Starting a microbrewery is an exciting and possibly daunting enterprise. Get started on the right foot, and build a following with the best craft beer in town. This is only achievable with quality craft brewery equipment that will make workflow smooth and get you great results. 

SilverChef provides good quality, stringently tested, used microbrewery equipment to get you started without massive upfront costs. Some crucial microbrewery equipment includes commercial fridges; pass through and under counter dishwashers; glasswashers; prep benches and stainless-steel furniture to name a few. 

So, you’ve decided to take the plunge and open your microbrewery. The first thing to do is talk to a financial institution of your choice and secure a business loan for covering operating costs, renovating and wages.

SilverChef can help alleviate the financial strain by taking the cost of microbrewery equipment off the initial capital outlay. If you're looking for flexibility, and you're not 100% sure of the correct size and model of the microbrewery equipment you're choosing, you could opt for our Rent-Try-Buy product, which allows you to try the equipment in your brewery before you decide whether to buy, upgrade or return.

If you know what you want, you're financing more than $10,000 of microbrewery equipment, and you've been in business for more than 12 months, you could choose our Lease-to-Keep option. With Lease-to-Keep you choose your microbrewery equipment, make monthly payments over a four year term, and own your equipment at the end.

Renting craft brewery equipment can be a good alternative to buying outright. Firstly, there are a lot of costs involved in setting up and running a craft brewing business, so choosing to rent microbrewery equipment can leave you more money for running your business.

Secondly, there may be tax benefits to renting microbrewery equipment – it’s important you discuss these with a qualified tax advisor before making any decisions.

Finally, with SilverChef’s Rent-Try-Buy you get additional flexibility over typical equipment rental products. You can decide to upgrade your brewery equipment in the first 12 months if you need something bigger and better. You can also decide to purchase it and get a 75% net rental rebate on your payments so far (up to 12 months).

At the end of your 12-month contract, you can decide whether to keep renting your microbrewery equipment, work towards ownership, or return. Please note that if you decide to purchase your craft brewing equipment after the end of your 12-month term, the net rental rebate drops to 25% after 12 months.

The difference between leasing and renting has to do with the length of term – with the length of a lease typically being longer. SilverChef offers a rental product, Rent-Try-Buy; and a finance lease product, Lease-to-Keep. They are different in several important ways.

At the end of the 12-month rental term, you have the additional options to return, continue renting or work towards ownership of your commercial bakery equipment with our Easy Own® product.

To choose Lease-to-Keep, you must have been trading for a minimum 12 months, and be financing a minimum of $10,000 in bakery equipment. You sign up for a 48-month term, make monthly lease payments, and at the end of the term you own the bakery equipment (providing the last payment has been made and you are not in breach of the agreement).

If you've chosen Rent-Try-Buy, it’s a good idea to be sure that you’re happy to rent your chosen craft brewing equipment for the full term of the initial 12-month contract (with the option to upgrade or purchase during the term). This is because, if you decide to return your rented microbrewery equipment equipment before the end of the term, you will still be required to pay all the unpaid rental payments up to the end of contract term.

As the renter or lessee of the craft brewery equipment, you are responsible for properly insuring it, and arranging and paying for all servicing and maintenance on the brewery equipment. If the brewery equipment breaks down this is a manufacturer warranty issue and you will need to contact the manufacturer to arrange repair or replacement as per their terms and conditions.