Cover story for business section of the New Hampshire Sunday News, on start-up brewery, White Birch Brewing

1. Business ALSO IN THIS SECTION:
Your Money | Page D2
Money & Markets | Page D7 SUNDAY NEWS
NEW HAMPSHIRE
April 11, 2010 • Page D1
The Wall Street
For families, a health-care first
Journal Sunday . Reform includes older children: At least two million tation by various experts: New York and New Jersey push it all
• It applies to young adults up to the way to age 30 and 31 and would
A New Hampshire “millennials” — young adults — may re-establish eligibility on their 26th birthday who don’t have be allowed to keep those provisions.
exclusive in the parents’ health-care insurance. access to insurance through their The new federal law “provides a
Sunday News employer. minimum, not a maximum,” said law
• There is no dispute the measure professor Timothy Jost of Washington
Performance reviews By CARLA K. JOHNSON
The Associated Press
The law will allow young adults
to stay on or return to their parents’
applies to young people away at col-
lege. It is widely assumed the law also
and Lee University. Also, while many
state laws do not apply to coverage
Excerpt from “Get Rid of the
insurance until age 26. To qualify, covers other young people living on from self-insured employer plans, the
Performance Review,” by Samuel CHICAGO — Congress voted to young people must be “dependents” their own. federal law will, experts say.
Colbert: “This corporate sham is one overhaul the health-care system on of their parents. They don’t necessar- • It will include married children Much will depend on regulations to
of the most insidious, most damaging a Sunday. On Monday, Patti Lawson ily have to live under the same roof. but not their spouses or their kids. be written by federal health officials.
and yet most ubiquitous of corporate e-mailed her employer’s human Lawson, a Gettysburg College • It is unclear whether parents must Among other things, Health and
activities. ... It’s a pretentious, bogus resources office to ask how soon she administrator in Pennsylvania, said wait until their health plan’s next Human Services will have to decide
practice that produces absolutely could get her 22-year-old daughter she is hoping to get her daughter open-enrollment period to sign up what constitutes “dependent,” and
nothing that any thinking executive back on her health insurance. back on her health plan because she their uninsured older children. the definition will not necessarily be
should call a corporate plus.” In about six months, the new law is tired of playing “a roulette game.” • Young adults who live in a differ- the same one used by the Internal
V Journal Sunday, D4-D5
will allow at least 2 million young Her daughter has just a temporary job ent state from their parents should Revenue Service for tax purposes.
adults to be covered under their par- that doesn’t provide insurance. check to see if their parents’ health Also, HHS will have to clear up the
In a ents’ policies. These are the “millen- “You’re banking on your child stay- plan covers medical services where issue of whether young people who
week, nials,” those who came of age in the ing well,” said Lawson, who has been they live. live far from home can stay on their
Apple new century and now are struggling a single parent since her husband This is the first time the federal parents’ plans.
sold to get on their feet during the worst died of cancer three years ago. government has forced insurance Young adults in their 20s are the
half a slump since the Depression. Regulations still have to be writ- companies to let young adults stay on most likely age group to be unin-
million Many can’t find jobs, and many ten, but here are some of the crucial their parents’ policies. More than half sured, and nearly 30 percent of them
iPads. who are employed don’t have health specifics of the new law, based on a the states already have laws that ex-
VSee Health care, Page D6
AP coverage from their employers. reading of the measure and interpre- tend the age of dependent coverage.
SUNDAY TECH
iPad review MICRO-BREWED IN HOOKSETT
Is the new gadget/computer/book
reader/media player going to be
the new Mac? Is it a Kindle killer? A
PC killer? Rich Jarolscovsky reviews
Apple’s new tablet computer.
V Page D6
A niche for taste takes Wrigian and Belgian-style pale ales
from White Birch Brewing, left, are
PATIENCE
the product of Bill Herlicka, who used
CAREERS his favorite homebrew recipes to start
a business in Hooksett. The White
Awards, appointments Birch label has been on retail shelves
State Division of Economic Develop- for eight months, and Herlicka says,
ment names Bob Reals Jr. business “People are intrigued by what we’re
energy efficiency program manager doing. They can taste the difference.”
... Centrix Bank adds Al Romero and
Ben Asselin to its executive lend-
ing team ... Meredith Village Savings
promotes Kelly Beebee to branch
. After layoff: Hobby turns into niche ale-brewing business by BRIAN PARDA PHOTOS
manager and Andrew Hernandez to emphasizing quality over quantity.
branch supervisor ... Nathan Wechsler
& Co. promotes Michael Sheehan to
senior accountant. By LEWELLYN HALLETT
V Page D3 Special to the Sunday News
H
OOKSETT — Last July, when
Bill Herlicka was laid off for
the third time in 10 years,
he could see it coming. The
signs of a slowdown were
Closing familiar: loss of customers, fewer
the Deal prospects, no new product lines. But
before he could start another corpo-
Christopher rate job search, his wife suggested he
Thompson try going it on his own with his very
serious hobby.
Herlicka had homebrewed for 15
years, and gained attention among
We can fellow enthusiasts in 30 states and
several foreign countries.
“You love to brew beer,” Ellen
learn from Herlicka said, “and people like drink-
ing it. This is your passion. Life is too
everyone short — figure out how to do this.”
