# Mark Hellendrung

> Mark Hellendrung is the Rhode Island native who bought a fading 1890 beer brand for less than $100,000 and made it New England's again. As owner and CEO of Narragansett Brewing Company, he resurrected a lager that had nearly vanished, brought brewing back to Rhode Island after a 30-plus-year exile, and opened a waterfront brewery and beer hall on the Providence harborfront. Before beer, he ran Nantucket Nectars and coached the team at Magic Hat. His pitch has always been the same: stay homegrown, stay local, and don't sell out to the big guys.

- **Role:** Owner & CEO at Narragansett Brewing Company
- **Organizations:** Narragansett Brewing Company, Nantucket Nectars, Magic Hat Brewing Company
- **From:** East Providence (Rumford), Rhode Island, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** High school diploma, East Providence High School, Bachelor's degree (Class of 1990), Brown University
- **Known for:** Revived the Narragansett Beer brand, founded in 1890, after it had nearly disappeared from the market., Bought the brand with investors for under $100,000 and rebuilt it into a multi-million-dollar regional beer business., Restored Narragansett's original lager recipe with the help of former brewer Bill Anderson after decades of cost-driven changes.

## Career timeline

- **1990** — Graduated from Brown University, where he played baseball and ran beverage distribution for his fraternity, Theta Delta Chi.
- **1994** — Joined Nantucket Nectars, the juice company founded by Brown classmates Tom First and Tom Scott.
- **1996** — Became president of Nantucket Nectars, serving until 2002.
- **2003** — Served as interim president of Magic Hat Brewing Company, coaching its sales and marketing teams (through 2004).
- **2005** — Led a group of New England investors to buy the Narragansett Beer brand from Pabst/Falstaff for less than $100,000.
- **2017** — Brought large-scale brewing back to Rhode Island via The Guild in Pawtucket, the brand's first local production in over 30 years.
- **2019** — Announced and purchased 271 Tockwotton St. in Providence's Fox Point neighborhood for a new waterfront brewery.
- **2021** — Opened the new Narragansett brewery and beer hall on the Providence harborfront.

## Achievements

- Revived the Narragansett Beer brand, founded in 1890, after it had nearly disappeared from the market.
- Bought the brand with investors for under $100,000 and rebuilt it into a multi-million-dollar regional beer business.
- Restored Narragansett's original lager recipe with the help of former brewer Bill Anderson after decades of cost-driven changes.
- Returned commercial brewing to Rhode Island for the first time in over 30 years through The Guild cooperative in Pawtucket.
- Developed and opened a new brewery and European-style beer hall on the Providence waterfront in the Fox Point neighborhood.
- Previously led Nantucket Nectars as president from 1996 to 2002.

## Latest updates

- **2021-08** — Opened the new Narragansett brewery and beer hall at 271 Tockwotton St. on the Providence harborfront.
- **2023-12** — Appeared on The Public's Radio Political Roundtable to discuss Narragansett's resurgence and what it shows about Rhode Island.

## Links

- Website: https://narragansettbeer.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/markhellendrung
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/Gansettbeer
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gansettbeer
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/narragansettbeer

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/mark-hellendrung
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-11