Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream Pitch Room Competition and Speed Coaching Return to Denver

DENVER, May 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream, a micro-lending and coaching program for small business owners working in food, beverage, craft brewing and hospitality, announced it will host its regional Pitch Room competition and small business Speed Coaching in Denver on Wednesday, May 21^st.

The Brewing the American Dream Pitch Room, a national competition that helps small business owners perfect the art of the sales pitch, will make Denver the second of four stops throughout the U.S. in 2014. Starting at 5:00 p.m. MDT at Mi Casa (360 Acoma St.), food and beverage small business owners will present their best sales pitch to a panel of expert judges for the chance to win a trip for two to compete in the year-end finals in New York City where he or she will have the opportunity to compete for $10,000 and extended mentoring from Samuel Adams. Lindita Torres, owner of Lindita's Salsa and host of Lindita's Cooking Kitchen Show, was the Denver regional winner in the 2013 Pitch Room competition.

Pitch Room judges will include Jennifer Glanville, Brewer and Director of Brewery Programs for Samuel Adams; Ken Smith, Beer Educator and Trainer for Samuel Adams;  Donna Ruch, Master Mixologist for Red Robin; and John Beck, Restaurant Concept Development at Texas Roadhouse, among others.  After providing constructive feedback to each of the participants, the judges will select a Denver Pitch Room winner based on criteria focused on pitch quality, creativity, passion, and product viability.

Small Business Speed Coaching in Denver

Following the Pitch Room, Samuel Adams will host Brewing the American Dream Speed Coaching from 7:00 – 9:30 p.m. at Mi Casa for Denver area small business owners working in food, beverage, craft brewing and hospitality. Attendees will have the unique opportunity to participate in up to six 20-minute, high-impact coaching sessions in areas such as sales, distribution, packaging, and finance with expert coaches from Samuel Adams, local businesses, and Accion, the nation's leading nonprofit provider of small business capital and coaching. 

"I know from my own experience starting Sam Adams 30 years ago how important nuts-and-bolts business knowledge is to the success of your company," said Jim Koch, founder and brewer of Samuel Adams. "Through our Speed Coaching events, we're able to connect passionate entrepreneurs with industry experts to provide the practical know-how that's so critical to growing a small business."

Small business owners can register online for the free event at http://btaddenver.eventbrite.com, and are encouraged to bring questions regarding specific business challenges they face, as well as samples of packaging, point of sale items, and other material on which they seek feedback.

Year Round Lending Spurs Success

Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream supports Colorado small businesses year-round, in partnership with non-profit microlender Accion, by providing microloans to small businesses owners who are often shut out of traditional lending institutions due to lack of credit, the small size of the loan request, or the volatile nature of the food and beverage industry. Brewing the American Dream is able to see beyond these barriers to provide microloans to viable small businesses to help them grow and succeed.

"Brewing the American Dream advances our local small businesses by providing access to essential resources: mentorship, training and financing; three key ingredients that promote growth and success," Accion New Mexico - Arizona - Colorado President/CEO Anne Haines Yatskowitz said.

Raise a Pint to Brew a Dream in Denver

Samuel Adams also recently announced the kick-off to "Raise a Pint, Brew a Dream," a month-long program providing an opportunity for drinkers in Denver, and across the country, to support small businesses by simply enjoying a Samuel Adams Boston Lager. As part of the initiative, throughout the month of May Samuel Adams will donate five cents to the Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream microloan fund at Accion for every Samuel Adams Boston Lager draft sold at participating bars and restaurants across the country.*

Additionally, at participating "Raise a Pint, Brew a Dream" restaurants and bars throughout the state, drinkers will have the opportunity to learn more about Rick Abitbol, owner of Brewery Rickoli, a brewery in the Brewing the American Dream program. Abitbol had been an award-winning home brewer along the Front Range for more than a decade when he decided it was time to follow his dream of opening his own brewery in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Like running any small business, everyday brought a new challenge, but Abitbol was able to get many of his questions answered at a Brewing the American Dream Speed Coaching event. After that, he applied for a loan through the program and received $10,000 to help cover start-up costs. Now he's focused on brewing a line of delicious gluten-reduced beers. 

