Congratulations to our borrower, Jack’s Abby for being named by the SBA as Manufacturer of the Year.
FRAMINGHAM – When Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers opened in 2011, its founders had no employees, relying on themselves, family and friends to produce and sell the beer they brewed.
Now, Jack’s Abby is in a much larger facility, brews nearly two million gallons of beer a year and employs nearly 150 people.
Due to that growth, the Small Business Administration on Thursday announced that Jack’s Abby has been named the 2018 Small Business Manufacturer of the Year for Massachusetts.
“It’s exciting to win this,” said Sam Hendler, who founded the brewery with his older brothers Jack and Eric. “We were open for two months before we hired our first employee.”
Since opening, Jack’s Abby has grown from serving just the local community to distributing its beers to several states and brewing beer under two brand names — Jack’s Abby and Springdale.
“We’re honored to recognize the Hendler brothers, who grew up in a family that promoted entrepreneurship and hard work,” said SBA Massachusetts District Director Robert Nelson in a statement. “Since opening their new brewery in Downtown Framingham, Jack’s Abby has tripled in size and continues to create jobs for the local community.”
The success has a lot to do with the support the people of Framingham have shown the brewery.
“The core of our success has been local,” said Sam Hendler. “Seventy percent of our sales are in Massachusetts and probably 50 percent of it is within 30 miles of the city.”
Jack’s Abby used a loan from Bay Colony Development Corp., an SBA-certified development company, to open its beer hall at 100 Clinton St. in 2016, moving from its original location on Morton Street.
“At the time, we had 25 employees,” said Sam Hendler. “Now, because of a project that was helped along by them (the SBA), we have nearly 150 employees and we’re being honored by them.”
Currently, Jack’s Abby brews nearly 60,000 barrels of beer (a barrel of beer equals 31 gallons), but has the capacity to grow to 100,000 barrels, Jack Hendler said.
The goal is to continue to grow as the craft brewing industry grows.
“I think the industry is changing,” said Jack Hendler. “We’re going to be a little smarter on implementing things for the business.”
The Hendlers will be honored at the annual SCORE Boston/SBA awards ceremony on May 4 at the Sheraton Needham Hotel. Check out a video below of the brewery.