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Date: 12/18/2023
WEST SPRINGFIELD — Mark Avery was on his way home after another day in an office cubicle working in the sales department of an industrial tooling company. He was bored and dreaming of the day when he could give his two-weeks notice, quit his job and work somewhere else. Then it hit him.
Two Weeks Notice Brewing Company would be a great name for the brewery he and his wife, Murph, were hoping to open.
“I was driving home one day and we had been talking about a name for a while,” said Avery. “We wanted it to be relatable to people. The brewery was on my mind and I was thinking, ‘Man, I can’t wait to give my two weeks notice.’ And then the light bulb went off in my head.”
The 41-year-old had already mastered the art of homebrewing. He’d been making his own beer — five gallons at a time — under a pop-up tent outside his Southwick home for years.
“I brewed my first batch and there was something about it. That’s what lit a fire under my butt. I dove headfirst into it and wanted to learn everything about it. I absolutely loved it, and I still do,” he said.
After an initial false start, Avery and his wife got down to business and began sourcing sites for their new venture. They found a shuttered, old building in West Springfield, but when they took a tour, the location fell flat with Murph.
“I walked through it and cried because I couldn’t imagine it ever looking nice. It was terrifying to me. There was stuff hanging from the ceiling and it had sat dormant for two years before we bought it,” she said.
Murph Avery, 39, is an executive for an unemployment consulting firm her mother owns in West Springfield. She loves her job and doesn’t plan to leave it — so she works for her mom during the day and helps run the brewery at night and on weekends.
“I’m very dedicated to my career. My mom started the company when I was 5 and she’s getting ready to retire in 2024. I’ll be heading up the company when that happens, so there’s no plans for me to leave my job.”
Five-year anniversary
The Averys got to work in the spring of 2018, renovating the building that would eventually house their taproom. But they were quickly burning through cash and the building still wasn’t ready to host customers in a dining room or at a bar.
The couple had begun brewing beer in October, so they decided to start selling cans and cases of it, only to go, on December first — five years ago this month.
“We were quickly dwindling our funds and we said, ‘If we have the beer, we just need to open the front door and start selling it.’ The first day, we sold out in less than two hours — 60 cases. We had a line outside the building and into the parking lot. We sold cans every Saturday, sometimes on Sunday too if we hadn’t already run out of beer,” said Murph.
Untapping the brewery
The renovations continued, and in May 2019, Two Weeks Notice Brewing Company opened, offering fare from food trucks outside the taproom. Their bar offered a variety of beer they brewed — IPAs, lagers, stouts and sours along with hard seltzer.
At that point, Mark was manufacturing the beer, packaging it and generating publicity on social media. Murph was running the rest of the operation. The business was a runaway hit. There were special events and celebrations, live shows, dancers and games. The place was packed all the time and patrons were turned away once in a while because the tap room had reached capacity.
“We grew over time and were firing on all cylinders, and that’s when COVID hit,” said Mark.
Like many restaurants and bars, Two Weeks Notice closed inside service during the coronavirus pandemic, turning to curbside takeout only. The Averys made it through the crisis, but the crowds have yet to come back in full force.
“The landscape has definitely changed and business hasn’t returned to what it was. When we have big events, we still get packed houses, but the dynamic has changed,” said Murph.
When the taproom reopened post-pandemic, the business migrated away from food trucks, opened a kitchen and began offering sandwiches, grinders, mac and cheese and salads. One person runs the kitchen. There are four bartenders who take orders and bring dishes to patrons at the bar who can eat there or at tables in the dining area.
The Averys have made up part of their lost business by selling beer through a distributor to bars, restaurants and package stores across Massachusetts. Sales are split almost evenly between wholesale distribution and the taproom.
From its first days in business, Two Weeks Notice has benefitted from an enthusiastic welcome and sustained support from the craft beer community.
“People ask me all the time, ‘How do you feel about competing breweries popping up?’ It’s great. Let’s turn Western Mass. into a craft beer destination. We’re friends with most of the breweries around here. A few of them were in line here on opening day.”
Mark Avery always wanted to go as a customer to a bar where everybody knew his name. He never found one. Instead, he and his wife have created just such a place for everyone else.
“We have so many regulars that have become like family to us. We’ve created a place for people that has become their regular spot. They’ve become so familiar. We know them so well. This will always be one of the best things we’ve ever done.”
Two Weeks Notice Brewing Company is located at 110 Bosworth St., West Springfield. Contact them on the web at twoweeksnoticebrewing.com or by calling 413-707-1413.