Great Divide Brewing Company (Denver, CO)
Their website trumpets, “Great Divide brews some
of the globe’s most balanced yet assertive and
flavorful beers.” While a host of awards and company growth of 60
percent in the last year certainly affirm that Great Divide Brewing Co.’s
balancing act is working, the company also is proving well-balanced when it comes
to employee treatment.
Dave Duffy, Great Divide Sales and Marketing Director,
joined the company nearly a year ago to balance his 13 years of livelihood in
craft beer sales with a family life. “I wanted to travel less
because I now have young children, plus widen my experience and take
on more roles on the marketing side with a smaller company that’s
growth-oriented,” he said.
Great Divide’s corporate culture
is completely tuned in to “people’s desire to have a balanced lifestyle.
There is strong acknowledgment here, a willingness to invest in
people desiring a balanced lifestyle,” noted Duffy.
This correlates perfectly with the brewer’s credo of letting people
work independently within the company instead of micromanaging every move
they make.
Clearly, Great Divide’s valuing of its people has led to
monetary awards along with a whole host of accolades. Summarized on the website,
“These beers have landed an impressive amount of acclaim:
Great Divide beers have earned 17 Great American Beer Festival medals and
five World Beer Cup awards. Great Divide was also ranked eighth in
Ratebeer.com’s 2010 ‘The Best Brewers in the World’ and was
ranked seventh in Beer Advocate’s 2010 ‘All-Time Top Breweries on
Planet Earth.’”
Great Divide’s corporate culture
reflects the philosophy of company founder Brian Dunn. The homebrewer,
international traveler and beer aficionado founded Great Divide in 1994 in
an abandoned dairy-processing plant bordering downtown Denver. Back then,
Denver was not on the radar for crafted beers, making Dunn’s venture a
major leap of faith.
With names like Rumble, Hoss, Yeti, Hercules Double
IPA, Fresh Hop and Belgica, Great Divide’s selection is eclectic — and
educational. Go to their beer page and click on any brew pictured for a description,
list of awards and food pairing recommendations.
From the beginning, Dunn
wanted his company to emulate the “Colorado lifestyle,” a blend of adventure,
recreation, and emphasis on the values of family life and personal growth. He also
maintains a commitment to
environmental excellence. As explained on the website, “We are also firmly
dedicated to our community, whose support has been essential to our success, and
the environment, which we depend upon for ingredients and which we have a duty to
protect.”
Being environmentally tuned in was a logical meeting point
for Great Divide and Lightning Labels. The two companies synced up right
away about the need to conserve resources and keep the environment clean.
According to Ryan Rafferty, Great Divide Logistics Coordinator,
the choice of Lightning Labels seven years ago was due in part to proximity.
“We wanted to keep it local and easy, avoiding fuel costs and helping to
support jobs in Colorado,” noted Rafferty.
Staying together,
Rafferty added, has hinged in large measure, on Lightning Labels “providing
labels in a timely and cost effective manner. They always deliver labels when
they say they will, no matter what the quantity. And they offer great price
breaks.”
Currently, Great Divide works with Lightning Labels
on its special limited-release beers, which require special high quality,
hand-applied labels. Regardless of whether the challenge involves machine or
hand processes, Rafferty recommended, “Go with a label vendor that
fits your equipment needs, understands what you’re doing, is willing to
provide insight and technical support, and will work out any
issues.”
Lightning Labels and Great Divide also work together
on producing removable hand applied stickers for Great Divide’s
tap handles. Rafferty pointed out that Lightning Labels developed a sticker
featuring just the right level of tackiness to enable easy, clean removal and
application of a new one. This eliminated the need to change out the handle
when introducing a new beer.
Great Divide Brewing Co. clearly
strives for excellence in all facets of the brewing business, from the
customer taste experience, to workforce treatment, to the appearance of
its products.
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