Crowns & Hops
Crowns & Hops Brewing Co. is a Black-owned craft brewery and apparel brand based in Inglewood, California, selling three core beers (Hazy IPA, Pilsner, West Coast IPA) and mission-driven merchandise directly to consumers via Shopify and through retail locations surfaced by its Beer Locator tool.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2018
- HeadquartersInglewood, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Crowns & Hops does
Crowns & Hops Brewing Co. is a privately held, Black-owned craft beer brand headquartered in Inglewood, California, founded by Beny Ashburn and Teo Hunter. The company produces a small core lineup of craft beers, namely The Dopest Hazy IPA (6.8% ABV), 8 Trill Pils (5% ABV, tied to racial-equity awareness), and Los Angeles Sun West Coast IPA (6.5% ABV), alongside a branded apparel line including tees, crewnecks, hoodies, and vintage collections anchored on slogans such as "Black People Love Beer" and "Brown People Love Beer." The technology stack is intentionally lean and commodity-based: a Shopify-powered DTC storefront for direct sales, PayPal for payment processing, and Google Analytics for site measurement, with no proprietary software, AI/ML capabilities, or app products disclosed.
The business model combines direct-to-consumer e-commerce, retail/wholesale distribution surfaced through a "Beer Locator" tool on the company website, and one-time apparel unit sales priced between $35 and $80. The customer base is segmented into craft beer enthusiasts and diversity-conscious consumers, with no enterprise or B2B contracts disclosed and no named distribution partners. Distribution is currently domestic-only (United States, with concentration in California). The company has monetized its mission-driven positioning through equity crowdfunding rather than traditional venture capital, raising approximately $475,000 via an SEC Form D filing in July 2021 and over $1 million (reported $1,049,481) on StartEngine in January 2022 at a $16.43 million pre-money valuation. Marketing relies primarily on earned media (Forbes, Los Angeles Times, NPR/Marketplace, Wine Enthusiast Future 40 2022, KPBS, Intuit QuickBooks) and organic social (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube), with no evidence of paid acquisition infrastructure or enterprise sales motion.
Crowns & Hops firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Crowns & Hops
- Legal name
- Crowns & Hops Brewing Co.
- Website
- https://crownsandhops.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2018
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Crowns & Hops Brewing Co. is a Black-owned craft brewery and apparel brand based in Inglewood, California, selling three core beers (Hazy IPA, Pilsner, West Coast IPA) and mission-driven merchandise directly to consumers via Shopify and through retail locations surfaced by its Beer Locator tool.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Crowns & Hops industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Craft Beer
- NAICS
- Breweries (31212)
- SIC
- Malt Beverages (2082)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Beer Brewing & Brands (CRADAIAA)
Keywords
Where Crowns & Hops is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Inglewood
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Crowns & Hops business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel
Revenue model
- Beer Sales: Direct sales of craft beers including The Dopest Hazy IPA, 8 Trill Pils, and Los Angeles Sun through the company's e-commerce platform and potentially through retail locations identified via the Beer Locator tool.
- Merchandise Sales: Sale of branded merchandise including t-shirts, crewneck sweaters, hoodies, and vintage collections with slogans like 'Black People Love Beer' and 'Brown People Love Beer'.
- Crowdfunding Investment: The company raised over $1 million through a crowdfunding investment campaign offering shares at $5 each with a valuation of $16.43 million.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | T-shirts and merchandise apparel |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Hoodies and premium apparel |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Vintage collection apparel |
| One time/ perpetual license | One-time purchase | Equity crowdfunding shares |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
Crowns & Hops product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Crowns & Hops Brewing Co. is a Black-owned craft brewery based in Inglewood, California that produces and sells craft beer (including a Hazy IPA, Pilsner, and West Coast IPA) and branded apparel/merchandise celebrating Black and Brown culture in craft beer. Products are sold direct-to-consumer via a Shopify-powered online storefront and distributed through retail stores and restaurants located via the company's Beer Locator tool.
Product overview
Crowns & Hops Brewing Co. is a craft beer brewery based in Inglewood, California, focused on promoting diversity and inclusion in the craft beer industry. The company operates a dual product portfolio consisting of craft beers and branded merchandise. The beer lineup includes THE DOPEST HAZY IPA (a 6.8% ABV hazy IPA), 8 TRILL PILS (a 5% ABV pilsner supporting racial equity awareness), and LOS ANGELES SUN (a 6.5% ABV West Coast IPA). The merchandise line features apparel items including t-shirts, crewneck sweaters, hoodies, and vintage collections with branding that celebrates Black and Brown culture in craft beer.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- The Dopest Hazy IPA: A hazy IPA beer bursting with notes of citrus and sweet fruit balanced with mild woodiness and pine. Double dry hopped offering a smooth and creamy mouthfeel. ABV: 6.8%.
