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Transcript:
Douglas (00:06):
Today on the Entrepreneurship@DU Podcast,
Ryan Evans (00:11):
When I came home and realized that there’s an issue of getting good quality Belgian beer, and I felt like everyone should be able to have the same experience I had.
Kevin Douglas (00:20):
This DU alum is crafting more than Belgian beers at his brewer with a focus on education and trips abroad. He’s crafting relationships and customer loyalty as well.
Ryan Evans (00:30):
I think just lighting that fire in others, that’s part of the entrepreneurship in general, right? You’ve got this problem that you’re trying to solve and you know that if you solve it, it’s, it’s not only going to make you happy, but it’s going to have a positive impact on someone else’s life.
Kevin Douglas (00:44):
Today we’re chatting with Ryan Evans, the co-founder and CEO Bruz Beers. I’m Kevin Douglas and this is the Entrepreneurship@DU podcast. Thanks for tuning in to the Entrepreneurship@DU podcast. Today we have Ryan Evans, an alumni from D’S Executive MBA program. Ryan is the co-founder and CEO of Bruz Beers, a Belgian craft brewery with two locations here in Denver. And you co-founded the company with Charlie Goten back in 2015. Is that right?
Ryan Evans (01:22):
That’s right, that’s right.
Kevin Douglas (01:24):
So in your own words, or maybe summed up in one sentence could you describe what Bruz Beers is all about?
Ryan Evans (01:31):
Yeah, so Bruz Beers is an all Belgian style brewery. We’ve got two locations in town one at 67th and Pecos, and one off of Colfax and York. And we’re just a high quality brewery that has tasting rooms and then does some wholesale distribution throughout the Denver area.
Kevin Douglas (01:50):
One thing we focus on at Entrepreneurship@DU is problem solving. What problem would you say Brews Beers is solving? In the Denver market?
Ryan Evans (02:00):
We focus on Belgian style. So Bruz beer started because I came home from Belgium having fallen in love with Belgian beer, and I couldn’t find any here in America any that was worth it. They were shipping it over and it was few and far between and it was really expensive. So yeah, we definitely fill that void of high quality Belgian style beer. As you know, there’s a lot of breweries in Denver, so our niche kind of suits us well. We’re really good at it on it, and we really enjoy it. So yeah, I think it solves the problem of getting high quality Belgian beer in the area.
Kevin Douglas (02:36):
I want to talk more about the craft beer industry here in Colorado. I’ve actually got some statistics here, and according to colorado.com, the state has the fourth most breweries per capita in the us. That’s more than 400 registered breweries in the state with 150 of those in the city of Denver. Now, I’ve been to a few of these, but I’m definitely no expert. What makes a good or bad beer? Could you describe what it is that sets Belgian beer apart from what you might typically find at other Denver breweries?
Ryan Evans (03:09):
Yeah, sure. I think most people know that IPAs are kind of king in America, and I would venture to say that Belgian style beers are almost exactly opposite of an IPA. So we’re a very low hop usage. We focus a lot on our yeast strains, which provide flavor and it’s just a different quality of beer than just a standard IPA higher alcohol usually but we have some entry level beers that are three and 4%, so we cover the gamut. But really, Belgian focuses on the style and the yeast strain really shines for us. So if you’re an IPA guy, we have IPAs and they’re popular but we run the gamut on a lot of other different Belgian styles that I would urge you to try because it’s something different than anyone else in town is offering.
Kevin Douglas (04:05):
So you told me you got into this business because of your personal love of Belgian beers. How did that passion come about and what sparked your love for these beers enough so that you built your entire career around it?
