Episode 96: Can Outcast Brewing Stay Ahead as Drinking Habits Change in St. Pete? | Richie Hamm
When Richie Hamm opened Outcast Brewing in St. Pete, he wasn't entering an easy industry.
The brewery opened in September 2024, right before hurricanes disrupted businesses across the area. Then came another challenge: Richie started noticing people's drinking habits changing.
Instead of trying to compete as just another craft brewery, Richie and his team started asking a different question:
How do you build a place people still want to visit even if they don't drink beer?
In Episode 96 of Talkin’ St. Pete, Ryan Bogden sits down with Richie Hamm, owner and founder of Outcast Brewing, to talk about building a brewery in St. Petersburg, changing consumer habits, rising business costs, AI, supporting local businesses, and what St. Pete's continued growth could mean for the city.
Outcast Brewing Was Never Meant to Be Just About Beer
St. Pete already has a strong craft beer scene, so Richie knew Outcast needed its own reason for people to make the trip.
Part of the inspiration came from something simple. Richie loves craft beer, but his wife isn't a big beer drinker. Going to a brewery often meant trying a beer or two before moving on somewhere else.
Outcast was designed to give different people different reasons to stay.
There's the traditional taproom, but also a sports area, a wine room, a lounge with mocktails, fitness events, markets, watch parties, live events, and community gatherings.
Groups like Pinellas Run Club have gathered there, and Outcast has worked with local artists and instructors for markets, yoga, Pilates, and other events.
Richie's goal is for someone to be able to walk in without caring about craft beer and still find a reason to hang out.
What Happens When People Start Drinking Differently?
One of the biggest conversations in Episode 96 is how consumer habits around alcohol are changing.
Richie says he's watching more people explore alternatives like THC drinks, while health and wellness are becoming a bigger part of the conversation around alcohol.
For a brewery owner, that's something he can't ignore.
Rather than assuming people will always drink the same way, Richie watches what customers are buying and where the market appears to be moving.
That's part of why Outcast's broader concept matters.
If fewer people are choosing beer on a night out, a brewery that depends entirely on beer has a problem. A place built around community, events, food, wine, mocktails, fitness, sports, and different experiences has more ways to bring people through the door.
The Real Cost of Running a Local St. Pete Business
Changing consumer habits aren't the only pressure Richie is dealing with.
He and Ryan also talk about the costs behind running a local business, from ingredients and utilities to insurance, credit card fees, labor, and other expenses.
Customers see the final price.
Business owners see everything that happened before it reached the menu.
Richie says that creates a difficult balance. He wants customers to feel like they're getting good value, but he also has to protect the quality of what his businesses offer as costs change.
That conversation connects to something Ryan talks about often on Talkin’ St. Pete: keeping money moving through St. Pete's local business community.
Richie says one of the things that surprised him about St. Petersburg was how willing local business owners are to help one another, even when they're technically competitors.
For him, that support has become part of what makes doing business here different.
What Should St. Pete Become Next?
The conversation eventually moves beyond Outcast Brewing and into the growth happening across St. Petersburg.
Richie and Ryan discuss downtown development, housing costs, local businesses, and the future of the Historic Gas Plant District and Tropicana Field site.
Richie sees an opportunity for St. Pete to think carefully about what that land could become and how a future development could serve both residents and visitors. He also raises affordable housing as an issue he believes needs to remain part of the conversation as the city grows.
For local businesses like Outcast, these aren't distant questions.
Where people live, what they can afford, why visitors come to St. Pete, and how different parts of the city develop can all affect the businesses around them.
Richie has watched St. Pete attract more people, investment, restaurants, events, and businesses. He believes the challenge is continuing that growth without losing the local community that made people want to be here in the first place.
Building Something Different in St. Pete
Richie's background wasn't originally in brewing.
Before Outcast, he worked in technology and communications, including systems that helped companies connect teams across different locations. That experience still shows up in how he approaches business today.
He watches trends. He experiments. He uses AI tools to analyze information and save time. And when consumer behavior changes, he wants to understand it instead of ignoring it.
That's also the story behind Outcast Brewing.
It's a brewery, but Richie doesn't want beer to be the only reason people know it.
He wants it to be one of those St. Pete places where different communities can show up, find something they enjoy, and keep coming back.
And in a city with plenty of options, giving people a real reason to choose you may matter more than ever.
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