How to start up as brothers (& stay friends) with Tom & Chris Hannaway, Infinite Session
In today’s episode, we’re joined by Tom and Chris Hannaway, brothers and Co-Founders of alcohol-free beer brand Infinite Session. With a passion for great tasting beer but a desire to incorporate some alcohol-free days into their lifestyle, Tom and Chris discovered a gap in the market for a vibrant and confident alcohol-free beer to enjoy during after-work drinks.
Launched in 2018, Infinite Session beers are now stocked in leading UK retailers including Sainsbury’s and Whole Foods. The brand also launched exclusively into the US state of Wisconsin in March 2020. During the pandemic, Infinite Session launched a series of special-edition beers, including the ‘Stay Home’ beer from which all proceeds were donated to NHS Charities Together.
Today they share advice on what to consider when expanding internationally as well as how to successfully work together as siblings.
The Hannaways' advice:
Take time to think about what you disagree on and come back to it after some space
Put boundaries in place and make sure you stick to them
Get your messaging down first before worrying about the rest
Don’t focus too much on logo and web domain at the start
Really think about how you would explain your idea to others, think about The Granny Test, keep it really simple
Think about your product development but do tell people what you’re doing as well as you need the feedback
Give your sales channels the same level of importance as product development
You can only do what you can do and be comfortable with that
Have hobbies outside of work to keep you passionate about your company
Know when to chat with each other, and when not to
Find your working rhythm together
You do have to work hard but build in breaks
Grow slow, try things on a smaller basis when you reach new markets to build your growth with a strong foundation
You can contact Tom or Chris via Instagram or Twitter
Head over to Speakpipe to leave your voice note for future guests too.
LastPass the password-keeping site that syncs between devices.
Google Workspace is brilliant for small businesses
Canva has proved invaluable for creating all the social media assets and audio bites.
For contracts check out Law Depot.
Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, 2022 founder of PR for startups advisory Fallow, Field & Mason. MUSIC CREDIT Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod. Link & Licence