Salford’s Seven Br0thers first launched in August 2014 and has seen turnover growth of £600K in its first two years. The family firm now plans to open a new bar in Manchester’s Northern Quarter.
SEVEN BRO7HERS brews craft beer and was launched by the seven McAvoy brothers; Keith, Kit, Guy, Luke, Daniel, Nathan and Greg after receiving a government-backed Start Up Loan. Inspired by their dad’s home-brewing, the brothers decided to start a new brand which offered an alternative to the more mainstream beer choices on the market.
Growing up in Salford, they’re keen to keep the business in their local community and the brewery is just around the corner from their childhood home – where their parents still live.
To fund its launch, the brothers approached the government-backed Start Up Loans Company which provides low-interest personal loans, free mentoring and support for start-up businesses. SEVEN BRO7HERS secured a £45,000 loan from the providers which helped the business get off the ground, helping the brothers buy brewing equipment, invest in marketing materials and spend time designing their logo and fine-tuning the brand
Since its launch, SEVEN BRO7HERS has seen an overall turnover of £600K, enabling it to diversify its offering into the licensed trade.
The SEVEN BRO7HERS Craft Beer Bar – situated in Manchester’s popular Ancoats Quarter – will open before Christmas and will be serving the business’ very own craft beer, as well as a range of food.
SEVEN BRO7HERS also has ambitious plans to develop new flavors of beer in the New Year, and expand their stockist portfolio after the bar’s launch.
Keith McAvoy said: “Our dad’s love of brewing was our first inspiration for starting SEVEN BRO7HERS. We thought why don’t we give it a go ourselves and produce beer that is high-quality, something different to the more mainstream brands on the market and that we can brew from our hometown of Salford. Finding funding for our business idea seemed daunting at the start but we approached Start Up Loans, who gave us funding and support from a dedicated mentor to help us get things moving.
“We’ve had a fantastic couple of years growing our brand and we’ve had great customer feedback. It’s great that the seven of us can all work together to create a solid family business. Now we feel it’s time to grow even bigger and open a new bar in Manchester. This will help us increase our revenue and bring our beer to even more people.”
Tim Sawyer, CEO of Start Up Loans Company, said: “It’s always rewarding to see family businesses become successful and SEVEN BRO7HERS is now a staple of the local community. The McAvoys venture shows our childhood can often be an inspiration for future business ideas. We’re thrilled that the guys are now growing their brand and opening a new bar in Manchester. It’s been a pleasure to help them start their journey.
“When you have that first business idea, it’s important to be brave and think to yourself actually maybe I can make this work. Too many future start-up owners are holding back because of funding concerns but we’re able to provide support and mentoring to help steer budding business owners through the start of their journey. It’s time for those sitting on great business ideas to stop listing excuses not to and to start believing in themselves.”
