Pricing a tap takeover: what to charge and what it costs you

Which pricing model fits a tap takeover?

Brewery events are configured with four: flat, tiered, member/non-member and group rate. A takeover usually wants flat or tiered — flat when the ticket buys admission and one pour, tiered when there is a "and you keep the glass" version worth ten dollars more than the standard one.

Be aware of one limit before you plan a mug-club price: member/non-member exists as a pricing model, but verifying a guest against a membership roster is not enabled for this vertical. A club price today means a promo code you give your club, not an automatic check.

• Flat — admission plus one pour, the simplest thing that works.
• Tiered — a standard spot and a glassware or extra-pour spot above it.
• Group rate — for parties, capped at ten guests per booking.
• Member/non-member — available as a price tier, but not roster-verified here.

What does a release actually cost in fees?

The platform fee is 2.5% + $0.99 per paid spot and nothing else: no monthly fee, no setup fee, no contract. On a $28.00 spot that is $1.69. Across 90 spots, a $2,520.00 release pays $152.10.

Card processing is charged by the payment provider on top, at their rate, and is not marked up by bindro. When you compare platforms, compare platform fee plus processing — a headline rate that excludes processing is not a number you can plan with. A free release costs nothing at all.

Should the guest or the taproom pay the fee?

Either, and it is a setting rather than a rebuild. The fee itself does not change with the choice — only which side of the sale it comes from. Taprooms running a premium takeover usually absorb it, because a round number on the poster is worth more than the fee; taprooms running a thin-margin community night usually pass it on. Both are defensible; changing it mid-release is not.

Where does the extra revenue actually come from?

Add-ons, not ticket price. Add-on attach rate is one of the three KPIs this vertical is scored on, and it is the easiest number to move: a branded glass, a takeaway four-pack of the beer being released, or a food plate attached at checkout converts far better than the same item offered at a busy counter.

Sales tax is calculated and held as a liability rather than mixed into your balance, so the payout figure is proceeds rather than a number you still have to do subtraction on.

• Attach the glass at checkout, not at the bar.
• Sell the four-pack of the released beer as an add-on — it is the one thing every attendee wants.
• Gift cards are a liability account, not a discount, so they reconcile cleanly.
• Comped spots for the visiting brewery write no revenue lines and stay out of your averages.

When does the money arrive?

Two days after the event ends. Brewery events are low risk tier, so no reserve is held. Bindro does not pay before delivery under any circumstances — a pre-event advance is a configuration violation platform-wide, because a payout on an event that has not happened is how a cancellation turns into guests with no refund.