Municipal Winemakers: Growing Community by Investing in Community
How does one grow a business? For Dave Potter, the owner of Municipal Winemakers and Potek Winery, it means finding a way to expand that involves an exchange between the customers and the product that feels encompassing and fulfilling.
Potter brought his experience of communal winemaking from France back to Santa Barbara and started Municipal Winemakers in 2010. Behind the label is Potter, but his brands evoke a sense of community and are always meant to feel approachable and unpretentious. He sources his grapes locally; his wine is made locally. You won’t see his name on the bottles because he knows it’s not all about him but the components that add up to something greater than the individual ingredients.
Yet the company wouldn’t exist without him. And what are the next steps when inevitable growth occurs? Investment is often required, and that can either come from entrepreneurial entities or loans from banks.
Potter turned to SMBX as a loan mechanism. SMBX (theSMBX.com) is an online marketplace for small business bonds that leverages both the crowd-funding appeal like Kickstarter—where smaller investors can feel a part of the bigger project—with the benefits of a bank loan: professional accountability, the ability to earn interest on the investment yet not seeing the interest lost to the big banking machine. He was inspired by his graphic designer, who had another client who utilized SMBX for their own fundraising.
Once his campaign was active, anyone within the SMBX community could view the business plan, loan requirements and 11% interest rate and decide how much to invest. It could be friends; it could be strangers on the other side of the country—anyone who felt the business plan was worthy of investment.
Then Potter announced the investment proposition to the people who love his wine the most: Municipal’s own customers and fans. And he offered the most motivational perks of all: his wine. That’s when his investment project took off. Within a week, the program had shot straight through its goals, raising over $120,000. Not only were enough locals enthusiastic to take part, but outside individuals invested as well.
With that, Potter plans to add a tasting room in Ventura. There, he will have room to expand his wine storage and welcome the growing crowds of curious and future wine enthusiasts—the kind of people he has enjoyed throughout his winemaking career. He will realistically need more investment than just SMBX’s small business bonds provide, but this communal method of fundraising was a win-win for his company and the people able to invest. Look for more in his new space. He’s not leaving Santa Barbara, but Ventura is a great place to be.
Resources
Visit www.municipalwinemakers.com for more information.
