By Dallas Gislason, Douglas magazine
Expanding on his article “What Gets Made Here Matters” Dallas Gislason explores the journey of scaling up from small beginnings.
Brewing Success
The story of B.C.’s craft beer industry provides useful lessons and parallels for what might be possible in other industries.
Over 50 years ago, a 22-year-old microbiologist fresh off the plane from England discovered something abysmal: the bland, light-coloured lager that defined the Canadian beer industry. The “big three” (Molson, Labatt and Carling O’Keefe) were constantly cutting costs. And quality suffered.
That young man, named Frank Appleton, took a job at O’Keefe and over several years, his dissatisfaction with not just the product, but the workplace culture led him to throw in the towel. He moved to the Kootenays where he made his own beers in his garage and earned his income as a freelance writer. Then, in 1978, he published an article in Harrowsmith magazine called “The Underground Brewmaster” that would change British Columbia forever…
