Hepworth Brewery opens new site following £2.36M funding from
HSBC***
***New purpose-built premises provides space to expand***
***Brewery offers training on site for other small breweries***
West Sussex based Hepworth Brewery has officially opened its new site following a relocation to Pulborough from its previous premises in Horsham. The opening was celebrated with a host of local supporters in attendance to mark the start of a new era for the family-run business.
The move was made possible with a £2.36 million funding package fromHSBC alongside significant personal investment from the business owners and grant funding. The HSBC finance package included a £1.8 million commercial mortgage loan that has allowed the brewery to treble its space and increase its work force, with local recruitment at the heart of the company’s expansion. A small proportion of the funding was also used to purchase two state-of-the-art conditioning tanks, required to meet the demand for increased production of the company’s award winning own-brand beer and to enable the company to expand its capacity for contract brewing.
The new site also includes a shop which sells a selection of the brewery’s products and a newly built visitor-centre which will run tours for budding brewers and beer lovers. Hepworth Brewery also plans to use the facilities to host a series of lectures and training sessions for other local small breweries.
Victoria Mutter, HSBC’s Area Director for Business Banking in Gatwick & East Sussex, said: “We are so pleased to have helped Hepworth Brewery move to this fantastic new site and expand their business. The team is incredibly passionate about what they do and the business has become a key player on the Sussex brewing scene. We can’t wait to see how the business will grow following their move.”
Andy Hepworth, founding member of Hepworth Brewery, said: “Brewing great beer has always been a passion for us and our relocation in West Sussex has allowed us to continue to tap into the great produce from local farmers on our doorstep. Sussex farmers are excellent: their skills make our job much, much easier and we can’t wait to brew even more varieties.”
“HSBC attended our launch on Friday, and the bank’s team has been an amazing resource for us during this move. Their support and advice has been invaluable and we hope to continue this great banking relationship with them.”
Ends
Notes to editor
Hepworth Brewery was established in September 2000 by four foundingmembers that had all worked for the former King & Barnes Brewery in Horsham, including Head Brewer Andy Hepworth. When K&B was acquired by Hall & Woodhouse and relocated to a new site the four friends decided to start their own brewery. They funded the launch with a combination of redundancy payments and loans from friends and family. Since then Hepworth Brewery have gone form strength to strength, establishing themselves as a predominant figure in the UK brewing industry. They work with local Sussex farmers and suppliers to produce award winning beers that have been recognised internationally.
Hepworth Brewery have a strong client base and sell their own brewed beers to national retailers including M&S, Tesco, Majestic Wine and Morrisons. Additionally they brew beer on contract for other well-known breweries including Molson Coors, Wadworth Brewery and Gurkha Beer.
For further information please contact:
Rebecca Bradley or Emma Huskins
02380 382970
Rebecca.bradley@grayling.com / emma.huskins@grayling.com