Startup Story
The growing interest in small batch gins and other spirits that have great brand stories and individual personalities, has created a great growth story for South Africa’s Hope Distillery, co-founded by husband and wife team Lucy Beard and Leigh Lisk. The Hope brand is distinctive, modern and committed to quality, and is winning fans around the world, as are the spirits they design and distill for other popular boutique brands.
LoA chatted to co-founder Lucy Beard this month to find out more.
Tell us about yourself
My name is Lucy Beard and together with my husband Leigh Lisk we set up Hope Distillery, Cape Town’s first small batch distillery, in 2014. I met Leigh at University, after which we drove up Africa together, ending up in London where we worked as lawyers for 15 years. I specialized in television law and ended up working for the UK’s largest commercial broadcaster, ITV. In 2013 we abandoned the rat race to follow the sun around southern Europe. While in Spain we witnessed the ‘gin revolution’ and fell in love with the magical spirit, so came home to spread the love of craft gin with fellow South Africans.
Image credit: Dave Southwood
Image credit: Kate McLuckie
Image credit: Teagan Cunniffe
“After many months spent in Spain, where the "gin revolution" was in full swing, we wondered to ourselves whether we could make gin. A few months later the plan was hatched: a move back to Cape Town to start a gin distillery.”
“We started small in 2014, just the two of us, and over the years grew to a team of 11 as the gin revolution took shape in South Africa.”
What does your company do?
We're a craft Distillery based in Cape Town, making small batch gins, a vodka, an agave (aka a tequila) and we are soon to launch a rum. We also design and distill spirits for other brands, including Musgrave Gin, Bloedlemoen Gin, Clemengold Gin and Sugar Girl Rum. We re-branded our Hope products in 2019, creating a new visual identity, with the fresh new look encapsulating the spirit of the products and the people who product them: distinctive, modern and committed to quality. Understated but sophisticated. You can visit the Distillery to buy our gins and other spirits Mondays to Fridays (in keeping with current lockdown regulations) or order them through the Distillery website. Although our Tasting Room is closed, it will be open as a cocktail bar on Fridays as well as on First Thursdays. This overlooks the Distillery floor and so gives you an oversight into our working space and a taste of our spirits.
What inspired you to start your company?
We took a sabbatical from our corporate jobs in 2013 and spent the year travelling in Morocco and southern Europe. During this year away, we decided we didn't want to go back to corporate, but rather wanted to do something ourselves, together. After many months spent in Spain, where the "gin revolution" was in full swing, we wondered to ourselves whether we could make gin. A few months later the plan was hatched: a move back to Cape Town to start a gin distillery. It was a rollercoaster of a ride: starting a business in an industry in which we had no experience and no contacts (we'd been lawyers before) in a new town (we'd never lived in Cape Town) and back in South Africa after 16 years abroad. Steep learning curves all round, but it was so worth it.
Why should anyone use your service or product?
I am the Distiller and design all the gins: not many people realize that many of the gin brands out there are made by others - often large distilleries - with the brand owner having little to do with the magic that goes into the bottle. When you drink one of the spirits we design, you're drinking our passion, our creativity and sharing a small piece of our growing journey - it doesn't get more special than that.
Image credit: Kate McLuckie
“Cape Town was an ideal place to be based: we were surrounded by fellow entrepreneurs, who were a real help along the way, particularly the craft beer brewers.”
Tell us a little about your team
We started small in 2014, just the two of us, and over the years grew to a team of 11 as the gin revolution took shape in South Africa. Sadly the Covid-19 lockdown and related bans on alcohol sales was a huge blow to our business and we had to downsize in an effort to keep afloat in times where we still had all our outgoings but no revenues coming in. We're now a team of 6, more committed than ever before and determined to continue to bring you the spirits you love for us and the brands we distill for. The silver lining of lockdown was that our Distillery Warehouse Manager, Ranga Mlambo, spent the time we were closed studying - and went on to pass the International Institute of Brewing & Distilling's Distilling Certificate with flying colours.
Share a little about your entrepreneurial journey. And do you come from an entrepreneurial background?
As mentioned briefly above, it was a real rollercoaster of a journey. We went in with absolutely no experience, no scientific backgrounds and no connections in the alcohol industry. We had a business plan but didn't realize that the bureaucratic hoops we needed to jump through (both liquor licensing and production licensing from SARS) would take far, far longer than we ever could have anticipated. We nearly ran out of money before we were licensed to start production, which was super stressful, even more so given we had sunk all our money into buying our distillery equipment - and we might not ever get to use it. It was also a real case of learning from our mistakes. The first 12 months were a chapter of disasters: from blowing pumps, to litres of product all over the floor all the time, to battling with recipes and fermentation of the raw materials. It was an enormous relief when we finally launched our first product to market, 18 months after we set out on this journey.
Cape Town was an ideal place to be based: we were surrounded by fellow entrepreneurs, who were a real help along the way, particularly the craft beer brewers. It was amazing to see the gin revolution really start to gain momentum and our business grew far faster than we had ever anticipated. However, the Coronavirus pandemic has presented us with another rollercoaster - and you realize that you can never ever take anything for granted as an entrepreneur: you never know what might be around the corner!
Image credit: Russell Smith
Image credit: Russell Smith
“Sadly the Covid-19 lockdown and related bans on alcohol sales was a huge blow to our business and we had to downsize in an effort to keep afloat in times where we still had all our outgoings but no revenues coming in.”
“Our plans have changed so much this year - midyear all we wanted was to ensure that we survived until the end of 2020. We're pleased to say that we'll manage that and it's been such an experience relooking at our business, downsizing it and looking at new opportunities.”
What are your future plans and aspirations for your company?
Our plans have changed so much this year - midyear all we wanted was to ensure that we survived until the end of 2020. We're pleased to say that we'll manage that and it's been such an experience relooking at our business, downsizing it and looking at new opportunities. Our online store will be launching soon - and we're doing a collaboration with SIP Exclusive, an events and mobile bar company, running a bar in the Distillery Tasting Room on Friday nights.
What gives you the most satisfaction being an entrepreneur?
It's the most amazing and rewarding thing working for oneself - stressful yes, but so, so worth it. The most amazing thing is when people enjoy the spirits that we make and want to share them with others - what they don't realize is that they're drinking our passion. I wouldn't change it for the world.
What's the biggest piece of advice you can give to other women looking to start-up?
Don't be afraid to leap in with both feet: it's passion and commitment (and a lot of hard work) that really makes the difference. Also don't be afraid to make mistakes - we learnt so much from the many, many mistakes we made along our journey and are wiser and stronger because of it.
Contact or follow Hope Distillery
WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | EMAIL lucy@hopedistillery.co.za
Why LoA loves it….
It takes a bold vision, huge amounts of self belief, tenacity, and resilience to build a strong and growing business, and Lucy and Leigh have these qualities in abundance. They have grown from a small, successful niche business to a recognised quality brand in a burgeoning marketplace, and as an industry player creating quality spirits for other niche brands. Having seen the industry go through huge challenges as a result of the pandemic, their resilience and ability to keep going and emerge leaner and fitter and ready for the road ahead is a testament to their business acumen and brand strength. Hope Distillery is a business destined for ongoing growth and success in the future and definitely one to watch over the coming years. — Melanie Hawken, founder & ceo of Lionesses of Africa