Growlerwerks uKeg

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Another retail location selling ukegs before Kickstarter supporters receiving theirs. High Gravity Brew in Tulsa, OK.

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Growlerwerks is giving conflicting information. They’re telling Kickstarter backers that they’re not providing refunds as it destroys the integrity of the product. They even said that to the Better Business Bureau in a statement. However, I found this gem on Twitter!

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GW now has a listing on the BBB - File your complaint today!

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In which GW tells the backers that they have essentially burned through most of the $1.5m, haven’t started production on the uKeg 128 yet, are planning on hiring MORE staff, forget about a founding member, Chris Maier, and are too easy on their customer service, whom is just copy/pasting form letters.

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Meet the Founders: Evan Rege

According to Evan Rege’s LinkedIn profile, he has a background in mechanical engineering before coming to GrowlerWerks as what appears to be the design process. As with Maier, this is stated as his first start-up venture. He is currently still with the company.

While it seems to be inactive, his Twitter account. He doesn’t seem to use this at all: SketchFab account.

Email him: [email protected]

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In which GW admits their lack of transparency and lack of communication. They have been in cahoots with Kitchen Kaboodle since 2014, yet didn’t feel necessary to mention it to backers until 12/11/15 when product hit retail shelves before backers have been fulfilled.

GW is also “confused” by a commenters reference to a June 2015 fulfillment reference. To the right is a screenshot from the Kickstarter “Reward Pledges” which range between Dec 2014, Jan 2015, May 2015, the majority reading June 2015, which was when the original delivery and for those local to Portland, Oregon - “fulfillment party” was going to take place.

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From a Kickstarter backer who recently received their uKeg 64. Posted on the Kickster forum 12/16/15. Seems their 100% quality control that has caused over six months of delays really hasn’t panned out like they planned.

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From a customer who received a uKeg 64 retail from Amazon retail and pitched their concerns on the Kickstarter blog on 12/15/15.

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Meet the Founders: Chris Maier

Chris Maier is the original of three founders. His LinkedIn profile shows that he was with GrowlerWerks from August 2013 - July 2015. (GW officially became an LLC in 1/31/2014)

Maier left GW and is now listed, as of August 2015 as the founder of “SalsaMango, LLC” (State of Washington Business Licensing has “Salsa Mango, LCC” listed with Chris Maier as the governing party. No location or mailing address listed. However, further business registration shows that this is still “Active” and listed as 1821 NW Astor Ct, CAMAS, WA, 98607)

SalsaMango is described by Maier on LinkedIn as, “SalsaMango is a startup company developing a network of community-based digital screens to promote local events, activities and businesses – typical content now displayed on community bulletin boards and poster walls.” (Initial search can not find any further information such as a website, Facebook or Twitter, though the URL “SALSAMANGO.COM” is registered to an account out of NZ, but has a non-transferrable lock through an anonymous Google server.)

Prior to these two start-ups, Maier has worked in product management and mechanical engineering according to his LinkedIn account. Profile from “EntrepreneurWiki”

Maier’s FB Page

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Fulfilling Retail Contracts Before Kickstarter Backers

Kickstarter comments regarding GrowlerWerks providing to local retailers before backers. GW signed contracts with Kitchen Kaboodle, Amazon BevMo (and other high-end kitchen and beverage retailers) which they are currently stocking in tandem and prior to Kickstarter backers. Backers who have been waiting over a year and are still continuing to wait until spring 2016, could hypothetically walk into the store and purchase the item and still not receive it from GrowlerWerks directly for six more months. This wasn’t publicly announced to the backers until December 11, 2015. The same day that the products showed up on store shelves and online for purchase.  (12/13/15) Martin P:    I had to go back to the same Kitchen Kaboodle store at 4pm. There were only 3 boxes left, so it is selling very well. For the record it was not me who took it upon Kitchen Kaboodle staff, that would be ridiculous. I politely explained to the store employee that I was a disgruntled backer and asked for permission to take a photo of the shelve full of uKegs. I then promptly sent the photo to people I enthusiastically talked about uKeg over the year just to show what Growlerwerks was all about. My wife also commented about the situation the very same way Greg's wife did. The timing and wording of the last two updates in one day (suddenly) is also interesting -- dropping term "backers and customers" just a day before they knew the product would be on the shelves locally. Now imagine if Kitchen Kaboodle calls that it sells well and they need more -- will GW keep to 15/85 ratio or will they redirect shipments for backers to Kitchen Kaboodle right away? Having backer handles in the retail boxes is quite telling no matter what they say.”