- 8 Trill Pils
- Los Angeles Sun
Products and services
- THE DOPEST HAZY IPA A Hazy IPA bursting with notes of citrus and sweet fruit balanced by mild woodiness and pine. Double dry hopped for a smooth, creamy mouthfeel. 6.8% ABV.
- 8 TRILL PILS A Pilsner brewed with Noble hops to raise awareness for racial equity in Healthcare, Education, Housing, Criminal Justice, Entrepreneurship, and Employment. 5% ABV.
- LOS ANGELES SUN A West Coast IPA capturing the bold sensation of California sunshine with a bright and clean taste featuring Simcoe and Nectaron hops. 6.5% ABV.
- BLACK People Love Beer Tee A t-shirt featuring the Black People Love Beer (BPLB) branding celebrating Black culture in craft beer. Priced at $35.
- BROWN People Love Beer Tee A t-shirt featuring the Brown People Love Beer branding celebrating Brown culture in craft beer. Priced at $35.
- BLACK People Love Beer Crewneck Sweater
Quantifiable outcome
- Featured in major publications including Los Angeles Times, Forbes, NPR, Wine Enthusiast (Future 40 2022)
Companies that use Crowns & Hops
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Crowns & Hops technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Feature3 records
Crowns & Hops partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Crowns & Hops competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Harlem Brewing Company: Harlem Brewing Company is a Black-owned craft brewery with a similarly mission-driven brand identity centered on the Harlem community. It is a direct analog in terms of ownership profile, scale, and cultural positioning to Crowns & Hops.
- Athletic Brewing Company: Athletic Brewing is a fast-growing, mission-led craft brewer (non-alcoholic) that built a national brand via DTC and community. It is comparable in using purpose-driven branding and e-commerce to scale a craft beer portfolio nationally.
- Monday Night Brewing: Monday Night Brewing is an independent craft brewery with a taproom-led model and a strong community/brand identity. Comparable in scale and brand-led growth playbook to Crowns & Hops.
- Drake's Brewing Company: Drake's is a regional craft brewer with a portfolio of IPAs and pilsners and a similar product mix. Comparable as a craft competitor of similar regional scale.
- Two Roads Brewing Company: Two Roads is an independent craft brewery with a diverse portfolio and strong DTC/taproom presence. Comparable as a peer in scale, distribution approach, and craft beer category mix.
Broad incumbents
- Lagunitas Brewing Company: Lagunitas is an established craft brewery (now owned by Heineken) with national distribution across IPAs, pilsners and seasonal releases. Comparable as a craft beer competitor with broad US shelf presence that Crowns & Hops would compete with for taproom and retail placement.
- Stone Brewing: Stone Brewing is a large craft brewer known for IPAs and West Coast style beers, with deep national distribution. It is a comparable West Coast IPA competitor for shelf and on-premise accounts.
- New Belgium Brewing: New Belgium (owned by Kirin) is a national craft brewer with flagship IPAs and pilsners and a strong values-led brand. It benchmarks what a successful scaled craft brand looks like in terms of SKU breadth and distribution depth.
- SweetWater Brewing Company: SweetWater Brewing (owned by Tilray) is a craft brewery with national IPA-led distribution. Comparable as a craft beer incumbent competing for the same on-premise and retail accounts.
- Firestone Walker Brewing Company: Firestone Walker is a large, well-respected craft brewer with broad US distribution and a diverse IPA/pilsner lineup. Comparable as a craft incumbent benchmark for pricing, distribution and brand-building at scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Crowns & Hops social profiles
Digital presenceCrowns & Hops financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Crowns & Hops leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Crowns & Hops funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Crowns & Hops M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Crowns & Hops
What does Crowns & Hops do?
Crowns & Hops Brewing Co. is a Black-owned craft brewery based in Inglewood, California that produces and sells craft beer (including a Hazy IPA, Pilsner, and West Coast IPA) and branded apparel/merchandise celebrating Black and Brown culture in craft beer. Products are sold direct-to-consumer via a Shopify-powered online storefront and distributed through retail stores and restaurants located via the company's Beer Locator tool.
Is Crowns & Hops a public or private company?
Crowns & Hops is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Crowns & Hops founded?
Crowns & Hops was founded in 2018. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Crowns & Hops based?
Crowns & Hops is headquartered in Inglewood, United States, in the North America region.
How does Crowns & Hops make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Beer Sales are the primary driver. The others are merchandise Sales and crowdfunding Investment.
Who are Crowns & Hops's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Harlem Brewing Company, Athletic Brewing Company, Monday Night Brewing, Drake's Brewing Company and Two Roads Brewing Company. Broad incumbents are Lagunitas Brewing Company, Stone Brewing, New Belgium Brewing, SweetWater Brewing Company and Firestone Walker Brewing Company.
Does Crowns & Hops have an API?
No public API is recorded for Crowns & Hops.
What industry is Crowns & Hops in?
Crowns & Hops's product category is Craft Beer. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRADAIAA, Beer Brewing & Brands. Its NAICS code is 31212 and its SIC code is 2082.