Ryan Evans (04:18):
Yeah, I mean, the first Belgian beer I ever had was in Belgium. I was on my way to Amsterdam, any good college student at the time, and I had a train change in Brussels, and I had about two hours skills. So I went to a pub and asked for a beer, and the guy brings me a book of literally a book of hundreds of Belgian style beers. And I knew none of them. I didn’t know the styles, I didn’t know anything. So he came back for my order and I said, look, what do you drink? And he goes, triple. And I said, okay. And he goes, triple caramel, eat. And I said, fine, whatever that is. And he brought this beer back and I could still remember the taste, the first sip I had of that beer, and it changed me A Belgian style. Triple is still my favorite style personally. We brew a lot of them at brew throughout the year. We always have a triple on tap. But yeah, I think that experience really led me to on this journey, and I didn’t know it at the time obviously, but when I came home and kind of realize that there’s an issue of getting good quality Belgian beer, and I felt like everyone should be able to have the same experience I had and set about recreating that. But here in Denver,
Kevin Douglas (05:27):
One thing that really stood out to me while I was looking into Bruz Beers is how you recreate that international experience you had for your customers, for your patrons. I’d love that you actually conduct guided tours and trips to Belgium, and I’d love to hear a little more about that and how it plays into your business.
Ryan Evans (05:45):
Yeah, yeah. I mean, education’s big and having that same experience is big. And so we start with a class here in town called World of Belgian Beers, and now we have a world of sour beers. And so you can go on our website and see when the next classes are and show up to the brewery, and over two hours we’ll taste you through around a dozen different beers from Belgium and our styles and walk you through. And then the next step is certainly going to Belgium with us. So once a year we offer a trip to Belgium. We guide you for nine or 10 days and you eat and drink your way across Belgium with us. We’ve got a lot of friends over there now. It’s become a very passionate project of ours, and it sells out every year. This year’s trip went on sale a couple weeks ago and it sold out in eight days.
(06:32):
And that’s wow, that’s 30 people. So it’s definitely popular, but it’s quite the experience. It’s, it’s not your normal European vacation where you get a ticket and stand in line at the museum. This is opposite of that. We don’t stand in line at museums. We go to breweries, they’ll cook us a lunch and we’ll drink beer all afternoon, and then we’ll sit around the fireplace with the owners and tell stories late into the evening and that type of stuff. So it’s really just an experience based trip, and it’s a lot of fun. I mean, if you haven’t been over there, the way to see Belgium is on a beer trip.
Kevin Douglas (07:06):
Yeah, yeah, I can imagine. I love the emphasis on education. I think it’s really unique from other breweries that I’ve gone to here in Denver. So are you leading these tours and classes yourself?
Ryan Evans (07:17):
Well, yeah, Charlie leads the classes for us. Okay. He’s very good and passionate about it. He’s got a radio much better than mine, so people tend to connect with him. But yeah, he does a great job at that. And then I personally lead each European Belgium trip.
Kevin Douglas (07:33):
There must be so much joy in reliving that authentic Belgian experience you had and seeing that same spark come about in other people that go on the tours with you.
Ryan Evans (07:42):
Oh yeah. I mean, just seeing people light up and people come back as with friends for life on these trips but to see them 1, 2, 3 years later in the tasting room and they’re still as passionate about the beer that they discovered in Belgium. It’s funny because every year we take people that aren’t even beer drinkers. It might be someone’s spouse and they’re like, oh, I’m going along because my husband likes it, or vice versa. And those are the ones that almost always come back with even more passion than their spouse. So, oh, I’m a wine drinker, but I’m going along for the ride and they find their beer in Belgium and then I’ll run into two years later, or they’ll send me a text of a picture of a beer they’re buying at the liquor store, a Belgian beer, and they’re so proud still, and this is years later. So it certainly is kind of the reward to see that passion ignite in others.
Kevin Douglas (08:32):
And you create these unique connections with the customers. You think about customer loyalty and you’re generating these personal bonds by leading the tours yourself and not hiring someone outside the company. Sure. I’m curious what challenges come with that, especially having two locations that you’re managing here in Denver, and can you remind me where those are again?
