Indiana 250: Clayton Robinson

Clayton Robinson is co-founder and CEO of Indianapolis-based Sun King Brewing. He learned the craft of brewing beer at the Rock Bottom Restaurant and Brewery downtown in the spring of 1999. In 2005, Robinson began working at the Ram Restaurant and Brewery alongside his friend and Sun King co-founder, Dave Colt. During their time together, the two created the foundation for their business plan. Robinson left his job in 2008, and Sun King rolled out its first keg of beer in July 2009. It’s now available on tap and in cans throughout Indiana and in Florida, where Robinson and his family moved to recently.

Favorite part of leading

I love creating opportunities for our employees, challenging them and watching them grow!

Something surprising

I’m a huge Taylor Swift fan.

Hobbies

Travel is a lifelong passion, and I like to visit new places and see what fun things are out there.

Admires most

My father, Omar Robinson. He has worked hard all of his life, and his positive attitude, determination and work ethic laid the foundation for who I am today. He has started more businesses than I can count, and even when they failed, he did his best to learn from the experience, grow and start over.

Listening to

I listen to a lot of “How I Built This” [NPR podcast] because I love to hear the stories of other entrepreneurs and the challenges they have overcome to create successful businesses.

Advice for a young person

Find something you love. Work hard and put in the time and effort to become really good at it. Then dream big, follow your dreams and make them a reality.

Leadership lessons

Hire smart, passionate people and then get out of their way and let them do their job.

Relax and remember that, if someone does something differently than you would but gets the appropriate result, it’s OK.

Sabbatical topic

I would want to move my family abroad and immerse us in a totally different culture.

Worries about

I try not to worry. Inevitably, whatever you are worrying about never turns out like you thought, so instead I try to look at every challenge as an opportunity to learn and grow.”•