Today we’d like to introduce you to Christophe Perdu.
Hi Christophe, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
How I (Christophe) personally got started: My dad is from the northern part of France, which is a beer drinking region of France and therefore I was exposed to a unique culture around beer. I began brewing beer at 18 with plastic buckets and stove top pots, and continued brewing in college. I would host “speakeasy” parties, where we would charge people $10 at the door to drink as much of our homebrew as you wanted, which is how we funded our operation. Out of school I got a job doing data analytics for a government contracting firm, and couldn’t bare doing it for the rest of my life. My partner and I moved to Charlottesville and I got a job catching cans at a brewery, and from there jumped to Random Row Brewery to help run their front of house and learn how to make beer professionally. I wanted to focus all my time and effort into the production side of brewing, and got a job at Palmetto Brewery in Charleston, SC where I was promoted to head brewer after 9 months. From there I was offered the Head Brewer position at a new brewery opening up in Myrtle Beach, SC, and here I am still today at Grand Strand Brewing! I have since been promoted to Owner / Operator, and am incredibly fortunate for the opportunities I’ve been presented with in my brewing career.
Grand Strand Brewing was founded by 3 people; John Planty, Jamie Dickenson, and Clayton Burrous. Their intent for starting a brewery in the heart of the old downtown Myrtle Beach was in part to helping revitalize that part of the city. We’ve tried to serve as the anchor to bringing people and businesses back to this part of town that has been abandoned for so long.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has been an absolute nightmare of a road, but we’ve been able to persevere any and all obstacles that have faced us. We opened in February 2021, just as the second ig wave of Covid was occurring and there were talks about shutting everything down again. We’ve witnessed historical down seasons in Myrtle Beach, inflation that has raised pricing of grain for the beer, aluminum for the cans, steel for the tanks and kegs, and everything in between. The craft beer market has been contracting, both in consumption and number of breweries, for 2 years now. And despite all of this, we have been able to maintain double digit growth year after year.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
As the Owner / Operator, I do a little bit of everything. I do manage most of the administration side, running payroll, keeping track of cash flow, calculating projections. But I do get involved in just about every aspect of the brewery. If a packaging tech is sick, I’m on the canning line. If the taproom gets busy, I’m pouring beer or busing tables.
I would say I specialize in production, and more specifically how can we push our as much beer as possible in our small space. My joke is that we operate a Toyota style Just-In-Time operating model, but on a Fiat budget.
I am most proud of being a part of a company that has created a team that has found so much success in such a tough time for beer. We are just over 4 years old, and in that time we’ve created a brand, our Airbrush Hazy IPA, that (locally) sells more draft than Bud Light. BUD FREAKING LIGHT, SUPERBOWL COMMERICALS BUD LIGHT! That success comes from everyone in the company, our salesman Parker DeWitt who is a magician when it comes to moving beer. Our head of production Tiff Thompson runs the back of house like a well oiled machine. Our Taproom Manager Shawn Randall has created a space to showcase our brand and what our company stand for. And our Marketing and Events Manger Erica Callahan is helping the company connect with locals and tourists in a way no one locally has been able to do.
I think what sets us apart from others is our commitment to beer and to the direction the company is headed. We have a saying in the company, “it’s not only about the beer, but its always about the beer.” We operate with an understanding that we are in a unique, fun, and challenging business space that offers certain advantages, but if we don’t take ourselves seriously and focus on continuing to make the product and experience as great as it can be we will fail.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
My advice to those starting is be relevant. The idea “if I brew beer, people will come” is a false way of thinking for success. If you’re starting a brewery, or trying to get into the beer indusry, what do you offer that the other 9000 breweries in the country, or what can you offer to set yourself apart from the hundreds of thousands of brewery employees already in the industry. I’d also say make sure you’re serious about the work. There is a certain romantic glamour about brewing, but the truth is that its hard, physically demanding, and not very financially rewarding trade. Those who succeed have passion, but also wit and inner strength to continue even when the going is tough.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://grandstrandbrewing.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/explore/locations/102016685111705/grand-strand-brewing-co/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/grandstrandbeerco/
