Matthew Lisowski

Ledger

Chapter 02 · 2015-2019

Institutional Scale

Fish Brewing Company (later Fish Beverage Company), Olympia, WA

President and Chief Operating Officer

  • $150M+ revenue under management
  • ~500 employees at peak
  • 25-year company
  • Regulation D offering: ~$2.5M raised
  • Debenture issuances and large credit facilities
  • Wholesale revenue $42M to $56M
  • More than a dozen retail locations
  • Company divested (exit)

Industry

  • Food, Beverage and CPG

Functions

  • Capital and Transactions
  • Finance and Accounting
  • Operations and Supply Chain
  • Revenue and Channels
  • Regulatory and Government Affairs
  • People and Organization

Blueprint

Portfolio map: acquired brands, grain-to-glass and grape-to-glass production, co-packing and private label lines

Links in the chain we ran

Grow and source Make Distribute Sell Serve Build
Matthew with pallets of finished product
01Matthew with pallets of finished product
Packaging line
02Packaging line
Palletized cases ready for distribution
03Palletized cases ready for distribution
Certified organic line
04Certified organic line
Spirits portfolio
05Spirits portfolio
Cider portfolio
06Cider portfolio
Barrel-room event
07Barrel-room event

Build notes

  1. Grain to glass and grape to glass, including farming and agriculture.
  2. Expanded lines into organic and gluten-free.
  3. Heavy co-packing, contract manufacturing, and private label, including international tenders.
  4. Ran multiple alcohol production types under one roof when others said it could not be done.
  5. Part of the group that changed Washington law so mobile beer trucks could serve private events as an extension of a taproom.
  6. Negotiated national retail distribution agreements: $30M revenue lift post-merger, plus $5M after sales team expansion.
  7. Vertically integrated: our own distributor, direct sales to retailers, and our own bars and restaurants.

Roadblocks cleared

Multiple alcohol production types could not share one facility.

ClearedStructured licensing and operations to run them together.

Washington law did not allow beer trucks at private events.

ClearedPart of the group that changed the law, making mobile service an extension of the taproom. It became the main fundraising vehicle for Friends of St. Augustine.

International

  • China
  • Japan
  • Thailand
  • England
  • Mexico
  • Canada
  • Chile
  • Certified Public Accountant
  • MBA, Finance
  • Lean Six Sigma Black Belt