CBP Connects New Orleans

December 8-10, 2025

CBP Connects presented by Arryved

Book Your Hotel

Workshop at The Jung Hotel

Monday, December 8, 2025

7:00-9:00 PM
Welcome Reception at Urban South Brewery thanks to Sovereign Flavors

Tuesday, December 9, 2025

8:00-9:00 AM
Gather + Coffee + Trade Show

9:00-10:00am
Welcome/Get to Know Your Fellow Craft Beer Professionals

Andrew Coplon (Founder, Craft Beer Professionals/Secret Hopper)

Brewery Profit Makeovers: What Worked, What Didn’t, and Why

Chris Farmand (Small Batch Standard)

Brewery Profit Makeovers: What Worked, What Didn’t, and Why

From numbers to results: How insight, clean data, and accountability fuel transformation.

This session shares the real turnaround stories of three breweries that went from losses to profit. Each had a different sales model: one sold entirely through its taproom, another relied solely on distribution, and the third split sales evenly between the two. We’ll reveal what each owner thought was holding them back—and what our financial analysis uncovered instead. Then we’ll walk through the action plans they implemented and the results they achieved. You’ll see how clarity in your numbers, confidence in your data, and a culture of accountability can drive lasting change. Whether your revenue comes from the bar, the market, or both, you’ll leave with practical ideas to improve profitability.

Learning Objectives:

Define and measure profitability specific to your brewery operations.
Understand where the gaps in profit are coming from within your brewery.
Why good numbers and good data are the foundation of good decision making.
Understanding why benchmarks are important guardrails to profitability across different sales models
Apply real world profit improvements to your own business using our interactive Profit Plays workbook.

It all started in 2010 when Chris Farmand was fortunate enough to assist a start-up brewery with establishing back-office processes. This gave him a firsthand glimpse into the complications of running a brewery. Shortly thereafter, he founded Small Batch Standard, which has become the premier financial agency for craft over the past decade. Everyday, Chris and the SBS team are seeking the opportunity to assist an industry full of entrepreneurs who have proven to create amazing, local products. Small Batch Standard helps breweries uncover profit through outsourced accounting, tax compliance, and benchmark consulting. Chris has worked with over 200 breweries and is driven by building long-lasting deep relationships. Chris graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor of Science in Business Finance in 2002. Then in 2006, he received his Master of Business Administration from the University of North Florida. He is an active member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Chris’s crew is made up of his wife and 3 children…They rock!

Don't Do That! HR Mistakes That Can Tank Your Brewery

Jon Hyman (Wickens Herzer Panza)

Too many breweries are one bad decision away from a costly legal disaster. In this interactive session, employment and craft beer attorney Jon Hyman will dive into the most common HR mistakes that violate the law and put your brewery at risk. From misclassifying employees as exempt or independent contractors, to botching terminations, ignoring harassment complaints, and denying medical accommodation requests—these aren’t just bad practices, they’re lawsuits waiting to happen. With real-world examples and brewery-specific insight, you’ll learn how to spot legal landmines, tighten your compliance, and protect your business before the government or a plaintiff’s lawyer comes knocking.

Learning Objectives:

Identify common HR and employment law violations specific to the craft brewing industry, including wage and hour issues, worker misclassification, and unlawful termination practices.
Understand the legal obligations breweries face under employment laws, and how failing to meet them can lead to government investigations or costly litigation.
Apply practical, brewery-specific strategies to improve compliance, reduce legal risk, and create defensible documentation for hiring, discipline, and terminations.

Jon Hyman is a shareholder at Wickens Herzer Panza, a full-service business law firm in Avon, Ohio, where he chairs both the firm’s Employment & Labor and Craft Beer practice groups. As outside general counsel to breweries and other small and mid-sized businesses, Jon understands the unique challenges craft brewers face: managing people, protecting culture, and staying compliant in a highly regulated industry. A nationally recognized employment lawyer, he’s known for delivering practical, plain-English legal advice that business owners can actually use.

Jon also has a deep passion for the craft beer community—often found speaking at industry events or checking out new breweries in and around Northeast Ohio and wherever his travels take him. He helps breweries build strong, engaged teams, because better culture brews better beer.

12:00-1:30pm
Trade Show + Lunch

Open to Innovation: What We Can Learn from Outside the Beer Industry

Moderator: Jacob Landry (Urban South Brewery)

Panelists: Drew Ramsey (Hubig’s Pies), Howie Kaplan (Howlin’ Wolf Music Club), Mark Romig (New Orleans Saints/New Orleans & Company)

“Creativity is the focused combination of unlikely things. Your mind locks onto a certain element and then searches widely for something unexpected that fits with it. What can scuba diving teach you about agriculture? What can trees teach you about public speaking? There is always some connective tissue between disciplines. If you wish to be more creative, look for the connections between two previously unconnected things.”

