Episode at a glance: Shawn Hopman, founder of Ya-Sure Kombucha in Brainerd, Minnesota, shares how a search for a healthier gas station drink grew into a commercial kombucha brewery, a non-alcoholic taproom, and a live music venue. He covers going commercial days before COVID, being early to the non-alcoholic trend, self-distribution, and putting a dollar value on your time. The big takeaway: if you offer the same experience as everyone else, find what makes you different.
Listen to Episode 088 of Behind the Brand
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Episode chapters
- 00:00 Welcome to Behind the Brand
- 02:06 From Gas Station Soda to Kombucha
- 04:58 Going Commercial Days Before COVID
- 06:41 Building a Non-Alcoholic Taproom
- 08:27 Early to the Non-Alcoholic Wave
- 10:08 Inside the James Cullen Room
- 14:08 Explaining Kombucha to First-Timers
- 16:42 Flavors, Names, and Real Fruit
- 19:28 A Day Slinging Kombucha
- 21:57 Why Shawn Stays the Salesperson
- 22:31 Self-Distribution vs. Distributors
- 25:10 Putting a Dollar Value on Your Time
- 26:53 Cannonballing Into the Deep End
- 30:07 Rapid Fire and Where to Find Ya-Sure
Picture a guy on the road, covering four states for work. Every gas station stop ends the same way: a 44-ounce soda, a candy bar, maybe a bag of chips. After enough miles, he decided he needed a healthier option.
A friend handed him a SCOBY, and the rest is (fermented) history. On this episode of Behind the Brand, we sat down with Shawn Hopman, founder of Ya-Sure Kombucha in Brainerd, Minnesota. He walked us through going commercial right as COVID hit, building a non-alcoholic taproom, and adding a live music venue when the taproom alone wasn’t enough.
Here’s what he taught us about being early and knowing what your time is worth.
How did Shawn Hopman start Ya-Sure Kombucha?
Shawn started Ya-Sure Kombucha by brewing it at home, one gallon at a time, until the hobby got out of hand. “One gallon turned to two gallons turned to five gallons; next thing I know I’m making 20 gallons a week in my basement,” he said. “I’m like, I have a problem.”
Friends kept telling him to start a business. His day job helped: as a beverage gas salesman, his customers were the breweries that might pour his product. When he floated the idea, they wanted it on tap as a non-alcoholic option.
So he skipped the farmers market side hustle and went commercial.
Going Commercial Three Days Before COVID
Shawn got his commercial license three days before the first COVID shutdown in 2020. A friend at Jack Pine Brewery let him squeeze his equipment in between theirs for the summer.
Demand outran the space fast. “Every drop that I brewed was already sold before I brewed it,” he told us. He closed on a building in downtown Brainerd the day before Thanksgiving of 2020. When his old employer restructured and eliminated his job, the decision made itself.
Why wasn't a non-alcoholic taproom enough?
A non-alcoholic taproom wasn’t enough because it offered the same experience as every other taproom in town. The building was an old sports bar with a taproom already built in, so Shawn opened it and worked hard to nail the non-alcoholic brewery feel. He did. Then he noticed the problem.
“I wasn’t offering any kind of different experience,” he said. Plenty of those breweries also poured his kombucha, so customers had no special reason to visit.
Here’s the lesson for any business: if you look like everyone else, people have no reason to choose you.
Was Ya-Sure Kombucha too early to the non-alcoholic trend?
Yes, and Shawn knew it going in. When he started, kombucha was the fastest growing beverage segment in the world, but trends tend to start on the coasts and work toward the middle. “We’re dead in the middle,” he said.
Our hosts have seen non-alcoholic brands pick up real steam with Moxie’s beverage clients over the past year. Being first means you spend time teaching the market before it is ready to buy.
What is the James Cullen Room in Brainerd?
