SturmHaus Beer Market will close its doors for the last time on Friday, Dec. 5.
As owners, Dave, Marsha and Matt Sturm have struggled with this decision for the past several months and have concluded that SturmHaus’ craft beer market share is not enough to sustain their vision for a quaint, downtown on-premise, off-premise gathering place.
The owners said, "We deeply regret having to make this decision and feel as though we are burying a close family member. Since opening our doors in February 2013, we have made many new friends and consider many of our regular customers as part of our family. These new friends and the love they have shown us make this decision even more difficult. Downtown Chattanooga is a vibrant, growing community that opened its doors to us and welcomed us with unexpected support.
"Being the first combination pub and growler store in Chattanooga, we have seen many new faces on the craft beer scene in a very short amount of time. This competition, coupled with the changes in beer/wine/liquor laws in Tennessee, has caused our slice of the craft beer pie to shrink to the point of not being able to meet our sales requirements.
"We encourage everyone to stop by to help us celebrate and remember the good times and great friendships we have experienced these past two years. Cheers!"