When Left Hand Brewing Company redesigned its logo in 1995, it was important that the symbol not only convey the company’s values, but that it also look good on a bottle cap.
Twenty years and 24 Great American Beer Festival medals later, the brand’s readily recognizable red, left hand insignia is a reminder that the best choice is often the simplest.
Simplicity is a guiding philosophy for Chris Lennert ’94, chief operating officer and minority owner of the Longmont, Colo.–based brewer.
Lennert didn’t always embrace the less-is-more approach. After earning a business administration degree and becoming the inaugural recipient of the Schottland Leadership Award in the School of Business, he set out on a fast track to the corporate life. Along the way, he learned valuable lessons about the risks of choosing pay over passion.
One of his first jobs was serving as a strategic assistant to Baby Superstore founder and CEO Jack Tate, a longtime philanthropist and namesake of the College’s Tate Center for Entrepreneurship (now called the Tate Center).
Chris Lennert ’94
It was a heady job for a single guy in his early 20s, but Lennert felt blindsided when Baby Superstore was sold to Toys “R” Us in 1997. He soon went to work as a buyer for Bi-Lo in Greenville, S.C., only to discover that he didn’t enjoy the suit-and-tie world or the aggressive business practices of the grocery industry. “It started to come into focus what I wanted my life to be,” he says. “Am I chasing the almighty dollar or am I chasing a better life? I decided I’m going to trade money for meaning.”
The outdoors had always held meaning for Lennert. He loved camping, hiking and mountain biking, so he began lobbying several outdoor companies for interviews until he signed on with Boulder-based Kelty, where he developed a line of kids’ products into the company’s most profitable division.
After a few years, Lennert jumped to a new company called GoLite. As vice president of sales, he oversaw several years of rapid growth before the company, which had helped spark the minimalist trend in the outdoor industry, began to overextend itself. Having learned another valuable lesson, Lennert moved on.
“I absolutely love what I do,” says Lennert. “I don’t really consider it a job. I consider it part of who I am.”
As he was plotting his next career move in 2005, Lennert occasionally stopped in for a pint at Left Hand Brewing. One thing led to another, and within weeks, he was working there. It was a huge leap of faith. He and his wife had just had their second son, he was taking a big pay cut, and he knew very little about making beer. But he had something that couldn’t be bottled: passion.
Fast-forward 10 years, and both Lennert and Left Hand are thriving. The company has seen nine straight years of double-digit growth, racked up numerous awards for its brews and swelled its employee roster to more than 100, including two other College alumni (Lauren Foster ’13 and Brynn Keenan ’14).
“I absolutely love what I do,” says Lennert. “I don’t really consider it a job. I consider it part of who I am.”
The success has also prompted Lennert and the company to give back to the communities that support them. For the past several years, Lennert has organized cycling teams in multiple states and has raised more than $1 million for multiple sclerosis.
“I love making beer,” Lennert observes, “and if we can leverage our brewery to do good, that’s one of the best things that we will be able to put our stamp on.”
This article originally appeared in the summer 2015 issue of College of Charleston Magazine.
