Figurehead Brewing, Jesse Warner, Bob Monroe, and Jesse Duncan
The partners started the business based on a shared set of values: creating community, enriching lives, and bringing people together through high-quality beer. Despite entering a highly competitive market with around 60 breweries in Seattle, Figurehead Brewing found its niche by selling directly to consumers, ensuring better quality control and profit margins.
In 2016, Jesse Warner sought guidance from SCORE mentor Joe Heinrich to review the financial part of their business plan. In 2022, Joe provided insight on the SBA loan application process and referred Jesse to a lending officer at KeyBank. Additionally, Joe helped the business file for the Employee Retention Credit, resulting in an $88,000 refund from the IRS, which, coupled with the SBA-guaranteed loan, helped finance a second taproom in the Fremont neighborhood.
The new Fremont taproom, set to open in Spring 2024, will feature a diverse beverage selection and food from local vendors. With this expansion, annual sales are expected to exceed $1 million, and total employment should reach about 20 people. The brewery's long-term goal is to produce between 1,000 and 1,500 barrels of beer annually.
Throughout their journey, Figurehead Brewing has benefited from Joe Heinrich's mentoring services, including assistance with electing S-Corporation status, reviewing accounting and bookkeeping, and providing tax planning guidance.
Figurehead Brewing Company deserves to be considered for the SCORE Greater Seattle Client of the Quarter because of their success in starting a capital-intensive business from scratch, growing steadily in a competitive market, embarking on a well-funded expansion project, and maintaining a lasting partnership based on shared values and mutual trust.
"The great thing about SCORE as a nonprofit is that they act as a non-advocate review for us. We purchase a lot of services through accountants, lawyers and bookkeepers, but it's really great to have somebody that you can reference and ask questions to that you know are giving you unbiased opinions and facts that are going to help your business." - Figurehead Brewing Company
Accounting using Xero and QuickBooks, or a manual Excel spreadsheet.
Finance, both in obtaining...