The James Cullen Room is Ya-Sure Kombucha’s live music venue, tucked in the back of the building. Bands sometimes assume they’re playing a corner of the taproom. “No, go to the back,” Shawn tells them. “You’re going to get transported to a whole other dimension.” Think First Avenue style, with the lights down, smoke, and stage lighting.
Shawn is a musician who has mentored kids in music for 30 years, and he was tired of cover bands getting the gigs. Naysayers told him nobody in Brainerd was writing music. His take: “They’re all in their basements waiting for a stage to play on because nobody will hire them.”
The shows run DIY. “I’ll provide the room. I’ll provide the sound, the lighting. You fill it,” he said.
How do you explain kombucha to someone who has never tried it?
Shawn explains the process. People hear “fermented” and assume alcohol, but during fermentation the probiotics feed on the alcohol, so the drink naturally de-alcoholizes. Store-bought kombucha also tends to taste vinegary, so he brews his to be approachable.
The taproom doubles as a daily focus group. Shawn watches which samples people love, which is how flavors like We’re Rooting For You (beets, parsnips, radishes, and carrots) and the spicy Son of a Booch came to be. The name Ya-Sure is a nod to “ya sure, you betcha.”
Real fruit is non-negotiable. He skips juices and purees and buys locally when he can, including aronia berries from a farm in Cold Spring and produce from a farm in Pequot Lakes.
Why does Ya-Sure Kombucha self-distribute?
Ya-Sure Kombucha self-distributes because Shawn wants control of his margins and his product. Kombucha is alive, and if it warms up it starts fermenting again, over-carbonates, and can burst in the bottle. His business stays on the hook until the product is consumed.
He also plans to stay the salesperson. “Nobody knows my product better than I do,” he said. His sales philosophy comes from his last job: “I don’t go after the sale. I go after the loyalty.”
How do you put a dollar value on your time?
You put a dollar value on your time by asking what each task pulls you away from. Shawn uses the Booch Bus, his event truck with 10 taps, as the example. If a day in the truck earns him $15 an hour, it’s not worth his time. If it earns $100, it probably is.
His mindset is shifting on hiring too. Running a household debt-free is different from running a business. “I can’t wait till I can afford to hire somebody” became “I can’t afford not to hire somebody.”
Advice for Turning a Hobby Into a Business
Shawn’s biggest regret is not starting sooner. His advice: just do it, and know it isn’t for the faint of heart. A side hustle is “another 60-hour-a-week job,” so going all in often beats splitting your energy.
He described starting the business as cannonballing into the deep end. “It’s the most stressful thing I have ever done in my life,” he said, “but also by far the most rewarding.”
Tune In and Get Inspired
If you’ve ever wondered whether your hobby could pay the bills, or whether your business looks a little too much like the one down the street, Shawn’s story is worth a listen.
Grab a kombucha (Ya-Sure, ideally) and hit play. You might leave with a new idea or two for your own business.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Shawn Hopman?
Shawn Hopman is the founder of Ya-Sure Kombucha, a commercial kombucha brewery and taproom in downtown Brainerd, Minnesota. Before starting Ya-Sure Kombucha, Shawn Hopman was a regional beverage gas salesman who covered four states.
Where can I buy Ya-Sure Kombucha?
Shawn Hopman says the Ya-Sure Kombucha website, yasurekombucha.com, is the best place to check where it is sold, since he keeps adding new customers. In St. Cloud you can find Ya-Sure Kombucha at Good Earth and District Coffee, and in St. Joseph at Obbink Distilling and the Minnesota Main Street Market.
Does Ya-Sure Kombucha contain alcohol?
Shawn Hopman explains that fermentation does produce alcohol, but the probiotics feed on it, so kombucha naturally de-alcoholizes. Ya-Sure Kombucha runs its Brainerd taproom as a non-alcoholic version of a brewery taproom.
What is the James Cullen Room?
The James Cullen Room is the live music venue in the back of the Ya-Sure Kombucha building in Brainerd, built around original music instead of cover bands. Shawn Hopman provides the room, sound, and lighting, and local bands and promoters book and fill the shows.
