I wrote an article last week, but I never sent it to Keith. I sat down to revise it this morning and it was already dated. I wrote it only five days ago, and yet so much has changed. What I was excited and upbeat about last week seems to be a distant memory, and a new week has presented new challenges, and an outlook that is not very rosy at all.
So much has changed.
We coped with last week by brewing a lot of beer and starting delivery service. We also put as much beer on the shelves as we could with our local retail partners. Things looked promising and we were overwhelmed by the support that we got from the community. This week looks different. As Governor Wolf issued a stay at home order and more stuff got cancelled, it appears that we are in this for the long haul, and I don’t know what that means. For me, the uncertainty is the hardest thing to cope with.
I’ve gone through the full gamut of emotions since this virus hit us full force. I’ve played the role of leader and mentor, but I’ve also had my days where I need the strength of others to lean on to make it through to another day. How does one lead in a time of crisis? I’m not sure that anyone has an answer to this. I’m trying to remain optimistic. While I know that this is all temporary, I also know that nothing will go back to normal. This will have far reaching and long lasting effects on our community.
While it would be easy for me to be all doom and gloom, I will instead choose to focus on as many positive things as I can muster in this climate.
First of all, we learned to do delivery and curbside pick-up. I see us being able to maintain that in some fashion going forward. Our kitchen is the next priority. We are going to have to find the $15,000 required to finish the install of our kitchen. This is a necessary upgrade. Our kitchen staff works hard and I want to give them the tools to fully utilize their talents. We will also freshen up our menu to accommodate the ever-growing list of dietary restrictions. I don’t know how we are going to do that, but we will figure it out.
Personally, I am going to focus on my family and my community. Over the last 18 to 24 months, I’ve been killing myself trying to grow this company. In this ever-changing beer landscape, we have reinvented our brewery and our brand multiple times. It’s time to focus on what we are good at, and jettison things we do not do well. I try to do too much, I often leave too many tasks unfinished, and that sets me in a spiral where I feel like I am running in circles. For my physical and mental health, I have to change that. I have to be different. I have to be better.
Lastly, I need to thank my team for their amazing performance in these crazy times. We have brewed and delivered/sold more cans of beer over the last five days than we typically do in a month. While the hard work isn’t over, it will be made easier by the way we pull together. I’m looking forward to greater things and simpler times.
Scott Rudich is the head brewer and co-owner of Round Guys Brewing in Lansdale, PA. Rudich is heavily involved in the local beer scene, and was awarded the Brewer Award at the 2013 StarChefs’ Philadelphia Rising Stars Gala. This opinion column is sponsored by Round Guys, and appears every Tuesday on North Penn Now. If you have any questions or comments, please email them to [email protected].
See also:
Round Guys: ‘Schism’ Release Pays Homage To Historic Brews
Round Guys: Health-Conscious Brewing Leads To Hard Seltzer Debut
Round Guys: Ditch Amazon, Buy Local And Support Revitalization
Round Guys: Social Diversity And The Craft Brewing Scene
Round Guys: Selling Is Not Selling Out
