Author name: Chris Farmand

Chris Farmand is the Founder and CEO of Small Batch Standard, the premier financial agency built to serve the craft brewing industry. Chris and the SBS team have spent the better part of the past decade working with 100+ craft breweries across the U.S., all with one singular aim: helping craft breweries grow profits. Meet Chris.

image of taxes

Obligatory Tax Post

Well folks, It’s that time of the year again when we start planning for…  Tax time! Arguably everyone’s favorite time of the year. Said no one, ever. Pardon the sarcasm. This will be the only tax post for the year, so bear with me.  The stance I take on taxes is, it is a form […]

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Am I Special?

“I’d be hard pressed if you work with another brewery with our same business plan.” “I’m curious how many breweries you work that have the same structure as us, I bet not many.” “We are unique.” MODEST ANNOUNCEMENT: When it comes to the business of your brewery, YOU ARE NOT SPECIAL. Hard pill to swallow?

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ecosystem picture

Create Your Ecosystem

True story. I was in a Quarterly Huddle* with Rob and Rita last week when I noticed something interesting. They sell, on average, around $27k in merchandise a month. Yep, you read that correctly, $27,000 in merchandise per month. Important note: No online sales, no DTC… this is merchandise sold out of a single location.

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picture of a sign that says "nothing"

What If You Do Nothing?

As you know I frequently talk about making decisions based on numbers.  I strongly believe in this philosophy for a business to thrive and grow.  The alternative to making decisions based on numbers is making decisions based on emotions, or gut feeling.   The problem with making decisions based on emotions is that when we access

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Conference Season

This week I am in Sheridan, Wyoming attending the WYO Brewers Summit.  So happy that we are meeting in person again. I was invited to speak at the two day conference and my talk is polished, ready to offend everyone in the room at least once. My wife reminds me all the time that my

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train in trees

Margin Train

Cheers to 11 years! Last Friday SBS turned 11.  Wow, it’s been 11 years of helping breweries and distilleries. Another cool thing happened last week, I got to talk about margin versus markup.  Before I talk about the differences between the two, let’s talk about YOUR gross margin in wholesale.  Do you know what your

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money in a planter

Expansion Season

Fresh off my trip to CBC and… expansion season is here! Wow, it’s really happening. AS IT SHOULD.  2nd, 3rd, and 4th locations Kitchen build-outs  Food partnerships Here’s the deal. As a business, all of your vulnerabilities have been exposed… And you’ve survived.  The past 2 years have given you time to reflect on your

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Progressing, Not Perfecting

I’m back, friends! Fresh off a 9-month hiatus from writing to get the podcast going, and while the podcast has been a blast, I miss writing. And I’m curious, do you also feel like your life is moving in fast forward? Being a father of three I regularly hear:  “Cherish these moments. The kids, they

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