Probably a year or two ago now I invested in Brewdog as a bond-holder. For those of you that don’t know what a bond is it is similar to a loan. I effectively “leant” £500 to Brewdog and get around 6.5% P/A ROI. Any of you that know me may think that is a strange thing for me to invest my hard earned pennies in as I really can’t stand beer. For someone with a large amount of liquid capital this would just be another investment opportunity, but for me, it was kind of a big deal.
So why? Well, today as a perfect example of why I invested in them. I had nothing to do, all my fiends were busy, so I went there for lunch/dinner on my own. Yes, I, know, a bit sad but if anyone wants to go with me I will be more than happy to do so. I have been to the Brighton bar a lot. The staff immediately recognised me, greeted me with a smile and knew what I liked to drink. In this day and age of diminishing customer service it is a fresh breath. I really appreciate this and I’m proud to have put what I have behind them, however insignificant of a difference I may have made. In particular the bars in Brighton, Camden and Soho, thank you for making me feel welcome. I don’t feel I’m alone in getting a bit peeved with companies where the staff treat you as an inconvenience rather than a source of revenue, you guys certainly stands our from the crowd!
On one occasion James Watt (Capitan of Brewdog) was behind the bar. Bit if a shocker, but incredibly pleased to see staff from high-up on the front lines instead of stuck behind a desk.
One thing is clear across all staff from all branches of this company. They are passionate, able to speak with fluency and recommend drinks. Why would this matter to me? After all, I only drink cider! On the few occasions they did not have a cider on tap/bottle they asked what I did/didn’t like and were able to recommend a drink for me. I didn’t like it as much as what I would normally be drinking but they recommended me a drink I could finish and actually kinda enjoy.
Ps: Brewdog… if you’re reading this, I know you have your hands full with Lone Wolf, US brewing facilities and more bars, but I’d bloody love it if you could crank out your own cider at some point.