The owners of popular West Perth microbrewery Phat Brew Club are calling on craft beer lovers to crowdfund a second venue at Hillarys Boat Harbour.
On September 24 the brewery will launch a campaign to raise capital for Trophy Room, a 500sqm taphouse and kitchen on the site of the old Jetty’s restaurant next door to The Breakwater pub on the Hillarys boardwalk.
Managing director Travis Moore said Phat Brew Club hopes to raise up to $1.2 million to part-fund the venue, with supporters asked to chip in $1 per share with a minimum of $250 to “join the club”.
Moore said Trophy Room will have similar fun and family-friendly vibes as the City West brewpub, which opened in February last year after the founders won the 2020 Margaret River Brewhouse’s Backyard Brewing competition.
Aiming to open by October 2025, the new venue will serve craft beers brewed at City West while Asian street food will be available at both outlets.
Moore described Hillarys Boat Harbour as an “iconic spot in WA” and said Phat Brew Club would bring a point of difference to the area’s hospitality offerings.
While several east coast craft breweries have pursued crowdfunding initiatives, local privately owned craft brewers have been unable to do so due to WA liquor laws deeming that all shareholders in a licensee occupy a position of authority, and therefore need to be vetted.
Moore said he successfully lobbied for an exemption, arguing that the current laws make it difficult for WA craft breweries to compete at a national level.
He said the crowdfunding campaign is an extension Phat Brew Club’s existing membership of around 300 “Phat friends”.
“We hope people continue to want to buy into our exciting and fun brand and brewery,” he said.
While South West craft brewer Rocky Ridge is due to open a taphouse in Duncraig this summer, Froth North Beach is the only notable venue offering experimental or left-of-centre beers north of the city.
“The northern suburbs are under-serviced in terms of craft beer,” Moore added.
Trophy Room will feature the bright colours of Phat Brew Club’s branding and feature a playground to “really lean into that family vibe”, he said.
The crowdfunding drive runs until the end of October.
