Running your own delivery van for kegs and cases
Once a brewery sells to a handful of bars, someone has to get the kegs there. Running your own van gives you control of freshness and the customer relationship. It also brings costs that are easy to underestimate.
Start with the cost per drop
The question is not whether you can afford a van. It is what each delivery costs and whether that beats the alternative. Add up the monthly costs: van loan or lease, insurance, fuel, maintenance, driver salary, a helper if needed, tolls and parking. Divide by the number of drops a month.
Here is an illustration with round numbers. If the van costs ₹90,000 a month all in and makes 120 drops, each drop costs ₹750. A drop that delivers two 50 litre kegs carries ₹7.50 of delivery cost per litre. The same van doing 40 drops a month costs ₹2,250 a drop. Volume decides whether a van makes sense.
Keep the beer cold on the road
Indian heat is hard on beer. A keg sitting in a closed van at midday in May can warm a long way during a long route. Warm beer ages faster. Unpasteurised craft beer suffers most. An insulated van body is the minimum. A refrigerated van is better for long routes or cans.
Plan routes so beer spends as little time on the road as possible. Deliver early in the day. Our guide to keeping beer cold from brewery to bar covers the full cold chain.
Kegs are heavy and dangerous to handle badly
A full 50 litre stainless steel keg weighs roughly 60 kg or more. Lifting it in and out of a van many times a day is how drivers hurt their backs. Fit the van with a tail lift or a ramp, use a keg trolley and strap every keg upright so it cannot roll when the van brakes.
Check the van's rated payload, not just the floor space. A small commercial van can fill its floor long before it reaches its weight limit with full kegs. Overloading wears brakes and suspension and may break your insurance terms.
Paperwork travels with every load
Beer moving on Indian roads needs excise paperwork. Most states require a transport pass or permit for each movement of liquor, issued against your licence and the buyer's licence. The details, timings and fees vary by state and change, so check your current state rules or ask your licensing adviser.
The driver must carry the right documents for every drop on the route. The quantities must match. A van stopped with kegs that do not match its pass is a serious problem for the brewery licence, not just a fine for the driver.
Choose and train the driver carefully
Your driver is often the only person from the brewery a bar's staff see every week. A driver who arrives late, drops kegs on their side or argues about where to stack empties damages the account faster than any competitor. Hire for reliability and manners as much as driving skill.
Train the driver on keg handling, how to read the excise pass, how to check keg numbers and what to say when a bar raises a complaint. Give them a phone number for the sales lead and a rule: never promise a price or a credit on the spot. A driver who listens well and reports back is worth paying a little more than the market rate.
Use the van to collect empties and information
A van that delivers can also collect. Every drop is a chance to pick up empty kegs, which is the single best way to cut keg losses. Give the driver a list of which kegs each bar holds and record what comes back.
Drivers also see things sales staff miss: a tap that has been off for a week, a competitor's beer on the next line or a bar manager who has changed. Ask drivers to note these on a simple form. It turns a cost centre into a source of market information.
Compare it fairly with a distributor
A distributor or third party logistics firm spreads van costs across many brands, so their cost per drop is often lower at small volumes. The trade-off is control: they decide routes, they may not keep beer cold and they own the daily contact with the bar.
Many breweries start with a distributor and move to their own van once deliveries are frequent enough in a tight area. Our guide on selling kegs to other bars covers the sales side that fills a route.
Track the van like a business
Once you have a van, measure it every month: drops, litres delivered, kilometres, fuel, cost per drop and cost per litre. A GPS tracker shows the real routes and idle time. Review the route every quarter as accounts are won and lost.
A van making 200 drops a month in a tight cluster can be cheaper than any distributor. The same van crossing the city for six scattered accounts is a very expensive way to feel independent. Run the numbers first.
Common questions
How much does a full 50 litre keg weigh?
Roughly 60 kg or more for a stainless steel keg, depending on the keg itself. Use a tail lift or ramp and a keg trolley.
Do we need excise permits to deliver beer to bars?
Most Indian states require a transport pass or permit for each movement of liquor. Rules vary by state and change, so check the current notification.
When is a delivery van cheaper than a distributor?
When you have enough drops in a compact area to bring your cost per drop below the distributor's rate. Work out the cost per drop first.
