by Mark
by Mark E. Lasbury for Indiana On Tap
Walter and I get to a lot of breweries, so many that we have a hard time visiting any of them very often. We don’t have a regular place, except maybe the couple of places that are very close to where we live, but we do have places that we especially look forward to getting back to.
There are several reasons that a place might be somewhere we like more than some others. It could be the beer, the environment, the people, the amenities, the food, the plants (mostly Walter)….. or it could be a combination of the above. That may sound weird, shouldn’t the beer be the only factor, all other things being equal? No, it shouldn’t. As long as the beer is not technically flawed, the rest is subjective.
Of course some breweries have better beer than others, and of course some breweries make more beers of styles that I personally enjoy. But a lot more goes into being a brewery than just the beer. Remember, breweries are in the people business, they just happen to make beer.
Consensus from the experts tells breweries that the things they can do to best ensure success would include having food, filling a niche in the industry, and location, location, location. Providing food brings in additional patrons and keeps them around longer. Filling a niche brings in additional patrons and creates a group of regulars. And of course, you want a location that has other things around it that will draw patrons, and will have walk up and drive by business.
In many cases, these pieces of advice are useful, but they aren’t commandments set in stone. There are plenty of exceptions, and Walter and I visited one just recently. Traders Brewing on the northwest side of Indy was celebrating their 8th anniversary with a weekend of events, beer releases, and general good times.
We have been to Traders several times, and it is always busy; perhaps not packed like it was on the Friday evening of the anniversary weekend, but even on a Wednesday afternoon when I might stop in while passing close by, I’m one of several patrons that will be at the bar and tables. Traders makes different styles of beer, from their flagship patersbier to a west coast IPA (Bart), to fruit sours, to assistant brewer Ashley’s new Vienna Lager. Stouts are always on the board, as are hazys.
Traders has popcorn and a few packaged snacks, but no one seems to mind. They sometimes do food trucks, but mostly people know to order food for deliver or they pick it up. Traders is located off of Zionsville Rd, a block south of 86th St in an industrial/business strip (called Building 1). There is one sign on the street and a sign above the door, but you kind of need to know its there …..but people are always there.
So, Traders Brewing is located in a space that breaks the rules, does have a lot of food or trucks, which breaks the rules, and just makes good beer flavored beer instead of diving into a single niche, which breaks the rules. Yet here they are, celebrating their 8th anniversary and just building their clientele and business all the time. I have talked to the people at the bar as to why they love Traders, and it all comes down to feeling welcome, liking the people, and knowing that they matter to the owners/workers. I agree, even though we don’t get to go there very often, when I walk in they call me by name, they ask how things are going, they talk in a way to show you they are proud of their place and product. It works, I’m a big fan.
I asked co-owner and head brewer Bart Hensley about the success of Traders, especially in light of how they have succeeded in spite of ignoring some common industry dos and don’ts. Suffice it to say, they know who they are, what they are, and how to build a business over time.
Indiana On Tap (IOT): This is the 8th anniversary, did you figure you’d get here when you started? What has been the most satisfying and hardest things about making it to 8 years?
Traders Brewing (TB): When we started, we were just hoping it would work. Eight years felt a long way off at the time, so we’re really grateful to still be here. The most rewarding part has been watching the community grow around the brewery. The hardest part is just the constant grind of running a small business, but seeing people fill the taproom makes it worth it.
IOT: Why did you and Krissy decide to open a brewery and has it been what you thought it would be?
TB: Beer has always been a passion of mine, and our family loved the idea of creating a place where people could gather and build community. In some ways it’s exactly what we imagined—people coming together over a pint. This is something our family enjoys taking part in.
IOT: Ashley is brewing quite a bit now. What was it like to bring in/train another brewer, and did you think that was a possibility when you opened?
TB: Ashley is a natural in the brewhouse. She’s done a great job, and it’s helped us keep things consistent while also giving us room to keep experimenting. I highly recommend the Vienna Lager she recently brewed, “Vienna Waits.” She did everything for that beer, from developing the recipe, brewing it herself and putting it on tap. I’m stoked for everyone to try it. She’s a damn good brewer!
IOT: You have resisted adding food to the brewery when most people tell you that food is very important. What has allowed you to buck that trend?
TB: We’ve heard that advice for years, but we’ve tried to stay focused on what we do best, which is brewing beer and creating a welcoming place for people to hang out. Our customers have really supported that approach. People come here for the beer and the atmosphere and typically BYOF or munching on popcorn.
IOT: You have so many regulars, we see them when we come visit, are they the reason you still exist? What percentage of patrons on a Friday evening will be regulars?
TB: Our regulars are absolutely a big reason we’re still here. They’ve supported us from the beginning and continue to show up week after week. On a typical Friday night, a large portion of the room is people we recognize, which is something we never take for granted.
IOT: I think your brewery has been a success, it’s always busy when we are there. How do you describe your business now? Has it been a slow climb, or are you now maintaining what you built early on?
TB: It’s definitely been more of a slow, steady climb. We’ve focused on consistency and creating a place people want to come back to. Over time that’s helped us build a loyal customer base.
IOT: What do you see coming in the next year, the next five years?
TB: In the next year we’re focused on continuing to make great beer and giving people a great taproom experience. If we can keep serving our beer to a great community and still be celebrating anniversaries years from now, that’s a win. Life is complicated, beer is simple!
Congratulations to Traders Brewing, and here’s to the next eight years of being what they are.
