love the challenge of owning a business — I learned that through the ad agency world. It's so vast and varied, the different roles you have play. As far as the economy, Nate wanted to do this so badly, and I felt like I wanted to support him. So the timing just seemed right for us.
Q: What would you tell somebody else who’s starting a business?
A: It takes an incredible amount of work. Everything else goes on hold. You should see my house, it's disgusting right now – but that's OK, because we spend all our time here at the brewery, and we love it. You have to love what you're going to do.
Q: What are some of your other community involvements?
A: Between the ad agency and this, I was manager of the John Bryan Community Pottery in Yellow Springs for about two years. It's a community studio downtown that's been around for about 60 years, and it's wonderful. We're working on our nonprofit status now. I was also one of the founding members of the Dayton International Peace Museum. I was at a point in my life, after 9-11, where I felt like something had to be done, and the museum was a way to express that. I connected with Ralph and Chris Dull, who had the idea, and I had the time.
Q: Ironic to have a peace museum in an Air Force town?
A: A bit. But the Dayton Peace Accords happened here, which really does make it full circle. Really, though, it doesn't matter where the museum is — it's about having a place where people can make peace and feel that. I love the library there, and the exhibit about Hiroshima has such an eerie quality. It's very powerful.
Q: What’s your next project?
A: Good question — I'm working on a large mosaic for St. Charles Seminary in Mercer County, where I grew up. So I'm not totally putting my artwork on hold for the brewery, though I mostly have for the last year. Clearly, I like change, don't I?
Q: What do you like work best about living and working here?
A: Well, Yellow Springs — when I first saw it, I felt this sense of relief, like, This is home, where I belong. My family is here, I have a sense of belonging here. If it had a beach, it would be perfect.
Q: What is one thing you’d change?
A: I would have artwork on every corner. More public art, more diverse art. People would get a sense of connection to other people from it, and people would have a better understanding of each other. That's what art is all about, honestly. When I am looking at a piece of art, whether it's sculpture, a painting, whatever, if I know the story behind it and I know the artist, that makes it so much better to me. Even if I don't love it, I can appreciate where they're coming from, who they are, and how I can connect with them.
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