So Herlicka did his homework. Not
relying solely on his passion or his
ONE OF MY favorite business- knowledge of brewing, he evaluated
related activities is speaking to the industry and the market. Business
sales people about their successes consultants, who were in no short
and failures. Whenever I have an supply, suggested a common formula:
opportunity to talk with someone $1 million to $2 million to start a busi-
who is in sales, I find myself ask- ness — 50 percent for equipment, 25
ing questions about their selling percent for the facility, and 25 percent
experiences. I find it fascinating for operating expenses, including
that everyone in sales has compel- supplies and salary.
ling stories, and most are thrilled
to talk about them. Thanks for advice
If you’re in sales and have the “That’s a lot of money,” Herlicka Hooksett, prices range from $8.95 to
opportunity to interact with others
in similar roles, I highly suggest
spending time asking questions
and learning about the sales expe-
riences that others have. Not only
exclaimed. “With no market aware-
ness or established brand, it’s a big
leap that we could find a home for
our product. I calculated how long my
recipes take until they’re ready and
“ We expect to be in business
for 20 years, so we take a patient
approach.“
$10.95 a bottle for most of the White
Birch line, and up to $16 for barrel-
aged varieties.
Rotating selection
is it helpful to talk through and when I’d have to pay off the loans. White Birch Brewing now offers
learn about the wins others have We have a high-end product that a rotating selection of 18 types of
had, it’s even more intriguing to takes time, and time is not your friend beer, with more coming this year.
hear about the losses. when loans are coming due. I didn’t BILL HERLICKA Herlicka’s steady regular beers are
Anyone who is in sales has want to compromise on product to af- White Birch Brewing now made in three-barrel batches,
countless stories and examples ford the loan.” compared to the half- to two-barrel
of how they landed a big sale or So contrary to all the good advice, batches he put out last year.
how they blew an opportunity and Herlicka decided to start White Birch as we can. We expect to be in busi- The flexibility of his business model “A brewery has always been a
learned some valuable lessons Brewing on a small scale he could ness for 20 years, so we take a patient allows for a project such as the barrel dream of mine,” Herlicka said, “but
they will likely never forget. fund himself, and to grow gradually approach. We quality-control check aging, while also keeping other beers the timing, pricing and market were
A few days ago, I received a without exposure to debt. Then he ap- each batch, not letting beer out if I in the pipeline to meet obligations. not right. I’m happier from having
phone call from an old business plied his career experience in several don’t like how it tastes. Many brewer- Operating on a small scale, he can worked in as many industries as I
acquaintance I hadn’t heard from industries to the question of “how?” ies don’t taste bottles from each batch do day-to-day tasks as well as special have. That exposure has helped me in
in years. While we got along well, This has always seemed to Herlicka because they’ve been doing it so long, projects. But growth is also part of the starting my own business on a small
the industries we are in don’t the biggest and most rewarding busi- they’re pretty confident it will be plan. scale where I’m wearing every hat.
cross paths and there aren’t many ness challenge. consistent. But if there’s a problem, “It’s a volume game,” Herlicka said. Here, I can’t just send an e-mail or
mutually beneficial opportunities Herlicka rented a warehouse in it’s hard to trace back.” “In order to compete, we needed a hand something over the cubicle wall
to discuss. Hooksett. Instead of borrowing Herlicka stuck to his love of Belgian plan to achieve volume.” and expect it to get done.”
After we got through the initial money to buy standard industry styles and barrel-aged beers. Most In the nine months since Herlicka He spoke from 12 feet up a ladder
small talk, he explained that he equipment, he borrowed carboys beer in the marketplace is ready in began White Birch Brewing, his care- where he was pumping brew into
was calling to thank me. I was from friends at the Brew Free or Die five days to two weeks, and he notes ful planning and quality product has barrels. He climbed down to greet
initially confused, as I couldn’t homebrew club. that some great beers take very little yielded a profit that he invests back a farmer who arrived to pick up the
think of anything I had done that He brewed small batches in his own time. But Herlicka’s beers take five into growing the business. Production spent grain that is recycled to local
would cause him to call and thank preferred manner and kept equip- weeks to four months, and some of has gone from 40 to 80 bottles per re- farms. At this stage of his business,
me. He went on to explain that ment and supply needs manageable. the barrel-aged beers take two to lease, to 200 to 400 bottles per release. Herlicka is hands-on in every task.
he had closed a large sale with a By August 2009, his first bottles three years. According to the brewer’s Web site, He also leveraged past experience
company I referred him to. While were on retail shelves. As he sold beer, “Many factors go into creating whitebirchbrewing.com, White Birch in building his own Web site, and gets
this sounds like a fairly routine he was able to buy larger fermenters a good beer,” Herlicka explained. products are available at three res- some compliments on its simplicity.
.
situation of a sales person calling and increase quantities. “The beer does what it does. I’m just taurants and sold in 22-oz. bottles at
to thank someone for a referral, “We’re focusing on quality,” the caretaker until the beer says it’s nine outlets around the state. At one On the Net:
Herlicka said. “We are adding stores ready.” of those outlets, Bert’s Better Beers in www.whitebirchbrewing.com.
VSee Thompson, Page D2