A group of four young entrepreneurs have revealed how they created a successful craft beer business spanning three venues across London.
Felix Bollen, aged 26, moved to London from Hamburg when he was four years old and went on to study graphic and media design at the University of the Arts, London. Duing a summer intership at a Northern Bavarian brewery, he discovered a passion for beer.
“Beer is a staple in Germany, it’s not something you just drink to get drunk,” he said. “It was so intensely satisfying creating something with my own hands and seeing hundreds of people sitting in a beer garden enjoying it.
“I came back to London for my final year of university and immediately started making business plans with my dad and best friend, Anton.”
With the help of his father, Florian, and Anton, Felix planned to bring an authentic German beer experience to the English capital. As they grew more excited about their idea, they enlisted the help of their other friends, Andrea and Michele.
“There are lots of hoppy IPA places in London, but those trying to make authentic German lagers don’t even come close,” said Felix.
“Anton was studying spatial design and became our ‘spaceman’, planning out the look of our venues. Michele is our business and finance wizard, and Andrea is our wildcard — he can do everything from sorting out the operations to wiring sound systems.”
A unique spin on the purity law
In 2017, the quartet opened their first venue, in Elephant and Castle, London, before expanding into Mayfair and Dalston just two years later.
“We had no money for installation when we first started — we built everything from scratch,” said Felix. “It was overwhelming at first. We were a group of 21-year-olds all studying during the day and running our bar and brewery at night. We were blasting through 90-hour work weeks.”
He added: “We were just winging it, but within two years we had increased capacity at our first site by 50%, opened up a second, and hired over 100 staff. We had a low point when the pandemic hit, but since then it’s great to see how well our beer is perceived and that we have become such a popular place so quickly.
“Each place has a different look, uses different glassware, and offers different drinks. Our venue in Mayfair is in an old church and leans into the aesthetic of old German monk breweries, while our newest venue in Dalston is a hip new place with a modern design and different new beers, with a unique spin on the German Purity Law of 1516.”
With plans to open two more European venues by the end of 2023, they want to share the unique German beer experience with the masses
“I want a Kraft venue in every major city in the world and to serve our beer fresh from the tank at the source,” said Felix. “No canning or bottling, no kegging, and no selling to other bars and pubs. There’s no need for pasteurising, filtering, or additives. We want to keep the freshness of authentic German beer.”
• KRAFT Dalston is at 130a Kingsland High Street, Dalston, London E8 2LQ.