Ryan Evans (08:53):
Yeah, so 67th and Pecos is kind of northwest Denver, and then Colfax in York is Hill. Obviously two tasting rooms is a lot harder than one, but for us, that was always the vision you know, can start a brewery one of two ways. You could focus on wholesale and distribution and getting your product into every liquor store and restaurant in town, and then in your region and maybe nationwide, or you can do what we’ve done and focus really on the personal side. So tasting rooms are number one for us. We dabble in the wholesale we enjoy it, but it’s certainly not our push. We’re looking for a third tasting room location now here in Colorado. We like the conversation over the bar. We like that connection with the customer. And to us that’s, that kind of fulfills us more than shipping a pallet of cans across state lines, just not what we’re built to do and what we’re passionate about.
Kevin Douglas (09:51):
It definitely feels very homegrown, which I think is great. So in the nine years that Bruz Beers has been around, what challenges have you overcome along the way with having to manage both education and brick and mortar breweries? Do you ever feel like you’re being pulled in too many different directions?
Ryan Evans (10:09):
Yeah, you always are, right? I think entrepreneurship, the baseline of it is passion, right? If you don’t have passion, don’t get into it because it’s going to consume you, especially those first few years. So I urge you to make sure it’s something you really love and enjoy doing. I don’t look at it as so much work as more of a passion. So as long as you have that fire in your gut and you see a clear vision of where you want to go, you’re off to a good start. But then you’re going to get pulled in every direction as you go through this journey, especially before you open it, right? It’s always going to take longer than you expected. It’s always going to take more money than you either expected or have <laugh>. It’s just part of that road. And so having that fire to get you over the next hurdle and get you over the next hurdle, it took us over three years from founding to open, and there was hurdles that a lot of people thought were insurmountable and they would urge you to move on, but we didn’t, and I’m glad we didn’t because we appreciate what we’ve built, and it’s a part of us now.
(11:14):
We’ve built a culture of people that also have these same feelings and are as fire on fire as we are. So then you hit a major bump in the road called Covid, right, where the government comes in and completely shuts you down. We were open for just a matter of weeks on the second location before the government came in and says, yeah, you have to close down, and you look at ’em and go, no, we can’t close down. We have to make rent. And they’re like, no, you’re closing. So figuring all that out would be very hard if you weren’t passionate about what you do. And then surrounding yourselves with people that are as passionate, but also stronger than you are in other areas, you know, can only carry all the weight for so long, and you can’t do it all well if you’re doing that. So you’ve got to eventually find good people that can be part of your business family and kind of expand and grow from there, and trust them to do their job so that you can continue to do what you do best.
Kevin Douglas (12:15):
It seems like a lot of what you do is cultivating relationships both with your customers and with your team. And at the same time, Bruz Beers as a company has grown a lot since its founding in 2013. So I’m curious, have you seen people go from total non-beer drinkers to actually working for you, maybe doing marketing or working in one of your tap rooms?
Ryan Evans (12:39):
Oh, sure. Yeah. I mean, our followers are loyal and they’re passionate, and they come back from these trips and for sure they’re singing the gospel, they’re going around town, and then they’ll bring a group of 10, 15 friends in and kind of show off their knowledge from the trip. And those lead to people joining more trips. And we’ve got several people that have gone on several trips with us. We change it up every year so that you can continue to travel with us. But yeah, I think just lighting that fire in others, that’s part of the entrepreneurship in general. You’ve got this concept, you’ve got this problem that you’re trying to solve, and that if you solve it, it’s not only going to make you happy, but it’s going to have a positive impact on someone else’s life, and then they can continue to take that down the road. So I think it’s just that whole process of entrepreneurship that fulfills you and makes you happy, but when you see it in others, I think that’s the payday, right?
Kevin Douglas (13:33):
Yeah, absolutely. It’s not just a transactional relationship. It becomes something so much more than that. So how did you find your type fit here in Denver? Obviously there’s interest in craft beers, but you said yourself Belgian beers are quite different, and was there already awareness here in Denver about the lack of Belgian beers?
