All it took was a second chance ? and a degree from the University of Maryland.
Originally founded by brothers Rich and Matt Fleischer in 1999 in San Francisco, the Hook & Ladder Brewing Co. had its ups and downs until it reopened in Silver Spring about 20 months ago.
The brothers credit a successful relaunch of their $2.5 million business to Matt?s completion of an MBA from the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland in 2005.
“I walked in the first day of business school with a plan in hand, and said, ?I?m here to learn more about running a business and growing a venture,?” said Matt, the president and chief executive officer of Hook & Ladder.
As for the name Hook & Ladder, Rich, a volunteer firefighter in Montgomery County and member of the Bethesda Rescue Squad, takes credit for that. Rich and Matt see that $4 from every barrel of Hook & Ladder sold goes to the Metropolitan Firefighters Burn Foundation.
The idea for Hook & Laddder started in 1994, when Rich began having home-brewed beer parties for his friends. Eventually, he took his idea to a San Jose, Calif., brewery with his brother. They developed a following, winning a Gold Medal for best American-style wheat beer at the Great American Beer Festival.
Even a market presence couldn?t overcome a lack of capital, and the brewery had to temporarily cease operations.
To overcome this problem, the brothers returned to Maryland. While Matt attended school, Rich went back to work in the biotech industry. Upon Matt?s graduation, the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship awarded him a $10,000 grant.
Since then, things have taken off.
More than 130 bars and restaurants serve Hook & Ladder beer in the Baltimore metropolitan area, with expansion planned for Philadelphia and Delaware.
