Odell Brewing takes craft beer to a new level

The beer maker has been profitable every year since 1989

Gigi Sukin //April 18, 2016//

Odell Brewing takes craft beer to a new level

The beer maker has been profitable every year since 1989

Gigi Sukin //April 18, 2016//

Odell Brewing Co.

Fort Collins – odellbrewing.com – Founded: 1989

34th — That is Odell Brewing Co.’s standing among microbreweries in the U.S.

200 to roughly 3,400 — That is the spike in number of microbreweries that’s occurred in the U.S. since 1989, when Odell Brewing Co. officially set up shop.

Before that surge in Colorado and beyond, husband-wife duo Doug and Wynne Odell made the move to Fort Collins from Seattle, took their home-brewed batches up a notch and went commercial. “It was a total lifestyle play,” says Wynne. More than 25 years later, the company has grown to nearly 100 people and has been profitable every year since inception.

Odell has invested $17 million in building and production updates during the past four years, including a bump up in capacity from 80,000 barrels annually to 300,000 distributed currently to 11 states and England. Odell has garnered a reputation for innovative recipes, powerful business management, high employee engagement and solid ethics.

KEEP WATCHING FOR: Wynne Odell describes three major trends and predictions for the craft brewing biz:

Major domestic brewers such as Anheuser-Busch and Miller Coors continue to buy up handcrafted breweries. This changes the market value of the local, independent guys.

A wide array of private equity is eyeing the micro beer marketplace, infusing breweries with a lot of cash and changing the identify of the individual organizations in the industry.

The state’s retail liquor license regulations will be on the debate table yet again in the not-so-distant future.

Moreover, adding new states is something Odell has kept in its back pocket, looking at distributing beyond its current footprint while maintaining deep and meaningful connections.