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Jun 5, 2016 · 18m · top-founders

He Sells Craft Beer On Demand, $250k in 2015, $2m in 2016, EP 259: Charlie Mulligan

Nathan Latka · 8m spoken Charlie Mulligan · 8m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

In episode 259 of The Top podcast, host Nathan Latka interviews Charlie Mulligan, co-founder of Brewpublik, to explore how his startup leverages algorithmic curation, B2B pre-selling, and lean unit economics to disrupt the $25 billion craft beer delivery industry.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 50.6% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 3.6 Guest teaching 2.4 Guest disagreement 1.6 Nathan pushing back 2.4
05100:0010:001:22–3:46 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Introducing Charlie Mulligan and Brewpublik's Business Model Latka immediately drills into Brewpublik's unit economics by calculating the per-bottle cost from a standard case price. Mulligan collaboratively explains their matching algorithm and subscription options.3:46–6:27 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Brewpublik's Revenue, Margins, and Initial Geographic Expansion Latka performs on-the-fly arithmetic to calculate bottle volume and sharpens Mulligan's accounting terminology between gross and net margin.6:27–9:09 · Nathan as informed peer 3/10 Market Selection Strategy and B2B Pre-Selling Approach Mulligan educates Latka on their counterintuitive expansion framework, explaining why saturated craft beer hubs like Portland are poorer direct-to-consumer targets than undersupplied markets like Los Angeles.9:09–13:02 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Capital Fundraising, Company Valuation, and Exit Strategy Latka directly calls bluff on Mulligan's $100M exit valuation target, arguing Mulligan would take a $5M buyout immediately. Mulligan rejects Latka's framing and stands firm on his company's upside potential.13:02–17:40 · Nathan as informed peer 2/10 Sponsor Break: FreshBooks Accounting and HostGator Hosting The segment includes sponsor ad reads followed by standard, friendly 'Famous Five' rapid-fire questions.1:22–3:46 · Guest teaching 2/10 Introducing Charlie Mulligan and Brewpublik's Business Model Latka immediately drills into Brewpublik's unit economics by calculating the per-bottle cost from a standard case price. Mulligan collaboratively explains their matching algorithm and subscription options.3:46–6:27 · Guest teaching 1/10 Brewpublik's Revenue, Margins, and Initial Geographic Expansion Latka performs on-the-fly arithmetic to calculate bottle volume and sharpens Mulligan's accounting terminology between gross and net margin.6:27–9:09 · Guest teaching 6/10 Market Selection Strategy and B2B Pre-Selling Approach Mulligan educates Latka on their counterintuitive expansion framework, explaining why saturated craft beer hubs like Portland are poorer direct-to-consumer targets than undersupplied markets like Los Angeles.9:09–13:02 · Guest teaching 2/10 Capital Fundraising, Company Valuation, and Exit Strategy Latka directly calls bluff on Mulligan's $100M exit valuation target, arguing Mulligan would take a $5M buyout immediately. Mulligan rejects Latka's framing and stands firm on his company's upside potential.13:02–17:40 · Guest teaching 1/10 Sponsor Break: FreshBooks Accounting and HostGator Hosting The segment includes sponsor ad reads followed by standard, friendly 'Famous Five' rapid-fire questions.1:22–3:46 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Introducing Charlie Mulligan and Brewpublik's Business Model Latka immediately drills into Brewpublik's unit economics by calculating the per-bottle cost from a standard case price. Mulligan collaboratively explains their matching algorithm and subscription options.3:46–6:27 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Brewpublik's Revenue, Margins, and Initial Geographic Expansion Latka performs on-the-fly arithmetic to calculate bottle volume and sharpens Mulligan's accounting terminology between gross and net margin.6:27–9:09 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Market Selection Strategy and B2B Pre-Selling Approach Mulligan educates Latka on their counterintuitive expansion framework, explaining why saturated craft beer hubs like Portland are poorer direct-to-consumer targets than undersupplied markets like Los Angeles.9:09–13:02 · Guest disagreement 4/10 Capital Fundraising, Company Valuation, and Exit Strategy Latka directly calls bluff on Mulligan's $100M exit valuation target, arguing Mulligan would take a $5M buyout immediately. Mulligan rejects Latka's framing and stands firm on his company's upside potential.13:02–17:40 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Sponsor Break: FreshBooks Accounting and HostGator Hosting The segment includes sponsor ad reads followed by standard, friendly 'Famous Five' rapid-fire questions.1:22–3:46 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 Introducing Charlie Mulligan and Brewpublik's Business Model Latka immediately drills into Brewpublik's unit economics by calculating the per-bottle cost from a standard case price. Mulligan collaboratively explains their matching algorithm and subscription options.3:46–6:27 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Brewpublik's Revenue, Margins, and Initial Geographic Expansion Latka performs on-the-fly arithmetic to calculate bottle volume and sharpens Mulligan's accounting terminology between gross and net margin.6:27–9:09 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Market Selection Strategy and B2B Pre-Selling Approach Mulligan educates Latka on their counterintuitive expansion framework, explaining why saturated craft beer hubs like Portland are poorer direct-to-consumer targets than undersupplied markets like Los Angeles.9:09–13:02 · Nathan pushing back 6/10 Capital Fundraising, Company Valuation, and Exit Strategy Latka directly calls bluff on Mulligan's $100M exit valuation target, arguing Mulligan would take a $5M buyout immediately. Mulligan rejects Latka's framing and stands firm on his company's upside potential.13:02–17:40 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 Sponsor Break: FreshBooks Accounting and HostGator Hosting The segment includes sponsor ad reads followed by standard, friendly 'Famous Five' rapid-fire questions.

