We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tomme Arthur a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Tomme, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Are you happier as a business owner? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job?

We founded our business in the fall of 2005 and opened our doors in May of 2006. 17 years later running a business means many things. There are never dull days, there are of course many highs and ridiculous lows. I haven’t truly had a “Normal Job” in a very long time. Since 1996 I have been a brewer/ brewery owner here in San Diego and it’s been magical. I work my butt off every day because I am blessed to have a job that affords me creative opportunities, incredible friends and an opportunity to travel and see the world through the lenses of suds filled glassware. It’s not something I ever want to give up.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a 4th generation native San Diegan. I love calling this place my home. Married with two incredible daughters (17 and 11) who will be amazing contributors to society very soon. I found my passion for beer while I attended Northern Arizona University acquiring my BA in English. Upon moving back to San Diego, I started brewing in 1996 and have never looked back.

In the 27 years I have been a brewer, I have accomplished so many amazing things. Professionally I have attained some very lofty goals and have been recognized for my contributions to the San Diego Brewing Community as well as our community of brewers across the United States and Internationally. My work has led to my name being recognizable with world class brewing and for that I am thankful.

The Lost Abbey has been my home for the past 17 years and we are charting a new course. We are moving our home base of operations away from San Marcos to Vista, CA as we are re-imagining our future operations. The Lost Abbey continues to be known for imaginative and ground breaking beers. We are poised to find new energy in the move we are making and ecstatic to share this with our customers.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I’m pretty bullish on this one. We have been a very rooted company since we first started. The roots we planted have always had us focused on earning the moniker of world class brewing company and then maintaining it. In that way our decisions have had incredible precision and the compass has never been short changed by profits or flavors. This guidance has brought us to this place and allowed us to remain where we have always wanted to be. When people say The Lost Abbey it has always been our goal to be a Premium Brand and Producer. We believe we deliver on that promise and it resonates with our consumers.

How did you build your audience on social media?

We are blessed to have an amazing amount of followers on social media (100K on Instagram). We believe this process of acquiring followers came from our work and travel all of over the world. Once we opened our doors, we took to the streets and everywhere and anywhere we could get an audience we told the story of our beers. It’s crazy to see this many people engaging us and our beers. The reward for the heavy lifting is they are still with us today. My advice today is somewhat the same but also different. The path to followers is one of computer metrics and likes driving traffic. That being said all traffic needs great content and authentic brand voices. So figuring out how to connect both of these at the same time is massively important.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lostabbey.com
• Instagram: lostabbey.com
• Facebook: Lost Abbey

Image Credits
Lexie Doucette