Education: Communications and business, Washington State University; Executive Management Program, Stanford University.
What drives/inspires you? We need less passive income business models and more engaged and hands-on leaders that bring hope and mentoring to the next generation.
Who has been a significant influence in your life and career? Jim Koch, founder of Boston Beer Co.. His accessibility and coaching shows humility, transparency, generosity, and a path forward that we share at No-Li.
What advice would you have for others looking to follow a career path similar to yours? Don't open up a brewery, with distributor distribution, unless you are prepared to scale to 15,000-plus barrels a year. You must commit all available time and resources to the trade. Be willing to make the sacrifices and have an understanding that it’s a life's work.
Do you have a favorite quote? “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”—Albert Einstein
John Bryant is on a mission to make Spokane a craft beer destination.
Bryant and his wife, Cindy, founded No-Li Brewhouse in 2012 and have since turned it into Spokane’s only regional brewery—a brewery that produces more than 15,000 beer barrels annually. No-Li reached new heights in 2023 by selling 20,000 barrels.
No-Li has racked up numerous awards for its wide selection of craft brews, including taking home four gold medals from the 2023 World Beer Awards, in London.
No-Li’s impact on the Spokane community goes beyond the beer, however, as the brewery has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to local nonprofits in recent years.