A SCOTTISH brewery that started as a home-brewing project in its co-founder’s spare bedroom has found success and is now shipping internationally.
Vault City, based in Edinburgh, was launched in a bid to modernise traditional brewing styles with its own take on fruited sours beers.
Co-founder Steven Smith-Hay, who describes himself as an “obsessed homebrewer”, had experimented with various beers while working in IT.
After some encouragement from his friends and family, he took the plunge to set up Vault City in 2018.
He said: “I spotted an opportunity to carve a niche in the craft beer industry, but I needed guidance to make it happen.
“I’m really proud to say that four in every five sour beers sold in the UK comes from Vault City.”
He cited the support he received from Business Gateway – which offers professional resources and support to anyone starting a business – as being crucial to his success.
Having never run a business before, Smith-Hay approached Business Gateway in search of guidance to develop the skills to turn his vision into a reality.
It is delivered by local authorities throughout Scotland and is funded by the Scottish Government and Digital Scotland.
Smith-Hay’s adviser helped him to get his business online and signposted a £100,000 piece of grant funding from Scottish Enterprise which went towards the purchase of some crucial equipment.
Within five years of launching, the brewer has landed deals with some of the country’s biggest retailers including Tesco, Morrison’s, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose.
The team has now grown to include almost 30 people and exports to over 20 countries globally, including Singapore, Sweden and Thailand.
Business Gateway adviser Lindsey Sibbald said: “Over the years, we have been able to support Vault City with a range of Business Gateway’s services.
“It has been fantastic to watch the business’ stratospheric growth since launching, which is testament to Steven and the team’s dedication.
“I look forward to watching them continue to grow and to find out what flavour is next on the cards.”
