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After nearly a month in the dark, Great Southern Beverages has resumed operations with a plan to return the business to profitability.
“I think we’ve got a good plan to turn it around and make it what we always anticipated it would be,” said CEO Jeremy Roberts, who purchased the business, formerly known as BrewHub, in 2025.
But to do so, the Lakeland copacker at 3900 Frontage Road will need to overcome cashflow issues, a pending eviction, and a consumer landscape far different than the heady years when craft brewers challenged the domestic beer industry.
A changing market
Brew Hub was founded during the craft beer boom in 2014 by two former Anheuser-Busch employees, Tim and Diane Schoen. Tapping into the demand for mid-scale brewing capacity by craft brands, it produced beer for clients including Orange Blossom Brewery, Cigar City Brewing, and Publix’s 1300 Mile Brewing label.
Eleven years later when Roberts purchased the business, the industry was much changed — shocked by Covid and shifting consumer preferences. Young adults don’t drink as much, and older drinkers have embraced spirits.
Now, Roberts, who also owns Brew Theory in Orlando, said the business will no longer produce alcoholic beverages and will instead pivot to ready-to-drink (RTD) products.
“Obviously, craft beer isn’t gonna be it. You know, the consumer demand isn’t there, but RTDs are still strong,” said Roberts. “There’s a couple of new niches coming on with the THC and the nutraceuticals and the protein type beverages.”
Brew Hub’s financial challenges began before Roberts acquired the business.
Roberts said they knew they were inheriting some issues from the previous owners. Most were known, but some took him by surprise.
From Brew Hub to Great Southern Beverages
Power and water
Meanwhile, bills and unexpected expenses were piling up.
A public records request to Lakeland Electric by LkldNow revealed a months-long struggle over outstanding electric and wastewater bills with the new ownership.
Emails between Lakeland Electric account managers and Great Southern Beverages’ management detail multiple missed payments resulting in near or temporary power and water cut-offs, despite multiple advanced warnings and extensions on overdue bills.
According to emails between the utility and Great Southern Beverages, no payments were received for the wastewater account from July 2025 through March 2026, resulting in an outstanding balance of $94,992 on one of multiple accounts.
In an email dated March 31, 2026, Lakeland Electric warns “the accounts would be up for delinquent cut on 4/14/2026,” with the outstanding balances shown as $89,244.28 on one account and $38,124.06 on the other account.
In an email, Great Southern Beverages expressed a commitment “to getting the account fully up to date and maintaining it that way going forward,” on April 16, 2026.
On May 11, 2026, Lakeland Electric and Great Southern Beverages agreed to a repayment plan with a signed a promissory note, guaranteeing weekly $40,000 payments to Lakeland Electric beginning May 15 until their balance was paid.
However, service was cut at the beginning of June for nonpayment, temporarily ceasing operations.
Billing documents as of June 24 reflect a payment of $59,533 to Lakeland Electric and the account back in good standing.
Overcoming financial challenges
On May 8, 2026, Great Southern Beverages settled a lawsuit filed by Sea Isle Spiked Iced Tea the previous September.
The complaint stemmed from a dispute on deliverables and pricing from a contract begun under Brew Hub in 2023. The original suit was for “relief and damages in excess of $50,000.” The details of the settlement are not publicly available.
The following week, the company reportedly missed payroll to employees. Former employee Clay Ritchings estimated that there were about 20 to 25 employees working in brewery operations at the time, not including temporary workers and Yancey’s taproom staff.
On June 25, Ritchings reported he has received his back pay from May and believes other staff have been paid as well.
Records filed with the Polk County Clerk of Courts reveal that on June 11, the Becker Organization filed to evict Great Southern Beverages from the property. The suit claims Great Southern Beverages owes $364,118 in overdue rent and property insurance.
Roberts said he is working to resolve the eviction. “They are good people and we talk every day,” he said of the landlords. “We have a good relationship.”
Back from the brink
Roberts says he is “trying to make things right.” He expects to rehire most of the former staff, with 24 employees returning to a four-day work schedule.
Blending operations resumed at the end of June according to Roberts.
Yancey’s is gone, and Roberts no longer envisions the public space as a traditional taproom. He imagines it as a private event and banquet hall. A staff member is already lining up future events. Roberts estimates the venue will accommodate 100 to 150 people.
He believes the business’ shift from alcoholic to non-alcoholic beverages will lend itself to more stability with less heavy regulation.
“The market is still there,” Roberts said. “We’ve just got to make sure we find our niche and do it in time.”
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