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Someday Somehow Brewing in Vasse, on the outskirts of the City of Busselton, is the passion project of Ryan White, who, after a decade of winemaking, ‘saw the light’ and made the switch to brewing beer.
Launched in 2024, Someday Somehow is a small boutique brewery that proudly produces gluten free beers and non-alcoholic beverages.
Due to the business’ unique gluten-free offering, Ryan had been working on the business behind the scenes for a lot longer.
Along with being a small business owner, Ryan is also the Chair of the Margaret River Regional Producers Association (MRRPA), where he has learnt a thing or two about running a business in the South West region.
Gluten free goodness
Most beers are brewed with barley or wheat, which are grains that contain gluten. This means that people with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity usually miss out when it comes time for a pint.
At Someday Somehow, the beers are brewed with sorghum, quinoa, rice or corn, so they are completely gluten free.
For Ryan, it was an easy choice - he wanted to make a product that anyone could enjoy regardless of their dietary requirements.
“When I first started out, I had a few friends who asked me if I could make my beers gluten free and I wanted them to be able to feel like, ‘oh, there's that moment that I’ve been missing with a friend and I’m really looking forward to doing it again’,” Ryan explained.
“It was hard at that time to do so, we had to try out different techniques but after a lot of time and effort we decided that yes, we can make everything gluten free.”
“It took a few years of research and development, but we finally got to a place where I where I was really happy with the product and we did a big launch.”
Learning from the SBDC
Prior to starting his business, Ryan had engaged with the Small Business Development Corporation (SBDC) through his work with the MRRPA.
Ryan had attended SBDC Regional networking events and workshops with small business owners on behalf of the MRRPA, so he knew the SBDC would be a great resource when it came to starting his own journey.
“When starting a small business there are a lot of things that you don’t know that you don’t know,” Ryan laughed.
“That’s one of the major benefits of engaging with the SBDC, you really don’t realise all of the things that you don’t know and at the workshops you’re able to pick up that information really quickly.”
Ryan White had been in the beverage business for over a decade before starting his own small business with the help of the SBDC.
Regulation pains
Producing beverages for human consumption comes with a long list of regulations and requirements. For Ryan, figuring out exactly what needed to be done to get his products to market was one of the greatest challenges so far.
“There’s a lot of paperwork involved, and there is a lot of back and forth with the local Shire,” Ryan explained.
Beyond that, Someday Somehow has also faced the usual challenges that arise for regional businesses.
“There’s an ever-present issue with logistics and getting stuff where it needs to go, but everyone knows that going into regional business ownership.”
“We’re a long way away from everything, so that will always be a hard part.”
A frothy future ahead
Someday Somehow already has a jampacked calendar, attending the Margaret River Farmer’s Market every Saturday and brewing up beers all year round, but Ryan relishes the extra time he gets with family since starting his own business.
“The best part about running a small business is that you do, to some extent, get to choose your hours that you're working,” Ryan said.
“Obviously there are lots of hours that you need to put in, but it allows me to do things like walk the kids to school in the morning and have a little time with them early in the day, which is great.”
Looking ahead, Ryan is excited to continue having a hands-on role in serving up good beers and growing his business.
“We'd love to be able to provide great gluten-free beer to everyone, but we're really focused on doing the fun bits so there's a size limit that we can reach.”
“You get to a point where you can start competing in the lower end and higher volume, but we're going to stay in the higher end and lower volume for sure,” Ryan explained.
You can find Someday Somehow beers at the Margaret River Farmers Market each week, on their online store or at boutique liquor stores across Perth.
More information
See our tips and tricks for managing business regulation and compliance requirements
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