Key stats:
- 4+ years working with Moementum
- 4x growth during the partnership – from approximately 25 to 110 employees, with even greater revenue growth
- Denison Culture Survey scores improved 4 years in a row, even after scaling
- Now among the top 20 U.S. beer/cider suppliers
About Colin Schilling | CEO
Colin Schilling is the CEO and Co-founder of Schilling Cider, the second-largest cider producer in the U.S. What began in a garage in 2012 has grown into a national brand known for its bold innovation, strong values, and people-first culture. With a background in business, Colin turned to Moementum to help scale sustainably and build a company people genuinely love working for.
“We had a system that was profitable. But we were falling apart inside,” says Colin. “Moementum helped us scale the right way, with culture at the core.”
Schilling at a glance
A fast-growing company, stuck in early-stage chaos
Schilling Cider had the sales, the team, and a thriving brand, but behind the scenes, things were starting to unravel. Leadership burnout, unclear roles, and ineffective communication held the company back.
Choosing culture over control
Inspired by insights from successful CEOs and organizational leaders, Schilling Cider knew it was time to pivot. The company brought in Moementum to help evolve from a founder-led, hustle-based operation into a values-driven, scalable business.
From growing pains to strategic growth
Over four years of partnership, Schilling Cider developed internal leaders, improved accountability, and built an employee experience people truly value. With Moementum’s support, the company grew to four times its original size, without burning out its team or losing sight of its values.
“We created a company we ourselves would want to work for. It’s amazing to be able to do that for our employees.”
Colin Schilling, CEO, Schilling Cider
Helping a founder-led business grow up strong
Founded in 2012, Schilling Cider grew from a garage startup to one of the country’s largest cider producers. Today, it operates across half the U.S., employs over 100 people, and is known for its innovative flavors and bold branding. But like many high-growth companies, its early success masked a deeper challenge.
Behind the scenes, internal struggles held the company back from what the founders envisioned. Leadership was micromanaging, and communication was inconsistent. And while the team was growing, the culture was strained.
“We were a company that was growing and profitable, but it was kind of falling apart in the background,” says Colin. “Things were working, but just barely.”
Scaling without structure was leading to burnout
Schilling Cider was scaling rapidly, but inside, leadership was stretched thin. They were making every decision with no scalable systems in place to delegate ownership.
In addition, team members weren’t on the same page, and accountability was unclear. Different employees would give conflicting answers, and even basic collaboration felt tough.
“The communication was often passive-aggressive,” says Colin. “We just wouldn’t have those difficult conversations.”
Without tools or norms around honest feedback, tensions simmered, and important issues went unaddressed. The founders were doing everything themselves, and although that approach had worked early on, it became unsustainable. They hadn’t yet planned for how they would build leadership capacity beneath them.
The founders also struggled to bring in experienced leaders who aligned with their values. They lacked the tools to develop internal talent or create a clear path for employee growth.
Despite their business education and early success, the founders underestimated how critical culture would be to long-term growth. It wasn’t until multiple CEOs told them that culture was their most important asset that they began to reconsider.
“Four people in a row told us that culture, not strategy, was the most important driver of growth,” Colin says. “It wasn’t even on our radar.”
From crisis intervention to culture transformation
Encouraged by what they heard from other experienced founders, Schilling Cider’s leadership team committed to finding a partner to help. They interviewed multiple consultants to find the perfect fit and chose Moementum for its deep experience, cultural fit, and research-backed approach.
“We had this list of 14 consultants. There were a few fantastic ones, including Moe,” says Colin. “What stood out was her experience, the substance in the books she’s written, her research, and how well she fit with our company.”
Moementum began with an intensive offsite retreat grounded in honest, emotionally charged conversations that marked a clear turning point for the company.
“The first offsite was very emotionally draining. We just hadn’t built the muscle to do that kind of work. But it was what was needed at the time,” says Colin.
The first phase focused on the executive team: leadership coaching, accountability practices, and building the foundation for a people-first culture. Within six months, the team began seeing results.
A year later, Schilling Cider’s Denison Culture Survey scores were shockingly strong and have continued to rise even as the company quadrupled in size. Moementum helped develop a senior leadership team and coach internal talent into management roles. Rather than rely on external hires, Schilling prioritized developing from within.
“We have now built an incredibly strong leadership team,” says Colin.
Building a workplace people want to be part of
Employees at Schilling Cider are genuinely engaged, fulfilled, and excited to be part of something bigger.
Moementum helped the company codify its values into team agreements, or ways of working that are co-created, reviewed regularly, and referenced daily.
“It’s operational,” says Colin. “It’s not just something on a website. It’s how we treat each other.”
Perks like tenure-based rewards, generous benefits, and unique employee experiences like a company-paid trip to Europe for long-serving team members make Schilling stand out in the industry.
“Moe helped us create team agreements, which we review monthly with employees and direct supervisors,” says Colin. “That’s made a huge improvement to the day-to-day experience.”
Scaling culture alongside business growth
With Moementum’s ongoing support, Schilling Cider has grown from 25 to 110 employees and ranks among the top 20 beer and cider suppliers in the U.S.
“We’ve grown four times in headcount and much more in revenue since we hired Moe, and we’re working the same amount of hours or maybe even slightly less,” says Colin. “And we’re more successful.”
Schilling Cider didn’t grow in spite of its values; it grew because of them. These strong company values have enabled growth and success, while leadership is more aligned for the future. Teams are more accountable, and employees feel proud to work there.
“Our culture has become a massive competitive advantage,” says Colin. “It’s not just internal. It shows up in our brand, in our customer experience, in how people talk about us.”
Staying the course and scaling smart
Schilling Cider’s focus now is stability and smart growth as it continues to develop as a company.
In a tough market, the company is doubling down on what works: leaning on its culture and internal clarity to weather economic uncertainty and deepen its impact.
“We’re trying to be disciplined. We’ve chased shiny objects before, but what we need now is to go deeper into where we’re successful to drive profitability and efficiency,” says Colin.
With Moementum as a strategic partner, the company continues to evolve its leadership, refine its culture, and keep doing what got them here: building a business people believe in.
“Our goal during the downturn is to capture as much market share as possible and stay healthy for when things turn around,” says Colin. “It’ll only create more opportunity for the future.”