JEREMY DUFFY AND DEVIN KELLY, owners of The Guild in Pawtucket, were honored as People of the Year by the Pawtucket Foundation during the organization’s annual awards celebration on April 25 at the Pawtucket Armory Arts Center. Duffy and Kelly were recognized for their commitment to revitalization in the city, creating jobs and being strong community partners within the city.
What was it about Pawtucket that made you want to start a business there? When evaluating locations in Rhode Island, Pawtucket was ideal. It had great, old industrial mill buildings with high ceilings, a requirement for large-scale brewing. It also was perfectly situated off of [Interstate] 95 and just north of Providence. We also quickly realized that there was terrific leadership in the city. Mayor [Donald R.] Grebien, his staff and the City Council have been great partners.
– Devin Kelly
What nonprofit work has The Guild been involved with in the city? It is important to be involved with our community. We are still “new” to the city, as we started brewing operations in March 2017, but we have been active in promoting Pawtucket through the Pawtucket Foundation and its Conant Thread District initiative, Blackstone Valley Tourism Council, and Pawtucket 20/20. Also, we are supportive of the arts through Pawtucket Arts and Burbage Theatre Company – we hosted eight performances at the brewery this summer. This is just the start, as we hope to be more actively involved in the coming years.
– Jeremy Duffy
How vital is it for your business to be involved in the community? As part of our mission for the venture, we always believed that we need to be active in our community. Businesses play a critical role in supporting vibrant communities. We try to use The Guild as a community platform – through supporting the arts, education and economic development – we want to be as helpful as possible.
– Devin Kelly
What plans do you have for The Guild? We still see tremendous growth opportunities at our 131,000-square-foot campus. While we continue to expand our brewing operations – we will be adding more fermentation tanks in 2019 to allow for greater beer production – we want to continue to grow as a destination experience. In October, we will be adding a 5,500-square-foot beer hall that will offer more variety of our beers and will add food. And due to a high demand for private events, we will have two special-event spaces that will allow for any size events. In 2019, we will be developing a larger beer garden in our back courtyard and working on a few restaurant concepts in additional space we have. It is all a work in progress.
– Jeremy Duffy