That quote, by James Clear from ‘Atomic Habits,’ nails it. If we continuously look to each other as our only source of inspiration, we risk becoming an echo chamber of sameness.

In this conversation, we will hear from guests who do not work in the beer industry. We will learn their stories, hear their challenges, discover similarities, gain outside-the-box ideas, and ask unique questions to inspire you to greater success.

Learning Objectives:

Hear real-world stories and challenges from professionals outside the beer industry, providing practical examples of how overcoming obstacles and applying fresh perspectives can lead to success
Recognize and apply innovative concepts from unrelated fields to the beverage industry.
Break free from conventional thinking patterns by examining how unconventional practices and ideas from other sectors can inspire novel approaches in their work.

Drew Ramsey is the third generation of his family to own and operate Hubig’s Pies, a beloved New Orleans institution. Famous for their individually wrapped, glazed hand pies, Hubig’s has been a local favorite since 1921. The path hasn’t been without challenges—after a devastating fire destroyed the factory in 2012, Drew’s tenacity resulted in a complete rebuild and a triumphant reopening in 2022. Today, Hubig’s Pies are once again delighting customers in local stores and via Hubigs.com. Beyond the bakery, Drew loves supporting local restaurants, canoeing, playing poker, and spending time with his wife, their teenage daughters, and friends.

Howie Kaplan was the founding Director of the Office of Nighttime Economy for the greatest city in the world, and the birthplace of modern music, New Orleans. Since 2000 he has been the owner and operator of the multi room venue, the Howlin’ Wolf. For over 19 years he has been the manager of the Grammy Award Winning Rebirth Brass Band.

Howie is also a precinct captain for the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) that was responsible for the $16.25 billion Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) and was crucial in saving independent venues, movie theatres, Broadway, Performing Arts Centers and non- profits that were devastated through the pandemic closures.

At the beginning of the covid shutdowns he started Meals for Musicians. This program, in conjunction with the New Orleans Musicians Clinic was responsible for distributing over 60,000 meals and assisting culture bearers and first responders in accessing health care, housing assistance and unemployment payments. Mr. Kaplan also received the SBA Phoenix award for his efforts after Hurricane Ida severed all power to the city. Working with supplies donated from over 100 restaurants and hundreds of volunteers, they created over 20,000 meals in eight days in a makeshift street kitchen.

A native New Orleanian, Mark Romig is Senior Advisor for The Ehrhardt Group, the Gulf South’s leading public relations firm, and New Orleans & Company, New Orleans’ travel industry’s marketing, sales and promotion organization. He also serves as Honorary Consul in Louisiana for the Kingdom of Thailand.

In 2013 Mark became the Stadium Announcer for the NFL’s New Orleans Saints in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, succeeding his father, Jerry (who served in the same role for 446 consecutive Saints home games over 44 years). In addition, Mark is a member of the Board of Directors of Fidelity Bank(NASDAQ: FBLA).

Active in his community, Mark is Vice-Chair of the Board for the Emeril Lagasse Foundation, Chair of the Board of Trustees for WYES-TV, Chair of the Board of Fore!Kids Foundation, and a member of the Board of Directors of Methodist Health System Foundation and YouthForce NOLA. He recently completed a fifteen-year term of service at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s Travel and Tourism Advisory Council. In addition, he serves as an advisor to the Louisiana Hospitality Foundation and St. Andrew’s Village.

Navigating A Changing Beverage Landscape: A SWOT Analysis

Pulkit K Agrawal (Beer30 by The 5th Ingredient)

This interactive session is broken into three parts: a short presentation, group work, and open discussion. Attendees will split into five groups based on their primary role at the brewery—owner, production, sales, taproom, or marketing. If someone wears multiple hats, they’ll choose the group that fits best.

Each group will work through a SWOT exercise, identifying strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for their area of the business in today’s evolving beverage landscape. After brainstorming, we’ll come back together to share insights and explore potential solutions. Everyone will leave with a personal game plan: one item from each quadrant to act on—lean into strengths, improve a weakness, pursue an opportunity, and address a major threat. We’ll also encourage cross-department sharing to bring fresh ideas back to the team.

Learning Objectives:

Identify key strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats within your role at the brewery.
Collaborate with peers to explore solutions and actionable next steps.
Create a focused plan with one takeaway from each SWOT category to bring back to your team.

