Brew Talks Austin: Lessons of an Entrepreneur with Clayton Christopher

Oct. 23, 2014 at 2:42 PM

On October 21, Brewbound traveled to the offices of theCHIVE in Austin, TX to host Brew Talks, a traveling meetup series for beer industry professionals.

During the event, Austin-based food and beverage entrepreneur Clayton Christopher — who has helped launch companies like Sweet Leaf Tea, Deep Eddy Vodka and Rhythm Superfoods — shared lessons from his entrepreneurial journey and offered advice for brewers whose businesses are maturing. Throughout the talk, Clayton discussed some of the challenges he’d faced when growing a new beverage brand and offered strategies for succeeding in a crowded marketplace.

Christopher started Sweet Leaf in 1998 with $15,000 in savings, an old delivery van and an ice tea recipe from his grandmother. Over the years, Christopher helped grow Sweet Leaf from a brand that was sold at a few stores in Austin, into one of the fastest-growing beverages brands in the country — one that would eventually be acquired by Nestle Waters in 2011.