Black Tap Brewing Company

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Black Tap Brewing Company Chris Roberts, Nicky
Roberts We are a small craft brewery located in
Stafford. We produce handcrafted beers and
distribute to pubs and beer bottle
stockists. The SPEED Plus project We applied to
Speed Plus for start up funding and access to an
experienced business mentor. T his has proved
instrumental in getting us to where we are now.
The money was very useful, but the mentoring and
training has been invaluable. Our mentoring
sessions always left us feeling empowered and
motivated to keep going. We have met some amazing
people on the programme too, and it is great to
help each other move in the same direction. Our
business has developed significantly during the
time on the programme, from a crazy idea to fully
fledged brewery with 3 or 4 in the team, regular
customers and a lot of good times. What advice
would you give graduates considering applying for
SPEED Plus? The main lesson we have learned is
that actions speak louder than words. A great
idea will never get past the idea stage unless
you make it happen. So pack all of the excuses
and away and get ready to work hard. Prepare to
be stretched and challenged! The Future Our
business has now reached the stage where it is
nearly self sustaining. Within the next couple of
years we plan to relocate to our own brewpub
location rather than an industrial unit. We want
to be working for the business full time and
earning a good return.
Customers loved the bespoke beer produced for us
by Black Tap Brew Co. We sold two casks of it in
just two days. The Heritage