Isle of Harris Brewery

The Isle of Harris Brewery has opened a taproom with a dining area, a bottle shop and deli after the business owners accessed specialist advice from Business Gateway.

Husband and wife Anna and Nick Helfrich opened Isle of Harris Brewery in 2020. The brewery originally started trading online selling craft beers brewed locally. This developed into a small shop at their home, which they quickly outgrew.

The couple recently teamed up with their neighbours Euan and Morag Galloway to expand the business, which resulted in the expansion into new premises in Leverburgh, Harris. Euan and Morag were regular customers and offered to be silent partners if Anna and Nick ever wanted to move into bigger premises.

The new brewery officially opened on the 29th of March 2024.

Located right by the ferry terminal, the business has the perfect location with many coming in to grab a coffee before or after their journey.

The Isle of Harris Brewery, Taproom, Restaurant and Deli aims to provide a place for locals and tourists to enjoy and to showcase local food and drink in the existing bar. The restaurant also showcases local produce from the crofts, lochs, hills and seas of the Hebrides, with beer pairings available with the dinner menu.

Twelve core Isle of Harris Brewery beers will be available on tap in the taproom, alongside spirits, beers and soft drinks from the Hebrides and beyond, and a selection of wines.

The taproom can sit 50 people, with extra seats outside and a beer garden for sunny days.

Anna and Nick accessed 1:1 support on their business plan and project costs from Business Gateway. They went on to be awarded grant funding through the Comhairle’s COVID-19 Economic Recovery Grant Scheme and the Outer Hebrides Young Enterprise Support Scheme, which is funded by Highlands and Islands Enterprise and delivered by Business Gateway. This was vital to them being able to open their new premises.

Anna Helfrich, co-founder of Isle of Harris Brewery said:

“We are all so grateful to Business Gateway and particularly Alastair for his support over the last few months. Expanding a business is a busy time, but with Alastair’s support it felt a lot less daunting. He provided so much advice and helped us to access vital funding to help our dream come true. It’s amazing that even as a small business who have been running for four years now in the Outer Hebrides, Business Gateway provided such a fantastic level of support for scaling-up. We used local workers to set up the new premises and all of our staff are local to Harris as well, so there is a real sense of community. We also couldn’t have done it without Sally, the owner of the building we’re in. We can’t thank everyone enough for all of their support.”

Alastair Macleod, Business Gateway adviser said:

“Helping Anna, Nick, Euan and Morag to expand their premises and watch it grow in front of their eyes was fantastic. It’s been a pleasure to support them through this stage of development and I look forward to seeing the business continue to grow.”

To find out more about how Business Gateway can help your business visit the Business Gateway website.