Greg O: “Yesterday (Saturday 12/12/15) someone commented that they went to the Kitchen Kaboodle on Hall Blvd in Portland/Beaverton and there were about 2 dozen uKegs on the shelf. I went over there at 3:30 pm and there 5 of them left in boxes, one on display. The store employee I spoke with told me they were selling like the proverbial hotcakes. She also said that other backers had been in and some of them weren't very nice. Hey--it's not her fault! Unfortunately, as I told her, I do think Kitchen Kaboodle is going to suffer some blowback, which is too bad, it's a good local company.The good news is, I looked carefully at the display one and it had none of the quality issues apparent in the YouTube video. The tube that in the video he says is plastic was metal, although I do not think it was brass. The only issue I noticed is that the glass sight tube had crud in it. I hope it can be removed and washed because I wouldn't want my beer mixing with that stuff -- although I might have found a good use for Budweiser!Last, after my trip to Kitchen Kaboodle I met my wife at a local brewpub. I haven't kept her in the loop on any of this, but when I told her about it being for sale at retail she said "Didn't you give them your money over a year ago? That's outrageous!" You would think somebody at GW would have had a *smacks head with palm* eureka! moment of insight like this.”

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More bad news. Check out the update at YouTube saying this: I have completed a pressure test. I put beer in the growler with cartridge on Saturday night. drew a couple beers . next day I had to turn up the regulator cap and it pushed out another beer. so I put it up. today I couldn't push the beer out and the beer is basically flat and of course that's due to the cartridge being spent. From the Kickstarter Comments:  12/13/15 - Travis S: “At this point my ukeg [64] will not hold pressure and when I put in a new cartridge the whole thing expelled at once. Tried to open the lid and found a rusty beer coated spring and screw.”

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Production Set-Backs & BBB Complaint

December 14, 2015; Complaint filed with BBB. You can file a complaint here. Unfortunately, they are not yet in the BBB database yet and you will have to enter their business information. According to the Oregon Business Registry: 

Principle Place of Business 2406 SE TAGGART ST Portland, OR 97202

This complaint specifically focuses on their uKeg 128 and production delays regarding that item. It highlights from the GrowlerWerks blog, the seven times they specifically called out production delays. 

Personally identifying information removed regarding consumer.

“This company hosted a Kickstarter.com crowdsource in fall 2014 with the estimated delivery of product of June 2015 in which 10,293 people helped support to the total of $1,559,525 - far beyond their anticipated $75,000 goal. I participated in this project in 11/14 as backer **** by funding $180. The company promised to compensate me with the "uKeg 128 Gift Pack. Includes two glasses, t-shirt, carrying bag, and additional custom tap handle. A gift brochure will ship for the holidays. U.S. shipping included." I did receive the brochure in the mail in December 2014. 

The initial production update already warned backers of delays, 2/13/15: "Initial uKeg 128s will arrive in June and total fulfillment may push into July. We realize this is inconvenient but we can assure you we’re working as hard as possible to deliver quality products ASAP." 

5/11/15: "Unfortunately we won’t be able to ship uKegs in June and July as planned. Instead, we're doing a pilot run of 200 uKeg 64's at the end of this month, and then starting production for Kickstarter delivery in July, August and September." 

6/18/15: "We may still complete uKeg 64 fulfillment by 9/10 [Sep/Oct]. The uKeg 128 is now six weeks behind, with fulfillment starting 10/11 [Oct/Nov]." 9/4/15: "We will be visiting the factory again in the next couple of weeks to inspect development of the uKeg 128 bottles, and will provide more complete information about the ukeg 128 delivery schedules then."

10/1/15: "Based on this schedule, and the shipping time required, we unfortunately expect to fulfill very few uKeg 128 orders before the end of 2015."

11/18/15: "As we stated in our last update, we’ll be working through the uKeg 64 production through the end of 2015, then switching over to uKeg 128 production in the beginning of January." 

12/11/15, they posted (http://www.growlerwerks.com/blogs/news/81389956-a-personal-message) they state they are serving retailers first and "By February we hope to have all uKeg 128s orders fulfilled by Spring.

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Oregon State Business Filing Records

Growlerwerks Domestic LLC Registry #994649-93 Articles of Organization filed: 1/31/2014 Articles of Dissolution filed: 12/30/2015

Growlerwerks Inc Registry #1072761-98 Application for Authority: 12/30/2014

Interesting browse. One of the three founders, Chris Maier, whom is on the documentation and listed as the registered agent on the LLC documentation disappears from the filing once they become a foreign business corporation. 

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Email from Growler Werks

12/14/2015 I sincerely apologize for the delayed response to your inquiry, we have received a very large number of email recently. Also, please send any further questions/concerns directly to [email protected].  

Regarding your request for a refund, I apologize but we cannot honor that. Since we’re still working to complete this project and feel that success is nearly at hand, we don’t feel it’s appropriate to begin offering refunds of backer’s pledges at this time. To do so would reduce the impact of other backer’s pledges and undermine the chance of success of the project as a whole.

We do genuinely appreciate your support and patience. We are working our hardest to deliver your reward as soon a possible. Please let me know if you have any further questions.

Cheers, Lauren Customer Relations