Ryan Evans (13:53):
Yeah, I’d say that was the hardest part of our business plan. You know, couldn’t get good Belgian beers in America at the time. They were very rare, and if they were here, they were extremely expensive. They’ve probably been on the shelf way too long because nobody knows about ’em. The other negative that we were always up against is bad American made Belgian beers. So a brewery that tries to brew everything for everyone, a stout Irish stout and a English and a logger, and then all of a sudden they brew a Belgian beer, which takes a lot longer, a little more care. And so that Belgian beer probably didn’t come out as good as it could have. And so people were thinking, oh, this is the norm. These Belgian beers are not very good. And so we fought that hard. That’s where the education came from.
(14:36):
That’s where the world of Bel Beers came from. We knew that if we could get people in the door, they would convert to being a Bel Beer fan, and they would be a customer and come back. So we were up against that for the first two to three years, getting on the map and getting people to drive across town to see us. If you think about drive from South Denver to our north spot, you passed 40 or 50 other breweries. So how you going to get that person to drive past 40 or 50 other breweries to come visit you? The fact that we’re really the only ones that are hyper-focused on Belgian style, and we do it really well filled a niche that people are willing to drive for, but it was an uphill battle. The education was key to that success, and we’re on the map now, thankfully. But that was probably the biggest challenge we had. Certainly,
Kevin Douglas (15:28):
Based on what you’re telling me, it seems like word of mouth has been really powerful for the niche that you’re in, and it sounds like it’s only going up. I don’t see people suddenly leaving the Belgian beard fandom anytime soon. Yeah. So where do you see the industry going from here? Do you think based on those statistics from earlier, there’s going to be somewhat of a plateau, or do you think it’s going to keep growing as more and more people relocate to Denver?
Ryan Evans (15:56):
Yeah, I think the market swinging our way. Finally when we started, IPAs were king, and they were on the upswing, and then hazy IPAs came in after that, and all the market research was pointing towards, you got to be on this ship, you know, got to have more hops than what to do with, and you got to go nuts with them. And we stuck to our guns, and we did the opposite of that. Now people, the taste in beer is starting to go back to the grassroots People again, want a beer, not a pastry stout beer or a lucky charm, cereal, beer, or any of that, right? So I think just getting back to the basics is naturally swinging that pendulum back onto our side of the arena, and that’s the arena we’ve been playing in the whole time. So we’re ready, we’re prepared, we’re enjoying this upswing. People said it would never happen, but I think people are just the beer drinker is now smarter and more educated. They may not know why they didn’t like this particular beer and why they liked that one, but they know that they don’t like this and they like that. So getting those people in your door and they realize what quality is, it’s a natural process from there. We’re not fighting it anymore, which is nice.
Kevin Douglas (17:13):
So for anyone listening who maybe isn’t as familiar with some of the lingo and qualities around craft beers, in layman’s terms, what would be your pitch for a Belgian beer over an IPA or any other kinds of beers?
Ryan Evans (17:26):
Yeah, I think the key with Belgian beers balance, so an IPA by default is essentially a bit out of balance. It’s over hopped or over bidder. Belgian beers strive to really have a quality level. They’re considered more top shelf they, they’re made, they take a little bit more time to make. So there’s some passion involved in there but really it’s that quality issue and not being so hoppy. So over hopped, which you know, go into breweries now, and there’s eight out of 10 tap taps can be IPAs, and not everyone wants to go there, especially now. So I think it’s the smoothness and the quality characteristics that give you this standard that doesn’t go away in Belgian beer. It’s not gimmicky, it’s not going to change on you. A Belgian triple should always be a good beer, no matter where in the world you are if they’re doing it. So it’s easy to get caught up in trends and gimmicks but then you can’t find ’em anywhere, right? They’re hard to repeat. And Belgian beer’s been made for hundreds and hundreds of years. Same recipes, same families, same locations over in Belgium. So these styles are proven, they’re historical and if done, they’re worth it. And so you can find these styles around the world. It’s hard to find a pastry stout in other countries if that’s what you’re into. So yeah, I just think the history leads to that success as well.
