Utah-based craft spirits maker Dented Brick Distillery was founded by Marc Christensen in mid-2016. Dented Brick’s Craft spirits brands are sold in 10 states. It operates a production facility in the South Salt Lake neighborhood of Salt Lake City.
After successfully introducing a new product line in 2019, a label for Golf Hall of Fame Legend Jan Stephenson, Dented Brick enters 2020 initiating a major capital raise to build production and brand awareness.
In addition to the conventional capital raise that is open to accredited investors, Dented Brick has opened a second funding opportunity that allows anyone from the community to become an investor. This opportunity is implemented by WeFunder, the largest of the Regulation Crowdfunding portals that provide investment opportunities to ordinary people – a result of the passage of the 2012 JOBS Act.
Through Regulation Crowdfunding activities, anyone can become an early investor in a company they love. Unlike the earlier generation of crowdfunding campaigns that sought purely donations, the Dented Brick WeFunder campaign is an investment opportunity that gives participants partial ownership in the company in exchange for their contribution, and with it the possibility of earning a return on that investment.
“Recognizing how much community support we have in Utah, we wanted to make sure our community could get involved as investors alongside the larger investors we’re also attracting. By partnering with WeFunder we’re giving the ordinary folks that love our products a chance to become part owners of the company with us.” said Marc Christensen, the company’s CEO.
Dented Brick’s original product lines are experiencing success across the United States. The Dented Brick Premium Craft Well Brands are available through Total Wine, in addition to Walmart, and are sold in all liquor stores in Utah, with more than 600 on premise accounts. Their Premium line is also in the Utah State liquor system and is selling well.
“Dented Brick plans to make good use of its alliance with Total Wine and Walmart, making sure the marketing and promotion budgets are in place to move as much product of these retail shelves as possible,” according to Marc Christensen, the company’s CEO. “Working with big-box retailers represents a significant opportunity for growth, as it positions us with a distribution channel that was previously unavailable to Dented Brick.”
As of Dec. 31, 2019, the company has raised $2.1 million toward a targeted capital raise of $5 million. The raise includes a $2 million convertible note secured by real estate assets and FF&E. The investments will help the company increase its marketing and sales efforts in the 10 states where its Craft spirits are being sold, with a particular emphasis on states where its box store retail partners are located.
“We are going to dig deep and scale sales in our current markets, Florida being our largest, Washington and Nevada the next with huge retail markets for Craft spirits,” Christensen said. In April 2016, Dented Brick opened its 14,000 square foot production facility in Utah. The new investments will help the company increase its production in 2020 and to pivot into high margin products like aged whiskey.