An Open (Love) Letter to the Persephone Community

Fourteen years ago, we planted a brewery on a farm and dared anyone to tell us that was a bad idea. Not only did you refuse to tell us that, you rolled up your sleeves and built it with us. Season after season, pint after pint, you turned a passionate idea into a landmark. So before anything else in this letter: thank you. Genuinely, unreservedly, joyfully, thank you.

Now, some big news and we want you to hear it from us, in full sentences, with all the context it deserves, before it becomes a half-story at the bar or a speculative game of telephone.

Persephone is looking for its next owner. We're opening up the search for the right person or people to carry this farm and brewery into its next chapter, and if the right match doesn't come along, we'll close this chapter ourselves with the care, gratitude, and on our own terms, with a wind down this fall.

Here's the whole story, because you're an integral part of it.

The short version

On July 2, 2023, I got on my bike and came home a different person. Paraplegic, permanently. Since then, I have poured everything I have into learning how to keep leading this company the way it deserves to be led, and I'm proud of a lot of what we figured out together. But leading Persephone the way Persephone deserves takes a version of me that the road took back three summers ago. I've done the honest math, and the best thing I can do for this company now is hand the wheel to someone who can drive it the way it's built to be driven.

That's it. That's the reason. Not the market, not a bad season, not any person or partner or supplier. Just a body with different plans than mine and a company too good to be led at anything less than full throttle.

The slightly longer version, because you've earned it

Let's talk about the last few years.

The whole craft beer industry shifted, and yes, we took some real hits along the way. But here's the part we want to be loud and proud about: we adapted, we made the hard changes, and they're working. The trend line is pointing exactly where you'd want it to point. Give this company another year or two on its current path and it's very likely cash flow positive, and likely profitable. This is not a company winding down because it ran out of road, it's a company that simply needs a leader with a schedule that allows for 6am on the farm, an afternoon in the tank room, a Saturday on the tasting room floor, and everything in between.

I built my whole life around being able to be everywhere at once. That was the job, and I loved it. That life looks different now, and the most loving thing I can do for this team, this farm, and fourteen years of work is to be honest about it, and to go find the person whose turn it is to love this place the way I have.

What this is (and isn't)

This is a handoff, not a goodbye.

This isn't a fire sale, and it isn't anyone's fault, it's just the simple, unglamorous physics of gravity and pavement. And it definitely isn't a plea for sympathy. I'm deeply proud of how we've handled the last three years, on the business side and the personal side.

Most importantly: we are choosing this. We're choosing it now, with clear eyes and (relatively) healthy books, from a position of genuine strength, by not waiting until the choice gets made for us. The best time to hand someone the keys, or to say goodbye, is right now.

What we're proud of

Fourteen years. A farm that grew barley and hops nobody thought would grow here. A brewery that became a third place for a community that needed one. A B Corp certification we actually earned. A crowdfunding campaign that saved a movie theatre. Beers named after the people and places that made them possible. A team that has put up with my spreadsheets, my puns, and my absolute refusal to make decisions quickly.

And because we're a numbers-loving bunch as much as a story-loving one, here's some of the math behind fourteen years:

- Over 300 people have worked here, many for years, some since the very beginning
- More than 600 shareholders trusted us with their money and their belief
- Hundreds of thousands of customers, regulars, and one-time visitors made this farm part of their lives
- 14 years of revenue moved through this farm and brewery, most of it staying right here on the Coast and profits invested back into this community through SC Association for Community Living, SC Arts Council, the Rio Theatre, and more

And just to prove this past year was anything but a slow fade, here's what actually happened on this farm in the last twelve months alone:

- More than 6,000 smash burgers flipped on the grill
- 10,000 pints of Coast Life Lager poured
- 2,300 glasses of lemonade served to the kids and the designated drivers
- 1,200 dozen eggs cracked, scrambled, and served, that's 14,400 eggs, from our own birds, on our own farm

That is a farm and a brewery running at full tilt, doing exactly what it was built to do, right up to this very moment.

We built something that mattered beyond the beer. That was always the point and on that measure, whatever happens with the entity itself, we believe we already won.

