Sixteen years ago, a High River barley farmer named Ed McNally emerged from the field with a thirst for a good, European-style, natural, unpasteurized beer.
Well, one thing led to another, and now Ed is the chief executive officer of Big Rock Brewery. And, if the boss happens to get a good thirst, the taps are downstairs from his office in the Big Rock lounge.
It seems that McNally knows a good beer, but the spry 75-year-old shrugs off his status as toast of Calgary brewers. He wonders what all the fuss is about.
“I’m surprised with the amount of kudos over what we’ve done here,” McNally said in an interview at the sprawling state-of-the-art brewery on the eastern edge of Calgary. “I think I’ve done braver things in my life.”
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| Larry MacDougal, Business Edge |
| Running a brewery is Ed McNally's third career in life; before forming Big Rock, he worked as a lawyer and a grain farmer. |
1. You’ve been a lawyer, rancher, grain farmer and brewer. Which is the best job?
“I enjoyed farming — when we had rain. It was hard work, but I liked being outdoors.”
2. So it’s the farmers you most admire?
“Those guys have a pretty bleak view of the world, geographically, but most of the farmers I know out there are happy and they’re doing their own thing.
They’ve sent a lot of smart guys over here. A lot of the top geologists and business people in Calgary came from the farm. We were lucky when we started the brewery. We got some farmboys and, when we had to fix something, they’d pick up a wrench. We didn’t have to phone a plumber. They were used to doing things by themselves on their own.”
3. What were the lessons you learned from your parents growing up in Lethbridge?
“I think they put a lot more into their community than they took out. My father (Dr. Albert McNally) worked as a doctor during the Dirty Thirties and a lot of the time he didn’t get paid, but that was never a factor.”
4. Your first job?
“I was a (land) surveyor and then I got a job at the Lethbridge Herald as a reporter. I had one article that made it in the national press. A bear ran through the Waterton Lakes hotel beer parlour. The bear came running in, sniffed around for a while and then ran out the back door.”
5. You must have had some doubters when you launched Big Rock in 1985?
“If it’s something new, people say it’s crazy. But where they saw a lot of risk, I saw a lot of opportunity.”
6. What inspired you to become a brewer?
“When I was farming and growing malting barley, I was a director of the Western Barley Growers and we toured the malting plant here. I learned that there was top malt being exported out of here. I visited a couple of breweries and found that they were becoming less dependent on malt, using more corn, rice and sugars. They were trying to produce a light, fizzy beer. We thought there was room for a really good beer.”
7. Have you surpassed your goals?
“We had a goal of producing 20,000 to 30,000 hectolitres and we’ve passed that five times now (a hectolitre is about 43 gallons).”
8. Your favourite beer?
“It depends on the time of day. I like the darker ones before breakfast, the lighter ones at night.”
9. How would you describe your business philosophy?
“It’s pretty simple actually. You get a top brewmaster (Bernd Pieper)and you just try to produce the best beer. And you need patience. It takes a long, long time. We’ve been at it for over 15 years now.”
10. What’s the best thing about being the CEO of Big Rock?
“We’ve got a great staff around here. We enjoy each other, you know. We have a nice restaurant here, a nice warm office in the winter, a nice garden in the summer . . . What more can you ask for?”
11. While many smaller breweries are struggling, your company is flourishing. What’s the secret to staying in business as a brewer?
“A lot of the small breweries are going under right now because they weren’t adequately financed and they didn’t have the facility or the knowledge to make consistently good beer.”
12. From your experience, what’s the best beer marketing strategy?
“Here, it’s more of a nose-to-nose, toe-to-toe marketing. We haven’t been able to afford anything too splashy as far as advertising. Our budget is so limited compared with Molson and Labatt. They spend more money marketing in a year than we ever saw.”
13. Are your customers your best commercials?
“Oh, yeah. The people who are selling the beer are the people who drink it.”
14. What is Big Rock doing to promote responsible drinking?
“We set a good example. I think our beer is to be enjoyed and relished. A lot of the other beers are designed as thirst-quenchers, for people who drink a lot of them.”
15. If you could change one thing in your life, what would that be?
(Chuckling) “Oh, Jeez, yes, there are some things. I’m not going to tell you about that. I don’t want to embarrass you or your readers.”
16. Your vision for Big Rock for 2005?
“We’re growing still and, if we can utilize our capacity in this facility, we’ll make a very good return on our investment.”
17. Your company share price has been a little flat lately, hasn’t it?
“It certainly has. It’s not the stock-du-jour by any means. But last year all these guys who invested in these hot dot-com stocks are hurting. But we’re earning money and we’ve had a pretty good return this year (gross sales of $25,629,630 for the nine months ending Dec. 31). And we’re still expanding.”
18. So what’s the secret to your longevity in business?
“I never think about it. Well, I’ve had a steady diet of beer and good Alberta beef. I work hard, exercise hard, play hard . . .”
19. Any thoughts of slowing down?
“I’m trying to unload some of the duties around here. I’m taking more time off all the time.”
20. Would you relinquish your role as the CEO anytime soon?
“I’d like to in the not-so-distant future, but I don’t when that will be. We’re always looking for candidates.”
THE COMPANY: Big Rock Brewery
* Brass: Ed McNally, chairman/CEO; Bernd Pieper, brewmaster; Bob King, president; Tim Duffin, CFO.
* Focus: Big Rock, named for the glacial erratic near Okotoks, specializes in natural beer with no additives, preservatives or pasteurization.
* Products: Traditional, Grasshopper, Warthog, McNally’s Extra, Chinook Pale, Big Rock Light, Kold Glacier Water Lager, Black Amber.
* Slogan: To create a masterpiece, no compromise may be tolerated.
* Recent stock price: $4.55 (year range, $4.35-$7.50).
* Web site: www.bigrockbeer.com
* Phone/Fax: 720-3239, 236-5723.
* Address: 5555 76th Ave. S.E., T2C 4L8
IN PROFILE: Ed McNally
* Born/Raised/Age: Lethbridge; 75.
* Title: Chairman/CEO, Big Rock Brewery.
* Education: BA and LLB, University of British Columbia (graduated 1951); honourary degree, Doctorate of Law, University of Calgary.
* Family: Wife Linda, children Sybil Palmer, Kathleen McNally-Leitch, Shelagh McNally-Wilkinson, Bill McNally.
* Resume: Admitted to Alberta Bar Association, 1952; operated ranch and grain farm before forming Big Rock, 1985.
* Awards: Entrepreneur Of The Year, 1995; Pinnacle Entrepreneur, 1995.
* Passions: Fishing, golf, cattle breeding.
