As Aurora brewery closes, groceries become the new Valas family business
Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe Now
Instead of talking about Great Crescent Brewery that he and his family have run in Aurora over the last 16 years, Dan Valas likes to talk about history.
Valas is particularly inspired by the story of James and Thomas Gaff, who moved to the small Dearborn County town just across the river from Ohio in the 1840s and started a distillery there. The Gaff brothers eventually moved to Cincinnati and became wealthy there on a variety of business enterprises, but Valas admires how they put Aurora on the map.
That’s part of the reason Valas and his wife Lani felt conflicted as they looked to wind down their brewery business without finding anyone willing to continue on the legacy of brewing in the city’s downtown.
But then two things happened. Early last year, downtown Aurora’s sole grocery store—Tandy’s—closed after decades of operation. And in the last few months, Dan Valas was diagnosed with cancer.
Valas told Inside INdiana Business those two events gave him and his family a chance to think about what their next steps were. Those conversations led to a new path for the family—transitioning their brewery into a grocery store by early next year.
“It’s a city of 3,5000 people,” Valas said. “The closest grocery store is a couple miles away. What we wanted to do was serve the community that’s right downtown here. What we wanted to do was create a place where people can go and just get their weekly groceries, maybe stop in and get a grab-and-go lunch.”
The new store—which will be called Aurora Marketplace—will be much smaller than a supermarket, but it’ll have fresh items. Valas pictures a deli counter and perhaps a bakery as well.
“Our main goal is to get some fresh vegetables and stuff like that back down here for the people that live in the city,” Valas said.
Valas said he anticipates a grocery store being easier to manage given that there are no age restrictions for hiring additional help beyond himself, his wife and their son. Besides, the Valas family figured out how to run a brewery and add a restaurant, so they feel up to the challenge.
As the family embarks on a new chapter, there’s uncertainty, but Valas said he believes in the power small businesses have to make communities better.
“I think it’s really important for people to understand that a small, family business can be successful. It can be serving their community. I think a lot of times people are shy of it because they don’t think they can do it,” said Valas. “Small communities in the Midwest and anywhere, they need people to believe in them and support them.”