Kevin Douglas (18:58):
Well, I’m convinced, yeah, I got to try one of these myself. I’d like to pivot and talk about brew beer’s early stages. You said you were founded in 2013, but you sold your first beer in 2016. So at the beginning, you were still part of dus MBA program. I want to hear a bit about how that program impacted the start of the business, what value you might have derived and then put into brew beers, and what that three year period before you sold the first beer was like, what obstacles did you face? What lessons did you learn? And what advice from that experience would you give to new entrepreneurs who maybe have their business close to launch, but aren’t quite there yet in terms of making that first sale?
Ryan Evans (19:41):
I landed in the DU E M B A program because I was looking for a little more fire in my career some more tools to play with. I was an executive at a family security company that we own, and it was great experience, and I just had this passion to try to do something on my own. And so the E M B A program led me through that, and I was passionate and came out of that program, fired up to get something started. And so I looked at hundreds of different entrepreneurship options, and this one kept floating to the top. And so I started to pursue it, and then I formed up a partnership with Charlie who could really do the brewing side and taught me that side. And then we formed the company and three years of looking for a location and researching equipment, I knew nothing about a brewery.
(20:37):
I knew a good Belgian beer, and I knew what I liked, but I didn’t know how to brew it. I didn’t know what the equipment looked like. I didn’t know what the space needed to look like. So it was a ton of touring and talking to other brewery owners and really kind of learning it from the ground up, learning the business from the ground up while creating a corporation and getting it all settled and financing and pitching to banks. The hurdle always is okay, you’ve got a great idea in your mind, but you’ve got to sell others on it because the money has to come from somewhere and you can’t shoulder all of it. So we pitched banks, we pitched friends and family, and we eventually got this thing to work, but land at the time was hard. That’s when the pot shops and pot warehouses were really coming on board, and they had a heck of a lot more money than the beer guys.
(21:26):
So we kept getting outbid on properties in Rhino by pot guys, and we finally said, look, we got to open up our search area. So we didn’t end up in Rhino, we ended up in Northwest Denver. But it was a very cool feel to it because it’s surrounded by a neighborhood, which is very European, very Belgian to us. We’re not in the back of a warehouse we’re not in a strip mall in a neighborhood, we’re in a community, and in fact, we’re the center of that community, and that to us is important. So yeah, those hurdles. And then of course, your first few years cash flow, right? Cash flow is king, and you’ve made all your investments and you’re trying to hit your numbers and you’re trying to run a business that can get tight at times. And so managing cash flow and expansion without, we didn’t want to take on investors.
(22:14):
We didn’t want to answer to someone that probably doesn’t understand what we’re trying to do. We feel like we can make a better decision on our brewery than the accountant can. So we fought hard to make sure that we did not go with the investor on the early stages, but sometimes that cash influx can get you to the next level. It just wasn’t the right move for us at that stage. And then sticking to our guns when people told us that you can’t just do Belgian style it, it’s not enough. And in fact, it’s more than enough.
Kevin Douglas (22:47):
So this is your first startup, and as a student in college, did you ever have big dreams of growing up and owning your own business, of being self-employed, or did that discovery come later on as part of the executive MBA program? Was it sort of catalyzed by your newfound passion for Belgian beers?
Ryan Evans (23:08):
Yeah, I mean, I always knew I was going to have my own business, if not multiple. That’s just inside of me. I think I get that from my family. Both my mom and my dad have started their own business, and it’s highly successful, and I’ve learned through there. So I always knew I was going to have my own business. So I think that that passion was always there, which is nice. I think you’ve got to have that as an entrepreneur that fires what drives the means to the end. So that was natural to me. But I always had, I did newspapers, I did car washes, I did lawn mowing when I was young, all my own businesses technically for cash to the neighbors, and learned that whole process and going door to door and getting turned down and trying to buy an upgraded mower for next summer. You got to hit a certain point this summer. And so I’ve always kind of been on that path, and I enjoy that which is great. It makes it a little natural for me to be on it.
