199 Rally Beer | How Alan Wood launched a Better For You Beer Company
Alan Wood, Founder of Rally Beer
Alan started a better-for-you Beer Brand that is available in stores and online.
Rally is a better for you Beer Company born out of a love of adventure. Just one look at their team and you can see that the team behind Rally truly practices what they preach!
Their beers include a non-alcoholic Dry Run Pale Ale, the Extra Mile Session IPA, and their TrailBlazer Golden Ale - all perfect for the outdoor enthusiast, weekend warrior or adventure nut.
In this episode, Alan and I chat about…
His entry into Home Brewing and whether or not he saw it as a business opportunity right away
How a 700km gravel ride actually inspired the idea for Rally
The first few steps Alan took to bring the brand to life
How Rally Beer got a listing in the Ontario Liquor Store almost right away!
The decision to focus on outdoor adventure and nature lovers, as their target market
How experiential marketing has played a huge role in finding and retaining customers
Their yeti cooler stunt that gained them a lot of brand awareness
And where the company is headed
To connect with Rally Beer, head to https://drinkrally.ca/ or connect on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/rallybeerco/
Other ways to connect…
https://open.spotify.com/episode/4gvW5A3vfHLX2oBRna3lq4?si=emUmDudUQDOygNFlL7M8Lg
https://ca.linkedin.com/in/alan-wood
https://www.instagram.com/allyrallybud/?hl=en
https://drinkrally.ca/pages/about
https://www.instagram.com/rallybeerco/
Want to Sneak A Peak at my Prep Notes for this interview?
Alan,
Welcome to the Visionary Life Podcast - I was first introduced to your beer when I was browsing a little LCBO near Barrie, Ontario and the branding really caught my attention.
After that, I showed up at a mountain bike race and there you were again - and from that point on your brand has been popping up everywhere it seems.
So before we get into what Rally is today, can you take us back to your beginnings in home brewing? What got you into it and did you ever envision this becoming a business?
The beginnings of Rally…
I know that adventure is something that you’re passionate about. And I believe you had the ambition to do the BT700 Gravel Ride on a whim, which is when the idea to “do a beer brand that spoke to outdoor adventure” - combining electrolytes and beer. Can you chat about this lightbulb moment
What were some of the first things you did to bring the brand to life?
Craft brewing in Ontario is quite popular - were you ever fearful of “saturation”
Talk about the decision to niche down to Endurance Athletes?
Were you worried that by niching down, you’d be losing a % of the market
What have been some of the best parts of having such a defined niche
Has it been easier to promote your business, because of this niche?
What were some of the most challenging aspects of bringing Rally to life?
Marketing / Promotion
What are some of the most impactful marketing efforts you’ve done to date, to gain more brand awareness
I know that experiential marketing plays a big role in getting your products out there
You recently got to do a sampling in the Patagonia Store in downtown Toronto - how does something like this get booked?
Why do you feel so strongly about XM?
You mentioned something about “stunts” being something you’ve done or are pursuing when it comes to XM - can you expand on that
Entrepreneurship
Do you ever stop to celebrate the milestones as an entrepreneur? What’s a recent milestone you’ve been proud of in business?
Rally Beer has signed the 1% For The Planet pledge and you're committed to building up a social impact arm - why is this important for you?
New products in the pipeline?
The Future…
Do you have a master plan or 10 year vision, or are you just going with the flow one day at a time
Where can people find your beers?
Click the image below to tune in to this weeks episode 🎙️
Image from https://drinkrally.ca/