Pulkit K. Agrawal (PKA) is the Founder and CEO of Beer30 by The 5th Ingredient®, a leading brewery operations management software aimed at enhancing beer quality and consistency. After graduating from Harvard College, PKA worked as a Process Engineer at Ballast Point Brewing, where he focused on packaging lines and nitrogen beer. In January 2018, PKA launched Beer30®, a brewery data management system that offers grain-to-glass process and quality data tracking, while expanding beyond the standard inventory tracking of other systems. Beer30 focuses on real-time brewing data input, raw material inventory, cost of goods analysis, quality and sensory tracking, sales and distribution, and accounting integration. Beer30 is in over 450 breweries globally, helping to #BrewMoreBeer and #BrewBetterBeer. In December 2022, PKA was selected to the Forbes 30 Under 30, Class of 2023, in the Food and Drink category. In his free time, PKA enjoys traveling, scuba diving, and entrepreneurship coaching.

3:30-4:30 pm
Trade Show + Beers

Surviving Seasonality: How Smart Taprooms Beat the Slow Months

The holidays are finally behind you. The gift card promos ran, mug club renewals came through, and now the taproom is quiet. Welcome to Q1. This panel explores what every brewery is thinking: how to keep things moving when guest traffic slows to a crawl. You’ll hear from experienced operators who have figured out how to turn gift card redemptions into foot traffic, build out smart programming in January and February, and keep guests engaged with seasonal menus and beer releases. We’ll also dig into how you can use this downtime to dial in staffing, inventory, and training, and get creative with campaigns like Dry January alternatives, winter events, and loyalty perks built for the slow season.

Learning Objectives:

Understand how to strategically leverage holiday gift cards, memberships, and seasonal offers to boost Q1 visits and spending.
Discover effective off-season programming and marketing tactics to drive guest engagement during historically slow months.
Learn how to use winter downtime, or slower seasons, to strengthen operations—from staffing and training to inventory management and event planning.

7:00-9:00pm
Reception at Parleaux Beer Lab

Join Others Just Like You

Wednesday, December 10, 2025

8:00-9:00 AM
Trade Show + Coffee

Crafting the Big Picture: Building Impactful Marketing

Warren Bondi (Beer Marketeers/ Wood Foot Beer Co.)

In today’s crowded beer market, quick promotions and one-off campaigns only take you so far. If you want to grow in a meaningful way, you need more than just social posts and special releases. Long-term success comes from knowing who you are, what you stand for, and how to share that in a way that connects with the right people.

This session is a chance to take a step back from the daily hustle and think bigger about your marketing strategy. We’ll walk through practical ways to define what makes your brand stand out, create a plan that’s actually useful, and make smarter decisions about where you’re putting your time and money. It’s about doing less guessing and more building with intention.

Learning Objectives:

Learn how to define what sets your brand apart and build a marketing foundation that supports long-term growth.
Gain tools to evaluate your current efforts, spot missed opportunities, and make smarter, more strategic marketing decisions.
Walk away with a clear, practical framework to align your brand, goals, and team so that your marketing actually drives results.

Warren Bondi is a digital marketer, brand strategist, beverage sales guy, and father of three—all before turning 30. Talk about an overachiever. After dabbling in distribution and surviving the chaos of agency life, Warren realized he was after something more. He’s still figuring out exactly what that is, but co-founding Beer Marketeers with one of his best friends and opening his own brewpub, Wood Foot Beer Co., feels like the right path.

When he’s not obsessing over strategy or dropping buzzwords like “Nielsen data,” you’ll find him mastering the art of fire-cooked cuisine on his outrageously expensive Breeo fire pit. Picture a dad-sized audition for Chef’s Table: Over The Fire Cooking—while three kids launch a coordinated attack from all sides.

Don’t be fooled by the chaos. Warren thrives in it. He’s the chaos whisperer, the strategy guy with a plan—except when his wife leaves him alone with the kids. Then it’s all survival mode.

With a sprinkle of dad jokes, a dash of marketing expertise, and an obsession with craft beverages, Warren is here to shake up the beverage industry one well-targeted campaign at a time.

Multiculturalism on Tap: New Orleans as a Model for Community Engagement

Angi Thomas (Being Black in Craft), Dawn Richard (Hip Hop Caucus), Jon Renthrope (Cajun Fire Brewing Company)

This panel will explore the vibrant cultural tapestry of New Orleans and how it serves as a visionary blueprint for impactful community engagement in the craft brewing industry. Led by the Being Black in Craft’s Angi Thomas, and local cultural ambassadors from Cajun Fire Brewing Company, Bywater Brew Pub, and the New Orleans Tourism and Cultural Fund, this conversation will delve into the essence of culture, the vital distinctions between cultural appreciation and appropriation, and the profound ways to genuinely connect with diverse communities. This session will illuminate the power of culturally aware marketing, inclusive event planning, and community outreach as essential tools for fostering deep and meaningful relationships within local neighborhoods.