speaking balance: gold is Nathan, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Nathan 69.6% · guest 30.4%0:00 · Nathan 69.6% · guest 30.4%3:00 · Nathan 42.2% · guest 57.8%3:00 · Nathan 42.2% · guest 57.8%6:00 · Nathan 14.9% · guest 85.1%6:00 · Nathan 14.9% · guest 85.1%9:00 · Nathan 27.2% · guest 72.8%9:00 · Nathan 27.2% · guest 72.8%12:00 · Nathan 76.1% · guest 23.9%12:00 · Nathan 76.1% · guest 23.9%15:00 · Nathan 59.5% · guest 40.5%15:00 · Nathan 59.5% · guest 40.5%18:00 · Nathan 100% · guest 0%18:00 · Nathan 100% · guest 0%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 12:05 Mulligan rejects Latka's lowball acquisition hypothetical

Mulligan forcefully rejects Latka's assertion that he would sell the business on the spot for $5M, insisting the company is worth far more.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 11:49 Latka challenges the guest's $100M exit expectation

Latka directly expresses disbelief regarding Mulligan's $100M target, presenting a sharp hypothetical buyout offer to test the founder's resolve.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 7:49 Mulligan details why craft beer capitals are worse launch markets

Mulligan explains the underlying dynamics of craft beer distribution, showing why high brewery density per capita hurts DTC demand rather than helping it.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 4:29 Latka parses gross vs net margins and estimates profit

Latka demonstrates financial literacy by cleaning up the guest's margin definitions and instantly estimating annual bottom-line cash flow.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Introducing Charlie Mulligan and Brewpublik's Business Model 4211 Latka immediately drills into Brewpublik's unit economics by calculating the per-bottle cost from a standard case price. Mulligan collaboratively explains their matching algorithm and subscription options.
Brewpublik's Revenue, Margins, and Initial Geographic Expansion 5112 Latka performs on-the-fly arithmetic to calculate bottle volume and sharpens Mulligan's accounting terminology between gross and net margin.
Market Selection Strategy and B2B Pre-Selling Approach 3612 Mulligan educates Latka on their counterintuitive expansion framework, explaining why saturated craft beer hubs like Portland are poorer direct-to-consumer targets than undersupplied markets like Los Angeles.
Capital Fundraising, Company Valuation, and Exit Strategy 4246 Latka directly calls bluff on Mulligan's $100M exit valuation target, arguing Mulligan would take a $5M buyout immediately. Mulligan rejects Latka's framing and stands firm on his company's upside potential.
Sponsor Break: FreshBooks Accounting and HostGator Hosting 2111 The segment includes sponsor ad reads followed by standard, friendly 'Famous Five' rapid-fire questions.

Statements from this episode (11)

Assertion Not checkable as stated
Brewpublik curates from over 3,000 global craft beers
“So we've got an algorithm that selects from over 3000 different types of craft beer from all over the world.”
Charlie Mulligan Jun 5, 2016 ▶ 1:57
Assertion Partly supported
Brewpublik charges $75 for a delivered case of 24 premium beers
“So that's going to run you for a case of beer, 75 bucks. That includes delivery and the beer and it's all premium.”
Charlie Mulligan Jun 5, 2016 ▶ 2:48
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Brewpublik generated $275,000 in top-line revenue in 2015
“So we did 275,000 in 2015.”
Charlie Mulligan Jun 5, 2016 ▶ 3:58
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Brewpublik maintains 35% to 40% margins post-delivery
“We typically make about 50% margin before delivery, and then after delivery it's between 35 and 40%.”
Charlie Mulligan Jun 5, 2016 ▶ 4:30
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Brewpublik projects up to $2M in total revenue for 2016
“We'll do between a million and a million, well, a 1,000,002. I would say hopefully between a million and a half and two.”
Charlie Mulligan Jun 5, 2016 ▶ 5:51
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Mulligan claims there are no competitors in beer catering
“There's really no competitors playing in, and, you know, kind of the beer catering space.”
Charlie Mulligan Jun 5, 2016 ▶ 6:51
Disclosure
B2B service makes new markets cash flow positive within three months
“It's an easy way for us to get operation operating cashflow positive in a market very, very quickly, like within three months or less.”
Charlie Mulligan Jun 5, 2016 ▶ 7:01
Insight
Craft beer demand is proportional across markets, but local options vary
“Our premise is that there is within a range kind of the same proportional amount of craft beer drinkers in every market, and, but they, in LA, they're starved for options.”
Charlie Mulligan Jun 5, 2016 ▶ 8:15
Assertion Supported
Brewpublik raised a $500,000 seed round after bootstrapping for six months
“We bootstrap for the first six months of the business. Then we've had a kind of an age will seed round. We've raised a total of half a million in the last six months.”
Charlie Mulligan Jun 5, 2016 ▶ 9:13
Assertion Partly supported
Craft beer market grew from $7B to $25B over ten years
“But what I saw is a twenty five billion dollar market that just 10 years ago was only seven billion.”
Charlie Mulligan Jun 5, 2016 ▶ 10:14
Prediction Didn’t hold up
Brewpublik plans to operate in 10 markets by late 2016
“We'll be in at least 10 markets by the end of 2016, so hopefully coming to a market near you.”
Charlie Mulligan Jun 5, 2016 ▶ 12:57
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