How SCORE helped.

We needed an experienced business professional to help us. Marshall (our SCORE mentor) started by helping us draft a business plan. We met with him on a weekly basis for the first year — our MBA crash course. Even now our criterion for many decisions is “What would Marshall do?”
 

What have you learned from your experiences as a business owner?

With no business background, we faced a very steep learning curve. We didn’t even understand business terminologies. We needed funding to buy capital equipment, establish an accounting system, learn to hire and manage good people, and market our beer.

How Did Your Business Get Started?

My wife Quixia (Choo-sha) and I are professional French horn players. I’m also a passionate home brewer, who discovered the wonderful complexity of Belgian beers and saw an opportunity to bring those unique flavors to Minnesota. That led to our second careers of starting a craft brewery in the authentic Belgian tradition.