Weevil Gear and Beer opens with retail store, beer bar, gardens off Ecusta Trail

HENDERSONVILLE – A local custom outdoor recreational brand’s expansion from online to in-person shopping includes a community gathering space at the entrance of the Pisgah National Forest in Transylvania County.

Weevil Gear and Beer made a soft debut in March at 367 Hendersonville Highway in Pisgah Forest.

Business partners Joshua Gaura and Dustin Watts purchased the former car lot five years ago, slowly constructing the building as the brick-and-mortar flagship retail store for Weevil Outdoor, a recreational apparel and accessories brand founded by Gaura in 2010.

Weevil Beer and Gear, 367 Hendersonville Highway, has opened with a retail store for mountain bike cyclists, a beer bar and two beer gardens in Pisgah Forest.

Weevil Gear and Beer is located along the Ecusta Trail, a 19-mile greenway under construction that will link Hendersonville, Laurel Park, Etowah, Horseshoe, Penrose, Pisgah Forest and Brevard. This makes it an ideal stop for nature explorers and others looking to unwind.

“We wanted a place that wasn’t clinical by shopping. We wanted a space where people could celebrate adventure, drink good craft beer, and merge it with our apparel brand,” Gaura said.

Weevil Outdoor’s retail line is designed to be comfortable, durable, practical, sustainable, fashionable, and suitable for customers’ mountain biking, kayaking, trail running or walking, or lounging activities.

“We custom make and design everything we do, so everything we have, I measure out, cut and sew, and we produce it, and that’s what makes us special,” said Gaura, a musician and outdoor adventurer.

Its Gear That Gives program donates 1% of online and in-store sales to the Pisgah Conservancy, a nonprofit working to maintain and improve the Pisgah Ranger District. This district includes the Pisgah National Forest, which has more than a million visitors annually.

Guara chose the name “Weevil” because it means “constantly in flux,” fitting for the brand’s diverse offerings. The weevil beetle, which is incorporated in the logo, is also known to be a resilient species.

Gaura and Watts will celebrate the store’s opening with a party and ribbon-cutting ceremony with the Brevard/Transylvania Chamber of Commerce at 5 p.m. on April 4. The event will include food trucks, music and more.

“We have this brand to be the heartbeat of what Pisgah Forest is,” Watts said. “Our goal as we continue to grow as a brand and a company is to embed the ethos of this area more and more into what we’re doing with the brand.”

Weevil Gear and Beer’s social spaces

Weevil Gear and Beer’s intentional layout promotes good vibes and good times for humans of all ages and their four-legged friends.

Guara said he and his family moved from Athens, Georgia to Western North Carolina and opened the store to spend more time with each other and nature. Watts, the former president of Terrapin Beer. Co. still resides in Athens and said the two cities are symbiotic for their nature offerings and culture.

Weevil Beer and Gear, 367 Hendersonville Highway, features a beer beer with local brews on tap and other adult and zero-proof beverages.

Weevil Gear and Beer offers two family — and dog-friendly beer gardens. The gardens have a bike parking area, picnic tables with umbrella covers and Adirondack chair seating, a standing bar section, a fire pit and a Weevillage kids’ play area. Soft string lights and the mountain landscape add to the environment.

The indoor beer bar features a hyperlocal beer lineup stocked with draft brews from regional giants like Highland Brewing and Sierra Nevada and neighborhood beer hubs like Griffon & Sphynx in Brevard. Other packaged adult and zero-proof beverages are available on-site or for to-go, making it ideal for those stopping in for refreshments while on the trails.

Beer tap handles are custom-made from bike stems by the Asheville-based bike manufacturing company Industry Nine and are color-coded to denote menu items.

Draft beers, ciders, and seltzers are $1 off every Tuesday, and 10% locals discounts are offered storewide daily.

Food may be ordered and delivered from local restaurants, and food trucks will occasionally be on-site.

Weevil Gear and Beer, 367 Hendersonville Highway, offers a loft space for hanging out and private events.

The second-level loft, which can accommodate about 50 people, is regularly accessible but may be reserved for private events.

In-house events, like movie-watching nights, are to come.

Watts said Weevil Gear and Beer strives to do good by creating a gathering space for the community.

“We’re excited to finally have it open and to get this place to do that because that’s the fun part of any business — the connectivity to people and bringing people together,” Watts said. “The beer and gardens bring people into the culture and the vibe of the brand.”