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When you need an honest, sometimes brutally honest, opinion in the distilling industry you can always rely on Stephen Gould. Gould is one of the “Old Guard” of craft distilling, and his distillery, Golden Moon, is one of the most award-winning in the nation. Recently, Golden Moon has been in the news as it searches for outside investment. I asked Gould if he could give us some insight on where he is at as a distiller, and where he thinks the industry as a whole is headed.
Brian Christensen: You are no stranger to fundraising and securing capital investments for business. How is this time different?
Stephen Gould: Well, we haven’t really raised that much for Golden Moon outside of my and my wife’s personal investment in the company. I have raised funds for other companies over the years though.
My wife and I currently own 96% of the equity in Golden Moon Distillery. At this point we need a significant capital infusion to allow Golden Moon to continue to reach its full potential. The fundamentals of the company and business plan are solid, the products are mature and we have a ton of awards and accolades as well. The company just needs the resources to scale. Unfortunately right now investment capital is extremely hard to come by.
Christensen: What would be your best-case scenario for Golden Moon?
Gould: Ideally, I’d like someone to come in as an equity partner or buyer, taking part or all of the equity, and providing the company the resources it needs to continue to grow while allowing the current team to continue to operate the company. There would need to be some changes, of course, including a far more robust sales and marketing team. Having said that we have a world-class production facility with what I feel is better infrastructure and more scalability and flexibility than the vast majority of other small and medium sized distilleries in the US today. That coupled with the extensive IP that Golden Moon has developed (formulas, labels, trademarks, established brands, etc.) makes this an ideal opportunity for someone to enter the industry in a variety of ways …
Christensen: I think it’s fair to say you are one of the original craft distillers in our industry. What should the next generation of distillers and brand owners know about the business of distilling today?
Gould: I’ve been around the industry off and on since 1991 or so, so I’ve seen a lot of changes, and I’ve operated Golden Moon Distillery since 2008. One thing many people tend to forget is that, no matter how cool running a distillery sounds, it’s still a business. That means that as a business owner you need a solid business plan and the resources to execute. Even with that external factors can change everything, so you also need to be flexible. The other thing is that the regulatory and competitive environments for distilled spirits producers are extremely difficult right now. Even with lots of money to spend, building a distillery and a successful brand or brands is not easy … and it’s not for the faint of heart.