#PETOSKEY GASLIGHT DISTRICT HOW TO#

Maple Moon is a wonderful addition to the Petoskey area. The Thriving Petoskey Committee invited Emily to explain how the brewery exemplifies a “thriving” business and how its new initiative builds on conscious business practices.Located on 80 beautiful acres in Petoskey, Michigan, Maple Moon Sugarbush and Winery offers a little slice of heaven for its visitors. Emily Hengstebeck is the Harbinger of Beer for Beards Brewery. Not every business needs to start a new program like we did or blaze a new trail, but we hope we can set an example for other businesses to start thriving, too.

But it also taught us that change starts in communities like ours, and everyone has a part to play. The pandemic shook our little microcosm of the world in serious ways. We are so ready to dive into this new initiative, and we want everyone to share in our victories. It wasn’t without its challenges, but I can personally see a new, growing excitement within our team that’s giving us the positive energy to move forward. We wanted to come out of the pandemic with better examples, leaders and team members. It means celebrating our own successes, but also reaching out to help with the success of others. But what makes Beards different is we took a hard look at what 'surviving' really meant and decided to do something to turn it into “thriving” mode.Ī thriving business is a business planning ahead, looking for new opportunities and partnerships that is not merely content, but buzzing with enthusiasm for a chance to help build an exciting, wonderful future. There are a lot of people who want to do good things for and with this community.Īll of the energy and intentionality we have put into building this program has been matched by our employees and other organizations coming to us - it’s amazing!Įveryone, especially in the service and hospitality industry, has had it tough. We hope to use this new enthusiasm to set us up for another 10 years of success and adventure.Īn unexpected benefit is we’ve had so many awesome individuals and organizations reach out, wanting to learn more and work with us. Team members are enthusiastic about partnering with nonprofits and having a hand in making change, and that means they fully show up. Our employee involvement and retention is high - at its core, Team Beards has never been stronger.

#PETOSKEY GASLIGHT DISTRICT HOW TO#

Engaging staff in community outreach has brought out their strength and passion, and they’ve learned how to work better as a team. Caring for community means caring for those under your own roof first. The last thing we want is to lose track of our partners or leave them hanging - we want them to continue to grow.Ī huge motivation for this program was to encourage team-building. At the Nehemiah Project, for example, Team Beards is committed to delivering meals once a month for the rest of 2022. We keep in close contact, checking back in on projects and encouraging our employees to stay involved. Anyone can give back just by coming in and ordering a beer! A little can go a long way.Īnd these partnerships don’t end when we close out the quarter, either. The more organizations and businesses know about each other, the better they can work together.Įvery quarter, we designate one of our draft beers as the “Community Giving Tap.” Proceeds from that beer’s sales go directly back to our partnering organizations. We also invite our quarterly partners to our “open brew” days and tours at our production facility. In practice, this looks like behind-the-scenes glimpses of our staff volunteer days, interviews with our nonprofit partners, educational social media posts about our shared missions, and invitations to our customers to join the cause. We also believe it should be an exchange: a win-win, amplifying their work as well as ours. So, we approached the Nehemiah Project & Habitat For Humanity, andasked if we could work on a project directly with their staff and volunteers.Ī crucial piece of a community partnership is being transparent in all we do. Being the middle of winter, quarter one is especially hard on our homeless populations. We also consider the needs of the season.

Petoskey gaslight district