To be Transparent: I am new to this industry and in the planning phase of my own Craft Distillery in northern CO.
That said, I have 15 years of Beverage Marketing in my background infused with time at Coca-Cola and dabbling in the Micro-Brew world. Having owned and operated small businesses in various sectors the two adages that come to mind while reading this string are:
1) You can grow big, or you can grow profitable.
2)The superior man understands what is right; the inferior man understands what will sell.
My plan is to roll out with a blended CO single malt while my own recipe is in the casks, a Gin, and a reposado Tequila/Mescal; keeping a manageable cash-flow model in place while focusing on quality of product and effectiveness of brand positioning. My goal is to develop a distillery that can be passed on, not grown and sold. If I can understand what is 'right' and maintain profitability, the end goal should be attainable: A high quality, well respected and sustainable craft distillery that I can pass on to my children or grand children.
Will these brands evolve and mature as my knowledge and experience develops? Sure.
Will I strive to be all things to the marketplace and to my customers, always looking to profit? Probably not.
Will Quality and Brand development always be in my forefront? Definitely.
So my expectation is that over the first 3-5 years I will offer 3 products to the marketplace, but may end up with 6, 8, 12 "brands" by the time I find the sweet-spot. I still think that is "the same thing every day".
Wood's