INTRODUCING BREWED TO GIVE, WHY WE'RE DOING IT, AND HOW IT WORKS
Here at BBF, we wear the Bristol name as a badge of honour. We live, breathe, and brew this city and have always looked for ways to give back. In the past, we’ve supported the local community through ad hoc beer donations, sponsorships, and our collaboration with Talk Club. But we’re ready to make our relationship official.
Join us as we raise a pint to our newest initiative: Brewed to Give.
Brewed to Give is a self-imposed tax of 2% on total brewery sales. This investment will go to community groups and charities that are uplifting people or places across the city.
We are who we are because Bristol made us. You’ve had our back as we’ve brewed pints for sunshine sessions and global pandemics alike. Without Bristol, we’d just be a Beer Factory like any other. But you guys make the difference. This city gives us the energy it takes to Stand Independent.
Over the past two years, we’ve developed Brewed to Give as the first step to saying: thank you, Bristol. We’re setting ourselves a self-imposed community tax of 2% -- all for the people of this city.
Here’s how it works.
At the end of every accounting year, our numbers wiz Alyssa will calculate the year’s total brewery sales. She’ll set aside 2% of that final number as stock that we will allocate toward community groups that will uplift Bristol over the next 12 months. There’s no limit on this number. The better the company does, the more we give back to the community.
Everyone at Team BBF immediately loved the idea of giving back to the community. But how to do it…? That took a little more figurin’.
In the process of developing this idea, Managing Director Sam Burrows talked to Kari Halford, then Director at St Werburghs City Farm.
To say Kari liked the idea of Brewed to Give is an understatement. She is now heading the initiative as Community Events Manager at BBF. Together, Sam and Kari developed a distribution plan: Stock, Space, Direct Support.
What does that actually mean for your community group? Let’s break it down.
BBF provides all Brewed to Give donations in the form of stock, aka tasty beer, at cost. We could just write you a check. But a beer donation gives your community group the opportunity to sell that stock at retail value, thus multiplying the takings into unrestricted funds.
Next comes space. Many community groups don’t have a preexisting setup for selling beer. So Kari has created ‘pop-up’ bars, complete with coolers and mood lighting. Once you add the people, they’re kind of like portable pubs…
This all sounds great. But what if your charity organization knows more about, say, saving hedgehogs than selling beers? No worries! Kari will provide plenty of direct support to make your event a success. It’s literally her job.
And seriously, Kari is so excited to help you. In fact, she’s already thinking bigger. Could this initiative inspire other Bristol-born businesses to give back?
Team BBF certainly hopes so.
“Imagine if all Bristol-born businesses were giving 2%,” Kari says. “This city would be so freaking connected, and the voluntary sector would just thrive. Screw you, central government, we’re just going to look after our people ourselves.”
It would be a pretty Brizzle move for the Mild, Mild West.
Applications are open to any community group within Bristol that offers a service that uplifts people or places. We’re super flexible too, tailoring our services to the size and needs of your organisation.
Want to get involved? Visit the Brewed to Give page to apply for funds or spread the word.
