For Juan Camilo ’07, the name “Dyckman” is more than just the moniker for his successful beer business; it’s home. Born in Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, Camilo moved to the vibrant Dyckman Street in Manhattan’s Washington Heights neighborhood at age five and found himself among a close-knit community of fellow Dominican Americans. Although his education took him to Smithfield, Rhode Island, for college and California for an entrepreneurship fellowship at Stanford, Camilo never lost touch with the sights, smells, and tastes of his past.
Camilo entered the working world with a degree in Finance and a minor in Legal Studies, but admits that he was unsure of what lay ahead for him. After working in sales and trading back home in New York, he dabbled in global investments for seven years before hitting a wall. Camilo toyed with going back to school but, while making his own home brews, found inspiration in the explosion of craft beer options across markets.
“I thought, ