The Kichesippi Beer Company closes tomorrow. What’s the outlook for other local brewers?

March 5, 2026

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As the Kichesippi Beer Company closes its doors, other brewers in the city agree that they’re also struggling with rising costs and dampened consumer demand. Last week, Paul Meek, owner of Kichesippi, announced that the popular brewery in Bells Corners would close on March 6 after 16 years in business. “The brewery is currently operating at a loss and has been for some time,” Meek said in a statement on Kichesippi’s website. “We are in the awkward position of not having enough money to brew more beer, which results in not having enough beer to make more money … Over the past year, I have worked on numerous scenarios to keep this team employed and our brand alive. As of today, however, I have not been able to secure long-term viability and profitability for Kichesippi Beer Co.” Meek said he explored many options, including selling the company or merging with another brewery. However, he told OBJ this week that the rising costs of labour and materials as well as the current economic climate created the conditions for Kichesippi’s closure. “(The price of) cans is going up. Raw materials are becoming more expensive. But the thing that hit us harder and is really tough to quantify is the economic uncertainty. “Times are tough and people worry about their own things, as they should. They need groceries, coats for their kids and gas in their tanks or pay for a bus pass. They don’t always need our beer. We’re a disposable income product,” he said. Ottawa has seen a few local breweries close over the past few years, including Conspiracy Theory Brewing Company in Bells Corners and Shillow Beer Co. on Cyrville Road. Meek said he has spoken to several local brewers who have highlighted the economic hardships of producing craft beer. “There’s a few that are doing okay, but nobody’s sitting around counting their money and bathing in a big pile of money. For the most part, when you ask how folks are going, they’ll say, ‘We’re just okay.’” Rob McIsaac, co-owner of Beyond the Pale Brewing Company, said he was sad to hear about Kichesippi’s closing. “We’ve had a great relationship with (Kichesippi) for a long time. Paul Meek is a great guy. He’s been a strong advocate in the brewing community in Ottawa. In the early days, Kichesippi used to wash our kegs before we got a keg washer,” he said. Though business is going well for Beyond the Pale, McIsaac said the nature of the local beer scene is seasonal. “We have big months in the spring and summer and then extremely slow months in the beginning of the new year. We’re in the down cycle now, but looking forward to patio season and people starting to come out and drink more beer,” McIsaac said. Rising costs are squeezing the industry in Ottawa and provincially, he added. “Since (the pandemic), we’ve had our payrolls, wage increases that have been over 50 per cent. My cost of goods has gone up considerably over that time.” Downtown, near the intersection of Flora and Bank streets, Dave Longbottom, owner of Flora Hall Brewing, is in a similar situation. “It’s increasingly difficult in this industry to generate any kind of positive return, because input costs have done nothing but go up since these businesses have opened,” he said. Longbottom added that beer-makers in Ontario operate at a disadvantage compared to their Quebec counterparts, due in part to higher costs and stricter taxation. “Ontario has a much higher level of taxation on beer than our neighbouring province. In Ottawa, we have this unique situation where we’re in the same urban geography as Quebec and yet they operate with much more favourable conditions … Most importantly, their channel to market is much better suited to small beer markets. “In Ontario, we operate under the weight of the LCBO. It’s a very difficult channel to manage for small beer makers. But when you look across the river, small brewers are able to get to retail shops and dépanneurs without the involvement of the SAQ,” Longbottom explained. Business owners need to be diligent about how they price their products and where they sell them, he added. “It’s all a matter of looking at your business operation to make sure you’re tuning it to the reality of the day. For me, Flora Hall is a brewery and a bar-restaurant operation combined into one. We’ve chosen to distribute our beer through an efficient channel of bars and restaurants in town and that’s the extent of it. All of the costs have gone up and that … eliminates profits and in some cases drives people into a loss-making situation. They’ve got a choice to make. How long are they prepared to fund that?” Looking to the future of local beer in Ottawa, Meek, McIsaac and Longbottom seem to be on the same page: cautious hope. “Like any market, there will be some (breweries) that don’t survive and there will be consolidation and mergers … But I still think there’s a clear appetite for this type of beer. It’s not going away. So it’s not a completely doom-and-gloom scenario,” Longbottom said. “I hope it stays,” Meek said of the local brewing scene. “The whole point of what we did years ago was based on my wife’s vision. She was a proud Nova Scotian. When you go to Nova Scotia, they have a certain beer culture that is synonymous with the experience. We wanted Kichesippi to be a part of that Ottawa experience.” The best way to ensure that no more breweries go under, Meek said, is for consumers to support them directly. “I hope people continue to support these hard-working people that are not making a ton of money but they’re loving their community and their product,” Meek said. “But buying habits need to change. If more people went into their local spot and bought beer directly, it would be a massive help.” When a customer purchases beer directly from the brewery, 100 per cent of the money goes back to the business, Meek explained. When a locally made beer is purchased at a third-party retailer, wholesalers tend to keep 25 to 30 per cent of the margin and it can take weeks before the brewer sees a share of the sale. As for Meek, he will continue operating his restaurant The Commons on Sparks Street while looking for another opportunity. “The Commons, our little coffee shop on Sparks Street, will remain open. It’s a small, little business. It can’t afford to pay myself, a manager and the staff, so I’ll be looking for work so we’ll see where I pop up.” Setting up for his final day of operations at Kichesippi, Meek said it’s been an emotional week. “We were packed all weekend and my second busiest day ever was this past Saturday,” Meek said. “For the sixth, there’s going to be a lot of drinks, tears and hugs … People are upset because (Kichesippi) is something that has become a part of their lives, their social fabric. “It’s been an honour. We’ve had people celebrate some really special part of their lives, whether that’s a wedding or a celebration of life for a loved one who loved our beer. Whether it’s for a glass or a special thing in their life, I wanted to say thank you, sorry and it’s been an absolute pleasure.”