Episode 35: Chris Shepard of Beer Marketer's Insights

Episode 35: Chris Shepard of Beer Marketer’s Insights

Chris Shepard is one of the keenest voices in the craft beer industry. A Senior Editor for Craft Brew News at Beer Marketer’s Insights, he covers the trade side of the craft beer industry with wit, wisdom, and a healthy dose of skepticism.

You might wonder how a trained actor and theater director found his way to writing about the business of beer. Well, as you’ll hear Chris tell it, Beer Marketers is a 50 year old company, a true family run operation, founded by Jerry Steinman. His son Benj, a fixture in his own right in the beer business, followed in his dad’s footsteps and now runs the show. And for more than 40 years, Eric Shepard, Chris’s dad, has been working with the Steinman’s. Eric, who I’ve had the pleasure of sharing beers with, is the VP/Executive Editor and joined BMI in 1977.

BMI is one of the oldest and longest running beer publications out there, certainly on the trade audience side of things. The company produces a handful of newsletters targeted at the broader beer industry as well as sponsoring conferences. BMI is a critical voice in the beer trade but it long focused almost exclusively on the big players for its largely wholesaler audience. But in recent years, the company has moved to expand its reach. One of the most prominent craft focused efforts has been Craft Brew News, which Chris writes and edits along with Benj’s son David. See, a true family operation spanning three generations.

Chris is one of my favorite people in the beer world. With more than 11 years covering the beer industry, he’s smart, compassionate, and thoughtful. We sadly only get to see each other once or twice a year, at beer events like the GABF or the Craft Brewers Conference. As you’ll soon hear, he’s an exciting voice in the world of craft beer and I’m looking forward to our next beer together.

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This episode is sponsored by:

Source Brewing Company is a sponsor of the Beer Edge podcast. The brewery is sponsoring the Inclusion & Diversity Scholarship to give people who are under-represented in the brewing industry an opportunity to get a world class brewing education and jump start their career paths. Source encourages qualified individuals to apply for a chance to receive a full scholarship to the Concise Course in Brewing Technology offered online by the Siebel Institute of Technology, America’s oldest brewing school. Source is also excited to announce their second location in the Fishtown neighborhood of Philadelphia. Opening this fall, the brewery is currently accepting applications for chef, line cooks, beertenders, and hostesses. For more information on both opportunities, please reach out to Source at [email protected].

About The Beer Edge Podcast

Every week, host Andy Crouch takes a look at the state of the beer industry, with a focus on the business and culture of beer. The Beer Edge podcast provides listeners with unparalleled insights into the beer industry. Our mission is to provide consumers and industry players alike with a fresh and unfiltered look at the world of better, flavorful beer. We seek to capture the essence and passion of brewers, both big and small, foreign and domestic, each of whom has a distinctive and colorful story to go along with the beautiful beers they produce. The Beer Edge podcast is available on all major podcast platforms.

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