Wolfden Brewing Company in Bloomingdale.
Katie Wolf
Krystov Wolf
Broken Tongue beer from Wolfden Brewing Company in Bloomingdale.
Wolfden Brewing Company beer
Updated 10/13/2022 11:36 AM
Wolfden Brewing Company
112 W. Lake Street, Bloomingdale
(847) 610-5117
www.wolfdenbrewing.com OR https://www.facebook.com/wolfdenbrewing
Industry: Craft Beer
Number of employees: 9
An interview with Katie Wolf, owner of Wolfden Brewing Company.
Q: Describe your company.
A: Wolfden Brewing is a microbrewery in the heart of Bloomingdale. We serve beer, wine, cocktails, small food plates and even have a menu for your pups. We love entertaining our guests with live music in our quarter-acre beer garden, food trucks, game nights and lots of other fun events. Our beer is made in house so it’s as fresh as can be. We are located in one of Bloomingdale’s oldest farmhouses off Lake Street. The building is from 1851 and we’re also very haunted.
At Wolfden, we love creating a comfortable and inviting atmosphere for everyone. We are family run and it’s very important for our customers and our staff to feel like they are part of our Wolf Pack. We want anyone who walks through our door to feel like they are on vacation — relaxed and happy.
Q: Do you plan to hire any additional staff or make any significant capital investments in your company in the next year?
A: We do plan to expand in the next few years. We will be adding a canning line so we can distribute our beers to more local bars, restaurants, grocery and liquor stores. We will also be adding an event space to accommodate large parties and weddings.
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Q: What will your company’s main challenges be in the next year?
A: Inflation and staffing.
Q: What’s the hottest trend in your industry?
A: Quality beer, of course. Beer trends go in and out every year, but our priority is always producing the best tasting beer for everyone.
Q: Does climate change affect how your company does business?
A: Very much so. Winter months are more difficult, as our customers spend the majority of the warmer months in our gorgeous beer garden. We have fire pits and heaters for winter, but for those customers who don’t like the cold, it can be very challenging for us to accommodate. In the summer, we are able to have much larger events like our craft fair and Oktoberfest, where we can utilize our outdoor stage.
Q: What does your company do to reduce the effects of climate change?
A: We try to be as green as possible, but being open through COVID made that extremely challenging. We are getting back to being fully green and only using paperless products.
Q: Is your company minority-owned? Woman-owned? If so, what are the challenges of being a minority- or woman-owned company?
A: Our company is 50% women owned and so far there have been no challenges regarding this.
Q: What does your company do regarding DE&I (diversity, equity & inclusion)?
A: We celebrate and welcome all ethnicities, genders and identities at Wolfden.
Q: Does your company donate time or money to any philanthropic causes? If so, what causes?
A: Yes. We opened our business knowing that we had a unique platform to get the community involved. We love giving back to local charities, including the People’s Resource Center, Salvation Army and the National MS Society. We’ve actually created a beer with the People’s Resource Center and donated $1 from each beer back to them. This year we were so honored to receive the Philanthropic Business of the Year award from the West Suburban Philanthropic Network.
Q: What do you do to make your business a good place to work for your employees?
A: We consider our crew family at Wolfden. A main reason for opening a business was to create a place that everyone enjoyed working. We are very dedicated to work-life balance.
Q: Do you have a business mantra?
A: At Wolfden, we love creating a comfortable and inviting atmosphere for everyone. We are family run and its very important for our customers and our staff to feel like they are part of our Wolf Pack! We want anyone who walks through our door to feel like they are on vacation- relaxed and happy!
Q: What is one interesting fact about your company that most people may not know?
A: Everyone on our team loves pineapple and pepperoni pizza. And we have no shame.
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