Crisis Management #46: Why North High Brewing stopped worrying and became a restaurant operator - Women Of Influence

Business in times of struggle often talk of getting back to their roots.

Not North High Brewing.

Like many breweries and other businesses, the last year was one of big changes in the face of challenges, but the North High of today doesn’t resemble the one first dreamed up by co-founders Gavin Meyers and Tim Ward a decade ago.

They didn’t want to run any brewpub. Today they have four and could be in double digits by the end of the year.

They didn’t have aspirations beyond Columbus but soon will be in multiple states.

They only barely wanted to brew their own beer — the initial hook for the business was as a brew-your-own operation. North High’s own beers would be secondary to the experience of inviting customers in, showing them a book of recipes and letting them loose (with professional guidance) on the brewing system.

That brew-your-own option diminished over time as the founders realized being a traditional brewery made more sense.

It officially ended last year.

“That was the reason for being. That was the point of differentiation back when we thought the seventh brewery in Columbus was going to really crowd the industry,” Meyers said.

There are dozens of craft brewers around Central Ohio today and hundreds in the state.

North High is poised to rise in those ranks.

Meyers chatted with Columbus Business First for an episode of Crisis Management, a podcast about businesses operating amid the coronavirus pandemic.

He talked about the challenges of the past year — declining sales, laying off staff — but also the promise of the future. Thanks to its relationship with Columbus-based coworking space developers and operators CoHatch, North High’s reach is moving beyond its original Short North taproom.

Through that partnership, North High now has operations in Dublin, Springfield and Cincinnati, with additional units lined up in Cleveland, Cincinnati, Indianapolis and Florida.

Meyers explains how that relationship developed, how it works and how it’s allowing North High to expand at “a fraction of the cost” they would incur if striking out on their own.