What happens now

Here's the part we're genuinely excited about, and we mean that: somebody is about to get very lucky.

Both the Gibsons and Powell River operations are turn-key. The systems work, the recipes work, the farm produces, and the team knows how to run all of it. These businesses don't need a rescue, they need fresh energy and the right equity behind them, and either one is fully capable of running profitably on its own steam. Fourteen years of hard-won lessons, already learned. A community, already built. A brand people don't just recognize but love.

So we're casting the net as wide as we possibly can. If you know someone, or you ARE someone, who has ever looked at this farm and thought "I could do something with that," now is your moment. Brewers, operators, hospitality people, someone hunting for a second act, a family who wants to run something real: we honestly don't know yet what the right buyer looks like, and we'd love your help finding out. Come look around. Kick the tires. See if this might be yours. The door is wide open.

And if the search doesn't land? Then we'll manage a structured, responsible wind down this fall, with the same care for our team, our farm partners, our suppliers, and this community that we've tried to bring to everything else we've done here. But between us, we're not planning for that outcome so much as we're hoping right past it.

We will keep you posted as things develop. You will hear it from us first, always.

Last thing

We could wrap this up with something tidy and a little sad, but that's not our style, and it's not how this story deserves to go. We built Persephone to outlast any one person's ability to run it including mine. That's not a failure of the plan, that was the plan, and it's working.  Whatever comes next, on this farm or wherever the name travels from here, we hope it's the kind of thing that leaves you wanting one more season. It always has been so far.

Thank you for fourteen years of being part of this. It has been the honour of my life to pour for you.

With more love than one letter can really hold,

Brian Smith

Co-Founder and CEO

Persephone Brewing Comapny

OUR COMPANY VALUES AND PRINCIPLES

Our Products and Service to Community – Quality, Local and Tenacious

We are serious about the quality of our beer, the craft of brewing it, and the ingredients that comprise it.  We grow locally what we can and support neighboring communities and other B Corps to supply the rest.

We continually innovate for quality, efficiency, product and service improvements. We are a learning company, which means we have comfort with both ambiguity and stability in our operations.

We aim to surpass our communities’ expectations by serving the highest quality products, providing an extraordinary experience and including them as if they are owners of our company – many of them are!

We achieve profits that, in turn, further the goals of the company, employees and shareholders.

Healthy Communities, People and Culture – Diverse, Creative and Inspired

We seek to balance the myriad of needs, especially health and well-being, of the company, staff and their families.  Jobsite safety, adequate income, sufficient time off and access to nutrition are critical elements of our culture.

We promote healthy beer culture and the responsible enjoyment of beer.  

We acknowledge the inherent value in diversity and the inclusion of voices different from our own, even when it is uncomfortable. So, we do the work to build trust with each other and, in doing so, commit to caring relationships and kind yet honest communications.

Have fun or don’t come to work … is not a joke.  We believe that the well-being of people depends on their job satisfaction and that THEY must share in the responsibility for that outcome. 

Leading by Example – Courageous, Humble and Just

Our land ethics include farming in an ecologically responsible, if not regenerative, way that adds value to our local food system and economy, for generations to come. 

We aspire to provide a model of how business can be used as a force for good.  We are committed to the B Corp certification to both track our improvements and articulate our impact.

We partner with other social ventures to advance our collective goal of responsible business, healthy community and a sustainable world.

QUICK LINKS

STATEMENT OF INCLUSIVITY IN HIRING

Persephone is an equal opportunity employer. We only hire local and recognize the need for diversity in our company.

Persephone Brewing Company recruits, employs, trains, compensates and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, disability, age, veteran status, and other protected status as required by applicable law.

At Persephone, we have a clear vision: to be a place where a diverse mix of talented people want to come, to stay and do their best work. We pride ourselves on bringing the best products, community-building and agricultural practices to our community and consumers and we know our company runs on the hard work and dedication of our passionate and creative employees.

Persephone’s dedication to promoting diversity, multiculturalism, and inclusion is clearly reflected in all of our products and activities. Diversity is more than a commitment at Persephone - it is the foundation of what we do. We are firmly focused on equality and believe deeply in diversity of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, national origin and all the other fascinating characteristics that make us different.