SCOTLAND’s first community-owned micro-brewery will go from a dream to reality after its founders shattered two crowdfunding targets.
The Isle of Eigg Brewery started a fundraising campaign in November in a bid to make the facility the country’s most environment-friendly.
Their initial target of £125,000 was reached and breached within a few weeks, so founding directors Stu McCarthy and Ben Cormack set a second target of £190,000 which they said would enable them to fast-track the social and environmental impacts they want it to deliver.
By last night, after the last full day of their campaign, they had raised more than £195,000 from more than 600 investors, who bought share packages at varying prices and with different benefits.
“What excites and humbles me about our campaign has been the amount of people backing us and why,” said McCarthy.
“There’s clearly an appetite for a different approach to business. Instead of being driven by profit alone, an approach where people and planet have equal importance to profit has a clear resonance.
“Breaking through our target really ups the pace at which things can happen.
“Now it’s about how much we can deliver socially and environmentally, and how fast – there’s such huge potential.”
The Isle of Eigg, 12 miles off the Scottish mainland, has been in the hands of its population of just over 100 since a landmark community buy-out in 1997.
Its land ownership model triggered a number of projects aimed at improving island life and growing its population.
There is a renewable energy system – Eigg Electric – powered by wind, water and sun, which will now help run its community-owned brewery.
McCarthy had adopted the slogan “People not Profit” for the fundraising bid and said they wanted to counter the effects of the pandemic to create a stage where people can thrive.
The Isle of Eigg Brewery will be built on a site in the centre of the island, using water collected from the heights of Beinn Bhuidhe.
Construction will begin in April and it is hoped the brewery will become fully operational by August.
“Now we can invest in an electric van for transporting our beer on Eigg and to the mainland, at the same time creating Eigg’s first electric vehicle charge point for fellow islanders’ cars,” said McCarthy.
“We’re already exploring growing hops on Eigg, having recently made our first entirely Eigg-hopped beer, and we’ll have an on-island reusable bottle club.
“We want to help counter the effects of Covid and recession by creating a platform for people to thrive. We’re committed to creating three new jobs over the first three years, but hopefully now we can do this quicker. In a population of 110 children and adults, that will make us one of Eigg’s larger employers.
“And we’ll create a grant for local business start-ups.”
He added: “The brewery’s drive has always been to facilitate a wider and more sustainable growth. The support we’ve received allows us now to create a brewery that does exactly that. I’m very proud to be a part of this community.”
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