Carolyn Fath
Henry Schwartz, co-founder of MobCraft.
MobCraft Beer, the craft brewery that started in Madison in 2013 and moved to Milwaukee in 2016, has launched a Wefunder crowdsource campaign that if successful may dramatically expand the company and possibly bring back some production to Madison with a satellite brewpub.
MobCraft co-founder Henry Schwartz says the brewery has selected potential sites in Waterford, Wisconsin; Woodstock, Illinois; and Denver, Colorado. Schwartz adds that Madison could be the fourth city for a MobCraft brewpub, however he has yet to find a suitable space to rent or lot to develop. “Our goal is to fund multiple locations with this equity crowdsource campaign, and we are actively looking for a spot in Madison,” says Schwartz. Overall, his ambitious goal is to expand MobCraft in up to 10 locations by 2025. This involves keeping the main production brewery and taproom in Milwaukee for core beers while each of the new locations would have their own small brewing system for in-house releases.
Schwartz is hoping to raise up to $2.25 million in crowdfunds over the next few months. On the first day of the campaign, September 23, more than $275,000 was pledged. Those who buy in are considered shareholders in the company. MobCraft held a similar crowdsource campaign in its early years while it was brewing in Madison. That effort raised about $68,000 from approximately 48 shareholders, 38 from Madison. MobCraft knows social media well, too — the brewery built a following in part through its use of social media and crowdsourcing to vote on its new and special release beers.
The Wefunder site outlines the business plan for growing, which includes purchasing or leasing “failed unique locations.”
In the new campaign Schwartz has identified three sites for expansion with room for one or two more locations depending upon the total amount raised and the final build-out costs of the first three cities. One of those is in downtown Denver, where MobCraft is eyeing the former Liberati Restaurant & Brewery. This would be a turnkey acquisition since Liberati closed its seven-barrel brewhouse and restaurant in early 2020. (Denver is also Schwartz’s hometown.) The second location is a former city fire station in Waterford, about 30 minutes southwest of downtown Milwaukee. The building was constructed by the city in the 1960s and is located alongside the Fox River. The third proposed site is in Woodstock, Illinois, on the town square. Woodstock is redeveloping some of its historic buildings downtown and MobCraft could take over the part of an 1870s sheriff’s house, complete with two jail cells.
Movie buffs may recall that Woodstock is where much of the 1993 movie Groundhog Day was filmed.
All three sites currently under consideration have temporary agreements worked out with MobCraft that are expected to be finalized if crowdsource funding comes in. Schwartz says if they don’t reach the entire goal, the company will adjust and determine which locations on the list could still be built out. If the entire goal is reached, then all three could move forward over the next two years.
And if fundraising goes well there is a possibility that a Madison site could be added. Schwartz says Madison makes the list of potential cities, but he’s much less specific about a timetable since no suitable location has been found. He has been working with commercial realtors for much of the summer without success. However, Schwartz is steadfast about his desire to return to the city where MobCraft began. “We have such a big existing fanbase and a lot of our original investors are from Madison. We’ve been telling them we would be coming back,” he says. “Madison is definitely in consideration.”
