Alan Mahon, founder of Brewgooder, talks to Business HQ Monthly about life as head of a beer business that started out on day one to ‘create more opportunity for other people’ across the world

Name:

Alan Mahon.

What is your business called?

Brewgooder.

Where is it based?

Kinning Park, Glasgow.

What does it produce/do?

We are a beer brand and impact company. Since 2016, we’ve been brewing beer for the purpose of funding community projects worldwide through our non-profit: the Brewgooder Foundation.

To whom does it sell?

We sell to the on-trade (bars, restaurants, hotels) and to the off-trade (grocers and convenience retailers) and online.

What is its turnover?

£3.7 million (2023).

How many employees?

13.

What attracted you to your current role?

As a 25-year-old, I was naive enough to think beer could be used to help change the world in positive ways and have been chasing that ambition ever since.

What were you doing before?

I was working on the fundraising campaigns and strategy of Social Bite, including Sleep In The Park and the Scottish Business Awards.

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What do you least enjoy?

It’s a privilege to do what I do and I can’t complain too much, but if there’s one thing I’d like to do less of, it’s travelling. I am a creature of habit and love to get to the gym after work in particular so when I haven’t done that for a few days I get a bit antsy.

What do you consider to be the main successes of the business?

I am most proud that our business started out on day one to create more opportunity for other people, and that we are still doing that with every year, either improving the number of people helped or the quality of that empowerment.

Lately, we’ve invested in our non-profit – the Brewgooder Foundation – in terms of making it the most transparent, credible and engaging non-profit in the beer industry and we’re starting to see the fruits of this more and more.

What are your ambitions for the firm?

We’ve seen brands in different categories do amazing things in terms of harnessing business as a force for good, whether that’s Ben & Jerry’s, Tony’s Chocolonely, or Patagonia.

If we can emulate even half the disruption and impact achieved by these companies within our own category we’d be extremely proud, noting the positive difference that would be made as a consequence.

What are the challenges facing the sector and market, and what could be done to overcome or address these?

There are definitely a number of challenges at the minute. Everyone, including consumers, the trade and retailers, has felt the squeeze of rising costs.

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We’re also a relatively small fish in a large, competitive pond. But planes take off against the wind and we’re confident we can turn all these challenges into opportunities.

What single thing would most help?

More people picking up our cans at their next shop or night out is never a bad thing! But the biggest difference comes from venues and retailers getting behind what we’re trying to do and stocking our beer, which is hard in such a competitive market.

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Luckily it feels there are more and more venues now being more selective about the brands they stock and the “why” and ethos behind them, which is how we probably differ from other brands in our space.

What is the most valuable lesson you have learned?

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Always ask for help. Someone, somewhere, will give it to you, and it will change everything.

What was your best moment?

There are loads of moments from the past nine years I will cherish. The best moment recently was seeing our collaboration lager going live with Sub Club in Glasgow.

As a student, I always thought it was one of the best venues (and still do to be honest) and knowing someone else might have that same feeling in 2024 while also enjoying our beer makes me think there’s something cyclical and positive about the universe.

What has been your most challenging moment in life or business?

I’ve had a very fortunate life. I lost my dad as a baby and I guess I have become aware of that as a challenge as I’ve gotten older and approached the same age he was when he died.

But the flip side was that I was brought up in a house of nothing but love and support for me, and that’s been the bedrock of my entire luck and fortune in life, and that helps get you through the challenges.

How do you relax?

I love to push myself physically with things like Hyrox, crossfit and fitness challenges. Not sure that’s relaxing as such but it puts me in a very different and zen place.

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Outside of that I am most calm and at peace when I get the chance to enjoy a coffee in the garden as the sun comes out.

What phrase or quotation has inspired you the most?

“But where the danger is, grows the saving power also.” Friedrich Hölderlin. For me, this has always been something that reminds me sometimes it takes bad things to happen, or problems to be recognised before they can be fixed… and we have it in our power as a civilisation to fix them.

What is the best book you have ever read? Why is it the best?

On a personal level it’s probably The Fall by Albert Camus. It came into my life at the right time when I was 21 and I’ve revisited it at least once a year since. From a business perspective, it’s Flip Thinking by Berthold Gunster.

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It’s a book that forces you to see an opportunity in every problem, and that’s a simple but powerful tool.

Where do you find yourself most at ease?

When I am with my mum, sisters and nieces or my closest friends. It doesn’t matter what we are doing.

If you weren’t in your current role,
what job would you most fancy?

I’d love to be a university lecturer, inspiring people to think about subjects I am passionate about, or work in any capacity for Arsenal.

What countries have you most enjoyed travelling to, for business or leisure?

South Africa is my favourite country to visit and I’ve done a mix of business and leisure there. It’s a country with a fascinating, challenging history and vibrant cultures. In many ways it parallels my own country of Northern Ireland – but hotter, more spectacular, and with better food and drink.

Interview by Ian McConnell