Kegstar launched in Australia on 12 December 2012. It had 880 kegs, one person and one customer, Stone & Wood.
Twenty one months later, Kegstar has:
• A fleet of 25,000 stainless steel 50-litre kegs produced by Thielmann Container Systems
• A team of eight people; a trans-Tasman footprint for keg rentals and collections
• More than 60 breweries and cider producers as customers
• Approximately 40 logistics partners…
…and a now whole new venture. Kegstar commenced operations in New Zealand during September.
Kegstar rents kegs both domestically within New Zealand, and also allows for trans-Tasman keg flows for all our customers.
Kegstar’s launch customer for the New Zealand market is innovative brewery, Garage Project, that created 24 new beers in 24 weeks using Ernest Hemingway’s encouragement as its guiding light: “Always do sober what you said you’d do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut.”
Jos Ruffell from Garage Project commented, "Kegstar opens up a huge opportunity for us to send fresh keg beer to venues, cities, and even countries that we would otherwise struggle to reach. It's huge for us and for our drinkers, who can now, thanks to Kegstar's unique model, look forward to seeing Garage Project on tap at their local."
So that Kegstar can live up to its new promise, it has expanded its team:
Joe Cook has been promoted to chief operating officer, Australia and New Zealand, and will lead Kegstar’s operations across Australia and New Zealand.
Mat Herring has joined as chief financial officer, Australia and New Zealand. He has held senior roles at Liquor Marketing Group and ING Real Estate and is a passionate amateur brewer.
Sam Maitland has joined as business development manager from McLaren Vale Beer Company where he was State Manager for New South Wales and Queensland. Before that, he worked for Shaw & Smith Wines.
Carlie Newbold has joined as customer service lead, from Nespresso and Sonoma Bakery.
Kegstar is owned by Adam Trippe-Smith, Shane Bradley and Brambles. The asset pooling business rents empty kegs to beer and cider producers, who fill the Kegstar kegs with their product and deliver them to a licensed venue pouring their product. Once the keg is empty, Kegstar collects the empty kegs so that they may be re-hired to another customer in the same city.