Kevin Douglas (24:11):
If you could go back in time, five years, so it’s 2018, you’ve got your one location open, maybe you’re starting to think about a second location. What advice would you give to that past self?
Ryan Evans (24:24):
Yeah, I think those early stages, you got to be ready to have some sacrifice. The glory doesn’t come out of the gate. It comes at the end. And so being willing to go all in, sometimes at the time when I first started, I tried to do two jobs at once both the brewery and my other job. And it didn’t make sense. You can’t do both well. So there was a clear point where I said, I got to jump in full-time into the brewery. It can’t support me financially yet, but I’ll take that hit and make it up in the long run. So I think knowing that it’s going to work, but I got to guide it. I got to grow it. I got to be present. And that’s hard sometimes when you’re a young company and maybe you don’t have the cash to pay yourself, but that sacrifice is worth it. I think if you jumped all in, maybe it takes you a year, whereas if you don’t, maybe it takes you four years. And in those three years difference that a lot can happen. So I think just having that sacrifice and that mindset that it’s going to be successful, I’m going to do what it takes and sacrifice now is okay just to get to where you’re wanting to go.
Kevin Douglas (25:39):
I think that’s really powerful advice, especially for young people or students who are listening to this and just starting out, recognizing an obstacle in the now is going to happen, and that’s okay. You have to stay present and you have to work through it. You can’t get too much in your head
Ryan Evans (25:55):
And it’ll make you better. All of those hurdles when you’re young and the company is young and you don’t have anything you figure it out, you scrap and you dig deep and you stay up late and you lose some sleep over it, but you figure it out, and that makes you better and stronger in the long run, and it’ll make your business better. It’ll make you personally better but you’ve got to go through those. We said we’re not going to pay ourselves for three years, and that was not easy. I mean, I went from a really good corporate job to not making any money, and so I lived frugally, but that made me push harder and it made me appreciate it. It made me work more in the business, which means I learned more of everything. I did the brewing, I did the bartending, I did the cleanup.
(26:41):
If you’re not unclogging the toilet at one point, then you probably didn’t dig deep enough. But that all leads to knowing it. How can you hire people if you haven’t done the job yourself? So me brewing and learning it so deeply the first two years allows me to have a much better perspective on who I’m going to hire for that position long term. And I wouldn’t have been able to hire as good of a brewers as we have now had I not done the job myself. So I’m appreciative of that. I liked those years. I still like those years. I’d go through it again in an heartbeat, because I think that’s what lends to success. And you learn a lot about yourself, which is important.
Kevin Douglas (27:21):
Absolutely. So to round things out, I’ve got some rapid fire questions for you. One to two sentence answers for each. First question is, how do you define success?
Ryan Evans (27:33):
I think success is watching other people succeed. A lot of times as part of your organization, it’s not just about me, and it’s not just about my brand, but all the individuals that work for us, and they’re able to live their dream and it’s part of yours as well. And I think that’s success right there. And being able to continue that, it’s got to be sustainable. So not a flash in the pan. So if you can sustainably watch other people succeed in your organization, I think you’ve succeeded yourself.
Kevin Douglas (28:03):
Next question is, what is the best or worst piece of advice you’ve ever gotten?
Ryan Evans (28:10):
Oh, I think best would be make sure you’re in love with it. Make sure you’re passionate about it. I think some of the worst advice I ever get is always advice that’s so focused on the money side of things. If you make the right decisions, the money will be there if you stay on that path and work hard enough. Some people make decisions just based on the dollar, and I think that takes you off a course and makes you lose focus sometimes. So just be wary of those that come in and are just pitching percentages and decimal points and dollar bills. Their focus is literally that, and they’re not going to be there when the times are tough and you’re not hitting those goals, the first ones to leave. So just be wary of those guys. Be aware, soak it in, but don’t bank your decisions based solely on that.
