Brett Vanderkamp

Holland, Michigan seemed like an unlikely place to create some of the most innovative beer and spirits in America. But Brett VanderKamp believed that his hometown and the brewing industry were due for a shakeup. He was twenty-four years old when he started the New Holland Brewing Company in 1997 in an abandoned factory with his best friend and $10,000.

In 2012, New Holland was recognized as one of the leading innovators in the craft brewing and distilling revolution sweeping the planet. With nearly 150 team members, New Holland's craft beer and spirits are sold in fifteen states, plus Washington, D.C. through a distribution network of nearly fifty wholesalers.

Brett has become a leader not only in his industry but in the community as well, serving on various boards (including the Holland Chamber of Commerce and its Public Policy Committee). He has been the chairman of Jubilee Ministries, a faith-based non-profit working to revitalize Holland's most troubled neighborhoods. He is a founding member, as well as the past president and Government Affairs Committee chairman of the Michigan Brewers Guild, a trade organization for over a 100 Michigan brewers. In 2011, Brett was honored as one of Grand Rapids Business Journal's "40 Under Forty" business leaders.