Saunders Point Brewing

Saunders Point Brewing is built inside a restored historic movie theater and roller rink in downtown Gladstone, just north of Escanaba in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. “We’ve kept that character front and center,” said Jake Mills, the brewery’s founder, brewmaster and owner.

An opening for projectors points towards a stage area where the screen used to be. Smooth wooden floors evoke the roller-rink era of the 1980’s, along with lights in the ceiling that form an asterisk of multicolored bulbs. Even the name “Saunders Point” is steeped in history: the brewery is named after a small peninsula where a Captain Nate Saunders was known to fish in the mid-1800's.

Mills and his staff focus on crafting bold, memorable beers and opening their doors to the community for live music, trivia, fitness classes, fundraisers and collaborations with local businesses and nonprofits. “It’s not just a taproom; it’s a place where people come to work hard, unwind and stay connected to what’s happening in Gladstone,” said Mills.

A Detailed Plan

Getting the business up and running wasn’t easy – or cheap. Mills needed capital to rehab the building, bring it up to code, build out the tap room, install the brewhouse and construct cold storage. “I knew what I wanted to build, but getting a lender to see past ‘risky start-up bar’ and understand the full plan was tough.” It would ultimately take assistance from the Capital Access program from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) for the project to come together. But first, Mills had to find a lender.

The first few financial institutions he approached weren’t interested. At First Bank, commercial lender and analyst Kevin Gendron sat down, listened and took it seriously. Gendron worked with Mills to patiently pull together the projections and information needed to make the numbers work, grinding through the steps of the process.

“The first time I met Jake, he already had a very detailed business plan, and that's not something you see often; you could tell he was going to make this happen one way or another,” said Gendron. “His passion for the project really motivated me, and I tried my hardest to look down every avenue to help him. In the end, the MEDC collateral support was the perfect fit.”

Reducing the Risk

Mills and Gendron found that there wasn’t enough owner equity or collateral on paper to make the loan work within the bank’s normal limits. Because brewing equipment is very niche, the bank had a policy to discount its value as collateral, since it would be challenging to sell if there was a liquidation. “We were close, but not close enough,” said Mills.

Mills had already been talking with the Michigan Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and MEDC and had a basic idea of some of the available tools. He reached out to Amber Westendorp with the Capital Access program at the MEDC and explained the situation, and she affirmed that Saunders Point was exactly the right kind of project for the collateral support program.

“That support is what pushed the project over the line,” said Mills. “Without the MEDC stepping in and backing it, Saunders Point Brewing doesn’t get off the ground.”

Fortunately, Gendron was familiar with the program as well. “In the summer of 2022, Amber and her MEDC team gave an in-person presentation about all the MEDC programs here at First Bank,” said Gendron. “A few short months later, I started working with Jake, so the MEDC programs were still fresh to me.” MEDC worked with First Bank Upper Michigan to provide collateral support on a loan to do building improvements and purchase equipment, and Mills got to work.

More than Buzzwords

Saunders Point Brewing opened in December 2024. “Today, things are going well,” said Mills. “The community has backed us from day one, and we’ve proven that Saunders Point isn’t a novelty — it’s a place people come back to week after week for beer, events and a sense of community. It hasn’t been perfectly smooth, but we’ve worked through those growing pains and we’re fully prepared going into the next year.”

Mills encourages other small business owners and founders to reach out to the MEDC or SBDC early. “These aren’t just buzzwords in a brochure — they’re real programs with people who can help you structure your project, understand your options and, in some cases, unlock funding that makes the whole thing possible.”

Mills consulted with other local brewers as well. Nick VanCourt of Barrel + Beam in Marquette, George Schultz of ByGeorge Brewing in Munising and Jeff LaTulip of LaTulip Brewing in Cooks all provided generous and valuable counsel on the start-up process.

In the end, asking questions, using resources and making connections brought Saunders Point Brewing to its current success. “There were moments where it would’ve been easier to walk away, but standing in the taproom now — seeing the tanks running, people filling the seats and the community using the space the way I’d hoped — makes every headache worth it,” said Mills.

“I’m grateful for the support from MEDC, SBDC, First Bank and all the people who believed in the project before there was anything to look at besides an old building and an idea.”