Learning Objectives

Engagement Strategies: Ignite creativity by developing and implementing authentic engagement strategies with diverse cultures, creating meaningful partnerships with local artists and community leaders, and incorporating community feedback sessions to ensure initiatives resonate passionately with local populations.
Celebrate Diversity through Events: Inspire unity by organizing inclusive events that honor the rich tapestry of cultures in New Orleans, focusing on fermentation as a powerful theme. Consider planning culturally themed beer releases or hosting events that spotlight local traditions and culinary practices.
Community Involvement: Harness the spirit of goodwill by leveraging business resources to nurture community relations through volunteering, sharing space for community events, or sponsoring local cultural celebrations. This not only enhances brand visibility but positions the brewery as a supportive neighbor, actively invested in the vibrancy and welfare of the community.

A proud Dallas native, Angi Thomas brings over 11 years of experience as a Brand Ambassador and a passionate advocate for diversity in craft beer. As Moderator of Being Black in Craft, Angi amplifies voices and fosters conversations that celebrate inclusion. She has served as Co-chair for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice (DEIJ) with the Pink Boots Society, where she also holds the national role of Communications Director. In addition, she contributes to industry growth and representation as Social Curator for Lifting Lucy. Her work reflects a dedication to building community, elevating equity, and shaping a more inclusive craft culture.

Dawn Richard is a visionary singer, songwriter, and multidisciplinary artist whose career spans over two decades. Rising to fame as a member of the multiplatinum group Danity Kane, she has since forged a trailblazing solo path, blending electronic, R&B, pop, and New Orleans cultural roots into a groundbreaking sound. Beyond music, Dawn is an advocate and cultural strategist, serving as Artist Relations Director for the Hip Hop Caucus, where she merges art and activism to uplift communities around climate justice, voting rights, and economic equity. Her work redefines artistry as both innovation and impact, bridging creativity with social change.

Strategic Community Partnerships: Driving Brand Awareness and Boosting Taproom Sales

Matthew McLaughlin (Fertile Ground Beer Co.)

Strong community partnerships can help your brewery grow in authentic and meaningful ways. In this session, we’ll explore how to work with nonprofits, neighborhood groups, and cultural organizations to increase local visibility and drive real traffic to your taproom. You’ll hear ideas for co-hosted events, fundraising nights, and creative collaborations that make sense for your brand and resonate with your guests. We’ll also cover how to choose the right partners, set shared goals, and use storytelling and social media to highlight the impact.

Learning Objectives:

Identify local organizations that align with your brewery’s values and audience.
Plan and execute events and collaborations that support both your goals and your partners’.
Share your partnership stories in ways that build trust, engagement, and loyalty.

Matthew McLaughlin is the founding shareholder of McLaughlin, PC, a boutique corporate, commercial, and intellectual property legal and advisory firm serving the alcohol industry. He is the former executive director of the Mississippi Brewers Guild and a founder and chief executive officer of Fertile Ground Beer Co., a brewery located in Jackson, Mississippi.

In 2017, Matthew received the F.X. Matt Defense of the Industry Award from the Brewers Association in recognition for his public policy and lobbying efforts on behalf of independent breweries in the Southeast. When he is not focused on his dual vocation of practicing law and running a brewery, Matthew enjoys spending time with his family and supporting his daughters in all of their athletic pursuits.

12:00-1:30pm
Trade Show + Lunch presented by BMI

1:30-2:30pm
Tap Talks

Three 18-minute sessions on critical topics

Crowdsourced: A Collaborative Hour of Problem Solving

CBP Connects attendees continually list the ability to connect and learn from others as a highlight from our workshops. We are excited to host a session dedicated to learning from your peers. In this session, we will field questions from you and then develop the best solutions together. Plan to walk away with strategies to problems many of us are facing and best practices to improve brewery operations. Together, we can grow stronger.

Learning Objectives:

Collaborate with your peers to solve problems faced by other Craft Beer Professionals
Discover new strategies and solutions to help you see greater success at your brewery
Build new relationships that you can reach out to with future questions

7:00-9:00pm
Closing Reception at Abita Brewing Company

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CBP Connects presented by Arryved

Workshop at The Jung Hotel

Monday, December 8, 2025

Tuesday, December 9, 2025

Wednesday, December 10, 2025

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