We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Veterans Beer Club San . We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Veterans Beer Club San below.
Alright, Veterans Beer Club San thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
The Veterans Beer Club (VBC) was first ideated at the University Club in downtown San Diego on April 14, 2016, by three retired Marine Corps Veterans: Phil Kendro, Brian Grana, and Kevin Cortes. The concept of keeping in contact with fellow Veterans and bringing Veteran-friendly civilian workforce members together was a recurring topic of conversation. The first “official” VBC was held at Second Chance Brewing Company in Rancho Bernardo, with six ex officio members in June 2016. Since then, the Veterans Beer Club has expanded to numerous Chapters across the US, several thousands of followers on social media, and a list of supportive organizational friends.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
The VBC concept is simple but effective: create a comfortable and informal environment where transitioning Veterans and spouses can network with others in established civilian careers as well as approved hiring managers. Each month we host networking events at breweries around San Diego County. Attendees self-identify through a color system of blue name tags for job seekers, red for employers, and white for supporters.
Since the inception of VBC, growth has been through organic word of mouth. What started as a handful of attendees has grown to over 70 attendees on average. In the last few years, we have expanded our reach through several community partners. These groups include alumni associations from USD, Stanford, MIT, USNA, USC, and UCSD. Most recently we have added a number of professional sports teams including SD Wave FC, SD Legion, SD Seals, SD Strike Force, and The Padres.
The rapid growth and positive impact reinforce the need to have a resource for Veterans to form these genuine connections. It also remains a testament to the power of camaraderie and the Veteran community in helping one another successfully transitioning to civilian life.
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
Building an audience on social media for VBC has been a journey that has evolved over time, driven by a commitment to our mission and a few key strategies:
1. Truthful and Authentic Values leading to our Mission-Driven Growth: From the outset, we prioritized authenticity and truthfulness. Our growth is directly traced to our focused mission of helping Veterans transition to civilian life and find meaningful careers. No sales, fundraising, or politics allowed.
2. Engaging with the Community: Engagement is key to our social media strategy. We encouraged our members to share job opportunities and resources thus turning our social media channels into platforms for connection.
3. Collaborations and Partnerships: Collaborating with other organizations in the Veteran community expanded our reach. We collaborate with local non-profits, universities, university alumni associations, and professional sports teams to co-promote events. These collaborations introduced our organization to wider networks and new supporters.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
We are truthful and authentic. Our events are free and have remained free. There is no hidden agendas or sales pitch. All we ask is you attend our events with the genuine intention of helping Veterans and military spouses find employment. From the groups we collaborate with to the decisions we make; everything is in alignment with our core charter goals listed below.
1. Assist transitioning service members through networking, discussions of important events, introductions to industries across the region, and ensuring service members are personally introduced to leaders in aforementioned groups.
2. Translate our military service to community service, ensuring we continue our leadership into non-profit, volunteer, and civil service organizations.
3. Continue our sense of camaraderie, thus safeguarding the bonds established during our military service and ensuring there is a safety net of resources for Veterans.
Reading about impact is different from feeling the impact. Come join us for an event and see for yourself!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.theveteransbeerclub.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vbc_sandiego/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/VeteransBeerClub
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13668854/
Image Credits
Dave Ellrod