How Hillman Beer Selects Its Monthly Power in Pints Partners

At Hillman Beer, the idea of pulling up a chair and making room for the people around you is not just something that sounds good on paper. It shows up in the beer, the food, and in programs like Power in Pints, which turns every pint sold into a contribution toward something bigger. If your organization is wondering how the selection process works, or whether you qualify, this page walks through exactly how Hillman approaches these partnerships and what it takes to get involved.

What Power in Pints Actually Is

Power in Pints is a monthly community giving program run out of both Hillman Beer locations in Asheville and Old Fort, NC. Each month, a local nonprofit or community organization is featured across the taproom, and a portion of beer sales during that period goes directly toward supporting that group’s work.

The program is not a one-time donation box by the register. It is a structured commitment to rotating community investment, giving a different organization a platform inside the brewery each month. Featured partners are introduced to Hillman’s customers, giving nonprofits genuine exposure to a crowd that already cares about local connection.

According to NC Center for Nonprofits (2023), there are more than 26,000 registered nonprofits operating in North Carolina alone. Programs like Power in Pints help smaller, community-level organizations rise above the noise and reach supporters they might never encounter through traditional outreach.

What makes Power in Pints different from generic corporate giving is the personal nature of the selection. Brad, Greig, and Brandi Hillman are not running this through a foundation committee. They are choosing partners the same way they source their ingredients: by knowing the people behind the work and believing in what those people are building.

Power in Pints is Hillman Beer’s monthly giving program connecting each taproom’s pint sales to a featured local nonprofit or community group. The program runs across both the Asheville and Old Fort locations, giving organizations real financial support and direct visibility to an engaged local audience.

How Hillman Evaluates Potential Partners

Hillman Beer applies a values-led lens to every partner conversation. The question is never just “are they a nonprofit?” It is whether the organization reflects the same principles that built the brewery: community over competition, quality over flash, and genuine care for the people nearby.

There are a few consistent factors that shape how a potential Power in Pints partner gets considered:

• Local rootedness: Organizations serving the Asheville area or the Old Fort and McDowell County community are prioritized. Hillman’s giving stays close to home because that is where the impact is felt most directly.
• Mission alignment: Groups working in areas like food access, environmental stewardship, arts and culture, youth development, or community gathering tend to resonate with Hillman’s own priorities.
• Community visibility: Hillman looks for organizations that are active and known within their communities, not necessarily large, but present and doing real work.
• Approachability: Just as Hillman’s taproom is designed to feel welcoming to everyone, partner organizations that serve broad, inclusive communities tend to be a natural fit.

This is not a scored rubric applied by a review board. It is a conversation driven by people who have spent years building relationships across Western North Carolina. That human element is intentional.

“When businesses root their giving in genuine community relationships rather than brand optics, the impact compounds over time. People trust programs that feel earned rather than announced.”

According to Independent Sector (2023), community-level giving programs that involve direct business participation consistently generate higher donor engagement than arms-length corporate grant programs. Hillman’s hands-on approach reflects exactly that dynamic.

Hillman Beer evaluates Power in Pints partners based on local rootedness, mission alignment with the brewery’s values, and genuine community presence. The selection is relationship-driven rather than formulaic, which keeps the program grounded in the same principles that define Hillman as a brewery.

How to Nominate Your Organization

Getting your organization in front of the Hillman team starts with a straightforward nomination. There is no lengthy grant application or competitive bidding process. Hillman keeps the entry point low because the goal is to include more of the community, not to create barriers.

If you represent a nonprofit, community group, or grassroots organization serving the Asheville or Old Fort area, here is how the nomination path generally works:

1. Reach out directly: Contact Hillman Beer through their website or stop into either taproom location. A direct, personal introduction goes a long way with a family-owned business that values face-to-face connection.
2. Share your story: Come prepared to talk about what your organization does, who it serves, and why the work matters to your specific community. The Hillman team responds to specifics, not general mission statements.
3. Explain the local tie: Be clear about your geographic connection to Asheville or Old Fort and McDowell County. The closer to home your work is, the more naturally it fits the program’s intent.
4. Be patient and follow up: Monthly slots are limited by design. If your organization is not selected immediately, following up respectfully after a few months is completely appropriate.

Third-party nominations are also welcome. If you know an organization doing meaningful work and you think Hillman should know about them, passing along a warm introduction is exactly the kind of community-minded action the brewery appreciates.

According to The Urban Institute (2022), small nonprofits with annual budgets under $100,000 make up more than half of all registered organizations in the U.S., yet they receive a disproportionately small share of total charitable giving. Programs that actively recruit these smaller groups, as Power in Pints does, help address that imbalance at the local level.

Nominating an organization for Power in Pints is a direct, low-barrier process that prioritizes genuine community connection over formal applications. Both self-nominations and third-party referrals are welcome, with the strongest candidates having a clear local tie to Asheville or Old Fort and a mission that reflects Hillman Beer’s community-first values.

What Being a Featured Partner Looks Like

Being selected as a Power in Pints partner means more than a check at the end of the month. Hillman integrates featured organizations into the taproom experience in ways that feel natural rather than promotional. Customers drinking at the bar hear about the partner, understand the cause, and make a connection between the pint in front of them and the work being done down the road.

During a featured month, partner organizations typically receive:

• Taproom visibility through signage and staff communication
• A direct financial contribution from pint sales during the month
• Exposure to Hillman’s regular customer base across both locations
• An opportunity to have representatives visit the taproom and meet the community in person

Hillman’s taprooms are the kind of places people return to week after week. That repeat-visitor dynamic means your organization is not getting a single-night mention in front of a random crowd. It is sustained exposure across an entire month to people who already have a relationship with the space.

This is what separates Power in Pints from a one-off fundraiser night. The brewery’s commitment is ongoing, and the community comes back to it.

Power in Pints partners receive genuine taproom integration, direct financial support from monthly pint sales, and sustained visibility with Hillman Beer’s loyal customer base across Asheville and Old Fort. The month-long format makes the program meaningfully different from a single fundraising event.