Since the founding of Parker’s Downhill Brewing in 2017, owners Jake Minturn and Doug Hyndman always planned to expand to multiple locations. By then, the craft beer market had matured enough the duo felt they couldn’t rely on the production and distribution model. Instead, they tried to build a welcoming space — and one with a vibe that could be replicated in new places.
After years of searching, Minturn and Hyndman finally found their ideal spot. Downhill Brewing’s second location in Greenwood Village opened at 9672 E. Arapahoe Road at the beginning of February in the former home of Peak View Brewing Co. Acquiring the defunct brewery afforded Minturn and Hyndman a turnkey spot that was close enough to their original location to leverage brand recognition, but far enough away so as not to cannibalize sales, they explained.
“We looked around everywhere kind of south metro,” Minturn said. “It came down to, for us, the feel of the taproom, location, traffic, (and) space. We weren’t dead set on Greenwood Village, it just ended up that Peak View was the ideal candidate we were looking for.”
As craft breweries look for opportunities for growth amid a market downturn, they’re often finding themselves in the suburbs south of Denver where development is booming and residential communities are flourishing. A recent wave of brewery expansions includes legacy beer companies and newer producers who say there are untapped customer bases in these markets that they can serve with slightly less competition compared to the rest of the Front Range. Though the business climate remains challenging, one brewery’s demise means another’s chance to reach new drinkers in a fiscally sound way.
The migration of breweries south makes sense to Martin Saylor, managing director at Evergreen-based 1stWest Mergers and Acquisitions, which facilitates beer business valuations and sales.
North of the Mile High City, pioneers like Avery Brewing Co. in Boulder, Left Hand Brewing Co. in Longmont, and New Belgium Brewing Co. and Odell Brewing Co. in Fort Collins helped lay the foundation for the craft beer movement. That region was once considered the Napa Valley of beer, Saylor said. And by that comparison, the suburbs south of Denver could be considered deserts — albeit, deserts full of Millennial parents who were raised on craft beer.
In recent years, beer sales have lost market share to other alcohol options like spirits. And since Gen Z isn’t picking up pints like previous generations, it seems like a sound strategy to “follow the dads,” Saylor said. “You gotta fish where the fish are. As the population and demographic expands and is pushing south, it just makes sense to be there.”
Plus, Saylor added, vacant downtown office buildings, high rent prices and a growing homeless population make Denver less attractive to some small business owners.
Patrick Crawford, co-founder of Denver Beer Co., has also noticed the shift in locals’ daily routines. Many commuters now work from home, so while downtown Denver is quieter than it has historically been, “the suburbs have become a little more lively,” Crawford said.
In December, the brewery opened its fifth location in downtown Littleton after taking over the space from another beer maker that closed. Residents there bring the whole family in the evenings, Crawford said. To cater to that demographic, Denver Beer Co. expanded its food menu there to include flatbread pizzas.
“There’s opportunities to capture the people who used to come downtown and drink beer in the Denver Beer Co. beer garden at 4 o’clock after working,” he said.
For many, like John Winter, president of Lone Tree Brewing Co., the price of available real estate was the primary decision driver in where to put down roots. Winter spent the better part of three years scouring the Front Range in search of a second location. New builds and buildings in planning fetched a premium price tag everywhere he looked.
So when Barnett & Son Brewing Co. in Parker decided to tap out, Winter jumped at the opportunity to take over the company’s space. Winter closed on the deal in late February and opened the new Lone Tree Brewing Co. on March 1. Why does he feel confident his business can succeed where another one didn’t?
“Between Lone Tree and Parker, there’s a great deal of residential that’s going in,” Winter said. “There’s still growth potential here. I think so much of the inner city within the Denver metropolitan area, while still there is selective building going on, this has still got land and available opportunities there as communities are built out.”
While now might seem like an inopportune time to expand, Saylor expects to see continued consolidation among breweries that have been over-leveraged since the industry’s heyday of seemingly endless growth. Businesses that are financially ready to strike can seize the moment with the freeing up of brewery real estate.
In today’s market, locating a brewery within a residential area is a surefire way to build a robust well of customers, especially in the suburban sprawl where competition is less concentrated. Pedestrian-friendly brewery districts used to be a boon for business, but drinking habits have changed, said Jason Bell, founder of Living the Dream Brewing Co.
“People aren’t going to check out five breweries this weekend, but they are still going to their local spot,” Bell said.
Creating a comfortable taproom environment is the best way to ensure people return for another happy hour, he added. That’s why after a decade in its original home in Littleton, Bell needed to move his brewery, which lacked heat and air conditioning. He settled on Highlands Ranch where Grist Brew Co. was vacating two separate facilities, including a brewery and a small bar that serves residents in Littleton’s Sterling Ranch. Both opened at the beginning of the year.
Moving to Highlands Ranch enabled Living the Dream to remain close to its core consumer base while also upgrading the taproom experience. Though the brewery downsized in terms of square footage, it’s now able to grow its onsite guest capacity and become more operationally efficient — both of which are essential for survival, Bell said.
“The breweries that have managed to really get a good foothold in their community are the ones that can ride this out,” he said.
When Brian Dunn opened Great Divide Brewing Co. in Denver in 1994, it was one of about 30 breweries in the state. Today, Dunn has roughly a dozen craft breweries as neighbors between Great Divide’s outposts in Lower Downtown Denver and the River North Arts District.
Dunn partnered with Vibe Concepts to open Great Divide Brewing & Roadhouse in Castle Rock in 2020. A longtime resident of central Denver, Dunn doesn’t see the allure of moving to the suburbs. But he can’t deny the business prospects there.
Great Divide’s Castle Rock location, which includes a full-service restaurant, “exceeded our expectations,” Dunn said. So when Vibe Concepts approached him about opening a second one in Lone Tree, he was on board. The new Great Divide Brewing & Roadhouse opened on Feb. 22. A third location is expected to open in Lakewood by the end of the year.
“Castle Rock is just booming, absolutely booming. The south part of Denver is booming as well,” Dunn said. “It’s an area we could stand to build our name awareness.”
From an operational standpoint, labor costs are lower in suburban markets due to minimum wage requirements, said Robert MacEachern, Denver Beer Co.’s CEO. That’s an important consideration as the company plans further expansion. MacEachern said details of a forthcoming location will be announced this summer.
“We’re looking forward to continuing our growth and south is definitely a direction we’re heading,” he said.
