Athletic Brewing Company: Bill Shufelt

2024/11/18

How I Built This with Guy Raz

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Bill Shufelt

Guy Raz

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Bill Shufelt讲述了他创立Athletic Brewing公司的历程，从最初面临资金短缺、产品未成型、市场缺乏动力等困境，到最终将公司估值提升至8亿美元的成功故事。他强调了妻子和合伙人John Walker对他的重要支持，以及在产品研发、市场营销和融资方面所做的努力。他提到，创业初期，他面临着来自制造商、投资者和零售商的强烈抵制，无酒精啤酒市场份额极小，产品普遍不受欢迎。但他坚信，只要能做出口感好的无酒精啤酒，就能吸引越来越多的消费者。他通过市场调研，发现如果存在口感好的无酒精啤酒，会有大量消费者购买。因此，他决定彻底革新无酒精啤酒的制作工艺，并最终找到一位经验丰富的酿酒师John Walker合作。在产品研发过程中，他们进行了大量的实验，不断改进啤酒的口感和风味。在市场营销方面，他最初尝试寻找合同酿酒商合作，但未果，最终决定自己建造啤酒厂。他通过参加各种体育赛事进行产品试饮，并与Whole Foods等大型零售商建立合作关系。在融资方面，他经历了漫长的过程，最终获得了一批天使投资人的支持。在公司发展过程中，他面临着产品销量不佳、产能不足等挑战，但他始终坚持不懈，并最终取得了成功。他认为，无酒精啤酒市场仍处于早期发展阶段，未来增长潜力巨大，并对未来发展充满信心。 Guy Raz作为主持人，引导Bill Shufelt讲述了他的创业故事，并对他的创业历程进行了总结和评价。他提到了无酒精啤酒市场在创业初期面临的挑战，以及Bill Shufelt在克服这些挑战方面所做的努力。他还提到了Bill Shufelt的妻子和合伙人John Walker对他的重要支持，以及他所取得的成功。

Deep Dive

Key Insights

Why did Bill Shufelt decide to start Athletic Brewing Company?

Bill Shufelt wanted to create a non-alcoholic beer that tasted good, appealing to people who wanted to enjoy beer without getting buzzed. He saw a growing market of individuals interested in moderation and healthier lifestyles.

What challenges did Bill Shufelt face when trying to get Athletic Brewing Company off the ground?

Initially, brewers didn't want to make non-alcoholic beer, stores didn't want to sell it, and potential customers didn't want to buy it. The existing non-alcoholic beer options were outdated and tasted bad, making it difficult to convince people of the product's potential.

How did Bill Shufelt manage to find a brewer willing to work with him on non-alcoholic beer?

Bill Shufelt posted job ads and attended brewing conferences, but it was a letter from John Walker, a brewer in New Mexico, that stood out. After a series of conversations, John agreed to move his family across the country to work with Bill on the project.

What was the turning point in raising funds for Athletic Brewing Company?

A breakthrough came when a college friend set up a dinner with four local friends in Brooklyn who each committed $5,000. This small progress built momentum, leading to 66 individuals supporting the angel round.

How did Athletic Brewing Company gain initial traction in the market?

Bill Shufelt and his team sampled the beer at athletic events, convincing race directors to allow them to hand out beer at the finish line. This strategy helped build awareness and appeal to a health-conscious audience.

What significant milestone did Athletic Brewing Company achieve in 2020?

In 2020, Athletic Brewing Company made a significant financial investment to purchase a brewery in San Diego, allowing them to scale production and meet the growing demand for non-alcoholic beer.

How does Bill Shufelt view the future of non-alcoholic beer consumption?

Bill Shufelt believes non-alcoholic beer will make up over 50% of beer consumption in the future, as people increasingly seek out healthier and more moderate drinking options.

Chapters

Bill Shufelt, founder of Athletic Brewing Company, aimed to revolutionize the non-alcoholic beer market, which was less than 0.5% of the total beer market in 2017. Despite facing skepticism and discouragement, Bill persisted, driven by his belief that a good-tasting non-alcoholic beer would appeal to a growing health-conscious consumer base.

Non-alcoholic beer market share was less than 0.5% in 2017.
Bill Shufelt aimed to create a non-alcoholic craft beer that tasted as good as regular beer.
The company is now valued at over $800 million and holds 20% of the non-alcoholic beer market.

Shownotes Transcript

Bill Shufelt founded Athletic Brewing Company to re-invent non-alcoholic beer, but quickly learned that brewers didn’t want to make it, stores didn’t want to sell it, and potential customers didn’t want to buy it. The NA beer that already existed was outdated and foul-tasting, but Bill was convinced that if he could make a good-tasting brew, it would appeal to a growing cohort of people who wanted to enjoy beer without getting buzzed. For a while, Bill’s wife was the only person who supported him, but he eventually found an innovative brewer, and a winning strategy of sampling the beer at athletic events. Today, the company is valued at $800 million and Bill believes they’re just getting started.

This episode was produced by J.C. Howard, with music by Ramtin Arablouei

Edited by Neva Grant, with research help from Katherine Sypher.

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