Local Brewing Co. is born

Almost two years ago, five friends teamed up and decided to make a beer company. What we lacked in experience we more than made up for in youthful exuberance and a desire to learn. We chose a name that was catchy and embodied a playfulness that suited our new-kids on the block attitude. A Local Beer was born.

In the last twenty months, a lot has happened for A Local Beer. We have released three core range beers, participated in our first beer festival, had our products sold in seven Australian States and Territories and released three 'Fruits of our Labour' collaboration brews with Burnley Brewing that highlight food wastage and sustainability. We have received media coverage across the country and have proudly provided over seventeen thousand meals to those in need through our charity partner SecondBite. We are no longer the naive, new kids on the block and as our achievements and success continue to grow so too did a feeling amongst us that the professional outfit we had become no longer matched the casual name we had given ourselves. We also realised that the wordplay of our name that we originally thought was a strength in our of our brand had practical drawbacks. For example,

“Hi I'm Hugo from A Local Beer”

“...Cool which local Beer?”

or

"Do you have any Local Beers?"

"Yeah we've got many local breweries stocked here."

We were losing track of the number of times this conversation would arise and instead of it being a humorous conversation starter we had intended, it felt like it was getting in the way of setting a professional first impression.

The pause of COVID to our business gave us the opportunity to take a step back and consider the business from a bird's eye view and our long term goals. We made a firm commitment to keep forging a path with our existing vision and values but believed this could be better achieved with a new banner to rally under.

A Local Beer is no more.

We are Local Brewing Co.

Local Brewing Co. a name that better represents the company we have evolved into and where we are heading. We believe the name better encapsulates the adept and confident organisation we have become. We are no longer a few mates who made a beer (or three), we are an organisation that strives for excellence in our products and positively impact our community. A Local Beer was the name for us to swim in the shallows, but Local Brewing Co. is the name for a business well and truly playing in the deep end.

Along with the name change we committed to updating our branding and design to best convey what our new name represented. To shape this rebrand we needed help and so enlisted the services of graphic designer and illustrator Corey Harbrow. Corey came with enthusiasm and many years of experience within the craft beer community and was the perfect choice to redesign our cans and branding.

Artist Oliver Toohey had designed our original logo and had done a fantastic job incorporating our name within a circular tap system and a pint glass (the literal elements of what we were doing and what we stood for). Led by Corey, our new logo showcases ‘local’ as the focus of our branding. The ‘Local’ in our logo is strong bold, and curves outward to make room for ‘Brewing Co.’ to nestle neatly underneath in the negative space created. The logo is sleek, minimal, and impactful. It proudly represents who we are, the passion we have to positively impact our local community and will proudly be stamped on everything we do.

We have received a lot of love for our original can designs. The bright, eye-catching and unique artwork on the labels was a creative partnership with local artists POUR AF, an art collective based in inner Melbourne. Artists Adam and Hugo create incredible acrylic canvases that we were all drawn to and so we commissioned three physical canvas works for our cans that would showcase the beer and Melbourne’s vibrant art culture. There was so much we loved about this artwork that we didn't want to lose. Corey did an amazing job in stylising these original works, keeping the elements that we loved about our originals but adapting and modernising them to suit our new direction.

Local Brewing Co. and our new branding is an exciting future for us. While we may have a different name, our focus is still on producing the highest quality independent craft beer and making a positive impact in our community. We can't wait to share more with you over the coming days, weeks and beyond.⠀

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Here's to the next exciting chapter, we can't wait to have you part of it.

Cheers.