A thing isn’t beautiful because it lasts.
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Six years ago, Redemption Rock Brewing burst onto Worcester’s business and cultural scene at a time when the opening of a new craft brewery was still unique enough to be a cause for celebration.
The brewery was never the largest, but it became a staple of the small business scene, particularly for those who felt left outside of Worcester’s more established business community. Redemption Rock hosted community events, held drag queen story hours, and made monthly donations to a rotating list of nonprofits. It was the first brewery in Massachusetts to become a certified B Corp., meaning its mission focused on community good, rather than strictly dollars and cents. Its trio of cofounders, particularly CEO Dani Babineau, were outspoken advocates for what they believed in.
And, yet, Redemption Rock closed its doors for good at the end of December. In a post-mortem Q&A for WBJ Managing Editor Eric Casey’s feature “What happened to Redemption Rock?”, the ownership group said a bad lease and a subpar location were the main causes for the closure, along with general economic trends of consumers having less disposable income and a slowdown in national craft beer sales.
Redemption Rock’s closure came the same year as the closure of the one-of-a-kind grocery store Maker to Main in Worcester’s Canal District, after farm-to-table entrepreneur Lynn Cheney just couldn’t make the concept work over four years in two locations. Both businesses highlight the struggle in creating a sustainable company, even if the business is generally beloved and has a cult following. That struggle to make it work takes an enormous financial, emotional, and physical toll on its founders, as The Queen’s Cups Founder Renee Diaz highlighted in her column in the Feb. 10 WBJ, which was the most-read story of that edition.
In the Feb. 24 edition, WBJ highlights its Business Leaders of the Year and new members of the WBJ Hall of Fame, who all have a history of sustained success. Yet, a business doesn’t have to be sustainable to be successful. Maker to Main and Redemption Rock were beautiful for what they were: bold, earnestly entrepreneurial, and perhaps ahead of their time. Their legacies will long outlast them. They were quite the success.
Brad Kane is the editor of the Worcester Business Journal.
