Ways to Tap Into Your Cidery’s Culture & Build a Strong Team
- Jon Sicotte
- Jun 25
- 3 min read
Building a strong culture within your team isn’t just a feel-good initiative. It’s a business imperative to cultivate a strong company ethos.
From the orchard to the taproom, your company’s culture starts at the top and permeates every interaction, every pour, and every guest experience. When employees understand the values behind the cider they’re serving and feel ownership in the mission, the result is more than just good hospitality, it becomes a brand experience that can resonate with customers and create loyalty beyond the glass.
For cideries looking to strengthen internal culture, there’s a common takeaway: it starts with leadership showing up, being clear, and connecting mission to action. Whether that means being present on the floor, tightening onboarding systems, or aligning community engagement with brand values, the strongest cider teams are rooted in purpose and that purpose, when shared, drives both morale and customer trust.
But that culture isn’t automatic. It takes reflection on ownership’s part along with reinforcement with lots of learning the hard way along the way.
Patrick Kwiatkowski, co-founder of City Orchard in Houston, says he didn’t fully appreciate how essential the tasting room would be to the business until it was already up and running.
“Our taproom defines our company and our product. It’s that simple,” he said. “If a customer has a bad experience they will not purchase our cider at a grocery store or at another bar.”
His advice to others is to treat the taproom not just as a revenue center, but as a direct extension of your marketing strategy. Kwiatkowski works hands-on alongside his team daily, modeling commitment and passion for the product.
“They see me working hard and I talk to them about our cider and company constantly,” he said. “Most of our employees work with us because they are proud of our products.”
That personal leadership is echoed at Big Mountain Ciderworks in Montana, where co-owner Jennifer DeSmul believes strongly in leading by example. She’s not afraid to get her hands dirty, she said, whether it’s bussing dishes or educating staff on cider blends.
“I am on the floor and kitchen daily, interacting with our guests,” she said. “Doing whatever needs to be done while being a positive presence and role model for what I expect from my team.”
But she also doesn’t shy away from the harder aspects of leadership, like letting go of toxic employees.
“Firing people is the worst part of my job, but my mantra is ‘People fire themselves. I just put the nail in the coffin,’” DeSmul said. “That person affects the entire team and brings down morale. Just fire them and move forward.”
Lost Boy Cider founder Tristan Wright has learned that clear systems and expectations can outweigh charm or intuition when it comes to onboarding.
“Clarity beats charisma when it comes to training,” he said. “Early on, we assumed everyone would ‘get it’ by osmosis. Now, we have a clear system, checklists, and coaching process that sets people up for success right away.”
That clarity, he said, is an ongoing effort rooted in open communication between leadership, the front-of-house team, and production staff.
“We’re constantly looking for ways to evolve and improve processes,” he added.
Finnriver Marketing Director Laura Prendergast said instilling the company’s values into staff isn’t confined to words on a wall, it’s woven into the community programming itself.
“We bring our mission and values into the tasting room by centering them in both staff training and community programming,” she said.
Events like Earth Day celebrations and Salmon Days reinforce connections between agriculture, ecology, and community. The cidery’s collaborations with nonprofits and local organizations, such as the North Olympic Salmon Coalition, help create an atmosphere where staff and guests alike feel part of a larger purpose. Prendergast added that things like “Round Up at the Register” initiatives that benefit social justice nonprofits to showcase local artists and food producers and show Finnriver’s values are lived daily.
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