Brewing What They Love

Suzie Ford was a banker who had just been laid off; her husband Todd was an airline pilot who missed seeing his wife. They decided to change course and start a business together.

Since Todd liked to brew his own beer, and had learned a lot about craft brewing during his layovers in Portland, Oregon, a brewery seemed like a good option.

Suzie’s best friend is a CPA and she recommended they use the services of Guidant Financial to find funding.

“My friend had clients that had used Guidant’s services, so I got in touch and we decided to use their 401(k) rollover service for our initial funding. Everything was very easy—we were able to communicate by email and our outside counsel, Frank, answered all of our questions.”

The Fords opened the NoDa Brewing Company in the spring of 2011 and received a warm welcome in Charlotte. Now, their beer is served in Panther Stadium, at the Charlotte-Douglas International Airport and in numerous pubs around North Carolina.

“It’s art to us,” said Suzie. “We can’t paint, we can’t write, but we can brew.”

Learn more about NoDa Brewing Company at their official website. Read about them in the Charlotte Observer and WBTV.