To support other small business owners like Abitbol, a list of bars and restaurants participating in "Raise a Pint, Brew a Dream"' can be found online at: http://www.samueladams.com/raise-a-pint.

*Maximum donation, $250,000. Valid only at participating locations displaying this offer.

Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream Inspiration and Impact

Samuel Adams celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, and despite the craft brewery's success, founder and brewer, Jim Koch, hasn't forgotten how hard it is to start and run a successful small business. That's why he created Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream, a unique program that provides the two things he wishes he had when starting Sam Adams: financing and real-world business advice. Since its creation in 2008, the program has coached more than 4,000 small business owners, provided nearly $3 million in microloans to more than 330 small businesses, and helped create or retain more than 1,900 jobs. The program has also seen an unprecedented loan repayment rate of 98.1 percent – well above the national average for small business loans. To learn more about the program, please visit: http://btad.samueladams.com/.

Samuel Adams, Sam Adams, Samuel Adams Boston Lager, and Samuel Adams Brewing the American Dream are registered trademarks of The Boston Beer Company.

About Samuel Adams and The Boston Beer Company

The Boston Beer Company began in 1984 with a generations-old family recipe that Founder and Brewer Jim Koch uncovered in his father's attic. Inspired and unafraid to challenge conventional thinking about beer, Jim brought the recipe to life in his kitchen.  Pleased with the results of his work, Jim decided to sample his beer with bars in Boston in the hopes that drinkers would appreciate the complex, full-flavored beer he brewed fresh in America.  That beer was aptly named Samuel Adams Boston Lager, in recognition of one of our nation's great founding fathers, a man of independent mind and spirit.  Little did Jim know at the time, Samuel Adams Boston Lager soon became a catalyst of the American craft beer revolution.

Today, The Boston Beer Company brews more than 50 styles of beer.  It relentlessly pursues the development of new styles and the perfection of classic beers by searching the world for the finest ingredients.  Using the traditional four vessel brewing process, the Company often takes extra steps like dry-hopping, barrel-aging and a secondary fermentation known as krausening.  The Company has also pioneered another revolution, the 'extreme beer' movement, where it seeks to challenge drinker's perceptions of what beer can be. The Boston Beer Company has been committed to elevating the image of American craft beer by entering festivals and competitions around the globe, and is one of the world's most awarded breweries at international beer competitions. As an independent company, brewing quality beer remains its single focus. Although Samuel Adams beer is America's largest-selling craft beer, it accounts for only one percent of the U.S. beer market.  The Boston Beer Company will continue its independently-minded quest to brew great beer and to advocate for the growth of craft beer across America. For more information, please visit www.samueladams.com.

About Accion in the U.S.
In seeking a partner for Samuel Adams' Brewing the American Dream the company turned to Accion to facilitate lending to hardworking business owners seeking to grow. As the largest nationwide micro-and small business lending network in the United States, Accion connects small business owners with the accessible financing and advice it takes to create or grow healthy businesses. Accion New Mexico - Arizona - Colorado offers business loans between $200 and $500,000 along with training, networking and other support services to hardworking entrepreneurs. In the last 20 years, Accion has disbursed over 6,873 loans in New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado.

Since 1991, the five members of the Accion U.S. Network have collectively made over 50,000 loans, totaling over $406 million. Additionally, over 400,000 business owners across the nation have turned to Accion for financial and business advice via workshops, online tools, and one-on-one consultations. Globally, Accion (www.accion.org) is a pioneer in microfinance, reaching millions of individuals through its international network of partners. For more information visit us.accion.org.

SOURCE Samuel Adams