Kevin Douglas (28:59):
And finally, and this one doesn’t have to be rapid fire. What’s on the horizon at Bruz Beers?
Ryan Evans (29:07):
More Belgium trips, obviously, because we enjoy ’em, and that’s kind of the spoiled part of the job expansion into another third location. We’d love to own the location and not lease it. So some more real estate there. And so we’re passionate about that location. Three or four we’re continuing our expansion on the education side. So we rolled out Sour Beers late last year, and it’s been a huge hit. So we’ve got another course that we’re looking at rolling out this year and really just connecting grassroots with our customer base. I mean, that’s our passion. And I personally have to get out of the office more and get up to the tasting room more because that’s our people. Those are that I learned more spending 20 minutes in the tasting room talking to people than I can in a whole day in the office. So you’ve got to get that stuff done. You’ve got to get the computer work done and the tax filings and all that stuff, but making it a point to spend more time conversing with our customers. That’s where the ideas come from. That’s where the passion gets fueled. And so staying connected on that side I’m looking forward to that.
Kevin Douglas (30:16):
Based on our conversation, it seems like that’s where so much of your success has come from. So maintaining that as you continue to grow, I think that will be huge. So I’m very excited to see what’s next. I’ll definitely be keeping my eyes and ears out for any Luke <laugh>, any new locations that might pop up. Open
Ryan Evans (30:33):
Up. Yeah, certainly. We need one by du, right? Oh, that
Kevin Douglas (30:36):
Would be amazing. So where can people connect with you and with Bruz Beers?
Ryan Evans (30:41):
Yeah, so you can email me directly, Ryan, that’s r y a n, Bruz beers.com. Obviously both locations. And if I know you’re coming to a location, I’ll rearrange my day to meet you and buy you a beer. I’m a good resource for any of the students out there that are struggling or want to bounce ideas off of or hit a hurdle or just want to talk and see what we do. That’s fine. Come up, spend a day brewing with us if you want. Or I’ll meet you over a beer and talk about your idea. That’s what it’s all about. It’s this network at DU that is the value of the degree that you’re going for. You know, can get a business degree anywhere. I handpicked du because I knew I would be surrounded by people that are going to be locally successful, and that’s where my focus is locally and it’s paid dividends. I’m still friends with all of my cohort class and they’re doing great business things in town. And I get a meet with these people and talk about their successes and learn from mine and theirs. And that network that DU creates is priceless, but you only get out of it what you put in, right? So you’ve got to reach out, you’ve got to connect with other people. And if you do that, you’ve got an endless resource here in town.
Kevin Douglas (31:58):
Yeah, I really think that’s the beauty of being here in this moment in history. Just so many startups and innovations happening in Denver, especially in your industry. So while young people and students are here in Denver, I wholeheartedly second that, connect with the people here. Don’t be afraid to reach out. And you will. You’ll lift each other up.
Ryan Evans (32:17):
Yeah, for sure.
Kevin Douglas (32:18):
Well, thanks so much for coming on the podcast, Ryan. We are so excited to see where you go. And we wish you the best over at Bruz Beers.
Ryan Evans (32:25):
Yeah, great job. Thank you so much. And cheers everyone.
Kevin Douglas (32:32):
The Entrepreneurship@DU podcast was recorded in Marjorie Reed Hall on the University of Denver campus. You can find us on Instagram at du entrepreneur, on Twitter, at underscore entrepreneur, and on Facebook at Entrepreneurship@DU entrepreneurship. At DU is part of the Daniels College of Business, which has its own podcast. By the way. Check out voices of experience available wherever you get your podcasts.