Stretch and Staple is a fine art canvas print shop located in our Phinney Ridge neighborhood since 2008. It was evident by 2013 that their booming print business would need to relocate to a larger space. Luck would have it that the perfect spot across the street was vacant. Greenwood and N 80th Street became the print shop’s home and business continues to thrive, thanks to a loyal neighborhood following.
Jumping back to 2015, business was good however rent prices in Seattle were skyrocketing. Taylor, the owner of Stretch and Staple, needed an innovative way to bring in more revenue. How he would stay afloat was a question whose answer teetered between reluctantly moving the fine art print operation out of Phinney and dreaming up a solution that would raise more revenue to avoid making a move.
Focused on finding a solution that would let him stay in the neighborhood he loves, Taylor took a good look at the print shop’s space and honed in on the idea of running two businesses out of one storefront. But what would that business be?
Homebrews, of course!
A homebrewer for many years, Taylor saw the potential of going commercial with his handcrafted brews. It seemed possible that he could convert the front end of Stretch and Staple into a neighborhood brewpub that featured his own original beers. Taylor ran the idea by his team and the response was an enthusiastic “YES!”
The looming question: Would the city allow the print shop to double as a brewery? Taylor inquired with the liquor board and they granted the go-ahead on his “Print in the Back, Party in the Front” concept.
By 2018 “Snapshot Brewing” came to life, adding a happy hoppy aroma to the corner of Greenwood Ave and N 80th Street – just across the street from Salmon Bay Community Lending!
Taylor developed a single-barrel brewing system in the cozy behind-the-scenes space at the very back of Stretch and Staple. Snapshot Brewing offers 5 to 6 flavors at any time, with clever photography-related names like Aperture Amber, Out of Focus IPA, Dark Room CDA (Cascadia Dark Ale), and Red Eye Raspberry Wheat.
The brewery has evolved since its inception, and most recently creatively reimagining its operations in response to COVID-19. In light of restaurant and bar restrictions, including indoor dining policies that emphasize the importance of social distancing, the City of Seattle made permitting for sidewalk dining easier to obtain and less expensive for establishment owners. Taylor took advantage of this ideal opportunity and set up outdoor seating. It’s now a very effective way to help Snapshot Brewing’s business stay steady during these uncertain times.
Snapshot also teamed up with its across-the-street neighbor, Taco Del Mar, for food orders. Taco Del Mar is cooking up street tacos exclusively for patrons of Snapshot Brewing. Customers simply place an order with their server and retrieve their meal across the street in a special locker designed for contactless delivery.
While customers can’t consume their brew or tacos inside, sitting outside is available while the warm weather lasts. Later this fall, Taylor may once again need to discover some new ideas to help his businesses roll with the changes of the COVID-19 era.
Taylor will tell you that being part of a tight-knit local business community like the one at the heart of the Phinney Ridge neighborhood has been invaluable during this tenuous time. “The support and camaraderie can help you get you through the rocky times,” he says, “we are all in it together.”
Salmon Bay Community Lending is not affiliated with Stretch and Staple or Snapshot Brewing.