Partners Drew Locke and Brian Lewis are planning to expand the brew pub at West Seattle Brewing into a chain of carbon neutral, brew pubs featuring entertainment to be streamed online. Development plans include locations in Japan, Thailand and the Phillipines.
Photo by Patrick Robinson
It's been a ten year journey for the West Seattle Brewing Company at 4415 Fauntleroy Way SW.
Started as a brew pub the business quickly grew popular and the partners moved to expand capacity. Then in 2016 they opened a location on Alki Beach.
Founding partner Drew Locke, also a well known local musician, introduced live music to what they affectionately call "The Mothership".
But Locke always had bigger ambitions. After a dispute over the property on Alki resulted in the closure of that location, he regrouped and is ready to take on a much larger set of goals.
With the help of new partner Brian Lewis they are rebranding as West Brewing with plans to establish two more Western Washington locations and then with the help of overseas investors expand to Japan and other locations in Asia.
These would be stand alone, carbon neutral brew pubs each making their own beers, aimed at upscale age 30 and up consumers who enjoy craft beer, cocktails, casual pub fare and unforgettable entertainment. Each would carry the West Brewing name with it's city name following.
Lewis, a self described, "serial entrepreneur" with both broad and deep experience in Japan, elsewhere in Asia and in Latin America brings technical expertise and management know how to the team.
The plans go well beyond just extensions of the original brewpub however. They also want to add a media component featuring live streamed music performances from each of the locations, accessible online through streaming partners. With changing technology one potential goal is to establish a "home" for West Brewing in the metaverse featuring performances captured in 3D.
The original location will undergo some minor cosmetic changes but the signage will remain the same. New locations will carry the West branding but the name of the city in which they are located.
A round of financing for the new concept is expected to get underway soon.