The Business of Making Tella

When I decided to develop the Lalibela Brew Tour and create a great thing to do in Lalibela, I had a limited understanding of the economics behind running a Tellabet, a traditional beer house. As we conducted our research, our brewers taught us a lot about the business of brewing Tella.

In your visit to Ethiopia, you may be surprised by the high proportion of women that work on construction sites. Many of them are day laborer and get paid a meager wage. One of the brewers I met has been working as a day laborer for over 10 years. The work was taking a toll on her body, and after consulting with several of her friends decided to quit and start selling tella. Because many of the brewers have a particular production schedule (for example, sell tella only on Friday and Saturday), one group had an opening in their weekly schedule for her. She now works only three days a week, and make 25% more per month than she did working six days a week as a day laborer.

Making beer in Ethiopia, and in Lalibela specifically is a good way for women to own and operate their own business as well as escape some less attractive employment options.