Around the time NC’s craft beer started to “explode” in 2008, the NC Craft Brewers Guild was created as a resource to support the state’s brewers and their businesses. It began as a volunteer-run organization, then hired its first Executive Director in 2014. Currently, there are around 420 breweries in the state, and Executive Director Lisa Parker said she sees growth in that number each quarter. 

The Guild focuses on three pillars of industry support — Protect, Prepare, and Promote:

Protect — The Guild employs two government affairs lobbyists and their general counsel attorney in order to take a proactive approach on legislative and regulatory aspects of the industry, helping to ensure NC continues to offer a healthy business environment for craft beer.

Prepare — A variety of industry education, continuing education, and workshops are available for anyone in the NC beer industry. The Guild strives to be wholistic in the education provided, focusing on topics ranging from general leadership and business management to events planning, taproom management, and brewing skills.

Promote — In helping to ensure craft beer brands are visible, the Guild aims to keep NC beer at the forefront of consumers’ minds by hosting annual events and competitions, broadening industry networks, and working with economic development and chambers of commerce to contribute to the craft beer ecosystem across the state. 

The Guild participates in two months of dedicated consumer activation to promote the specialness and uniqueness of NC’s craft beer. Hop Into Spring is a campaign encouraging people to explore local breweries throughout the month of April, which Parker said also encourages tourism. 

October was proclaimed NC Beer Month by Governor Roy Cooper in 2023, and during the month, many towns, taprooms, and breweries hosted special events in honor of the proclamation. It’s also the month in which the Guild participates in the annual NC State Fair, hosting the Public House beer garden, which is the Guild’s largest fundraising event.

“There are a lot of people moving to North Carolina, and these events are a way to introduce them to the variety of craft beers in the state,” Parker said. “We check IDs at the Public House, and last year we saw people from 42 different states as well as a couple of other countries. That event helped them to get to know some local beers.”

A variety of networking opportunities are available at the Guild’s events, offering members opportunities to come together and connect with colleagues. There are networking times scheduled into each education event, and many socials are scheduled around activities like golf tournaments and beer dinners. 

The largest of NC Craft Brewers Guild’s events is the annual North Carolina Craft Brewers Conference, which is also the largest brewery industry conference in the Southeast. Spanning three days, the conference offers six educational tracks with topics including all aspects of the brewing business, a trade expo with about 100 vendors from across the country, sponsored evening socials, the annual member meeting, and the industry awards banquet.

The Guild offers additional resources to its members, including a suite of discounted human resources benefits like low-cost workers’ compensation insurance; health, vision, and dental insurances; and an employee assistance program. Their newsletter keeps members abreast of industry happenings and lays out legal advisories in layman’s terms, and their Facebook page serves as a hub for member connections. Complimentary cold shipping to national and world beer competitions is included in membership as well.

Interested businesses can give and receive support, and, according to Parker, membership is in support of the industry as a whole. She said connections to the community help to grow brewers’ businesses, and when breweries are successful, they can become economic drivers which help boost the revitalization of entire communities.

“There is a communal spirit in the North Carolina craft brewing industry, which I believe contributes to the creation of our great beer.” Parker said. “Additionally, as an agricultural state, our brewers have the unique opportunity to use local ingredients in the beer they produce. Between this and the incredible talent and innovation demonstrated by our NC brewers, North Carolina truly stands out as an exceptional craft beer state - the State of Southern Beer!"