Natural Product

Willetts also points out that the business rarely shorts people on their demands, unless there has been a significant problem with the crop.

He explains: “You have to remember that we are dealing with a sensitive natural product here that only has one harvest per region each year. We only sell 85% of what we plan to get, so there is a 15% buffer, which is usually enough, so with that in mind, over ordering is dangerous.

“And from a merchant’s point of view, these contracts effectively take the form of us offering a loan and one that’s at 0% interest. Say we spend that £100,000 in March or April to secure the brewery’s hops, the brewery then pays us back over the year as they call off the stock.  It’s a high-risk proposition for the merchant, which is why it is so important that those communication channels are effective.

“This is why it’s imperative to be in the right position. And know the correct information. We are only small, yes we have our bigger brother Barth Haas, but Simply Hops is still small. We always get asked about a minimum contract level, but if we are going out, buying the hops and holding them in cold storage, then it’s about finding the break even point so it works for all parties concerned.”

It is this cold storage factor that plays a key role in the contracting proposition. Cold storage, below 5C, is expensive to run and with that in mind, Willetts argues that if a client was to contract 30kg, but allow the brewery to call this offer over the year, then it would prevent a merchant from realistically being able to offer both a premium product and retain any profit in the process.

“This is a loan. We are lending you hundreds of thousands of pounds. We have great customers, and we service them well, but there will always be people that won’t get their own way, unfortunately,” he explains. “It’s not always possible to contract such low levels, but they are available on the website whenever possible, and new technology is on its way to allow customers to pre-order through that portal. You have to be flexible, on both sides. This is why we set up Simply Hops, in short, so to bridge that gap.”

He adds: “We converse with brewers and work out how we can make things better. And there will always be ones where we fall short despite best efforts and intentions. We are trying to encourage brewers to try different hops, to work with them. We are working with them to show off their skills and show them how to work with their beers in a way that does not leave them unnecessarily exposed to risk.”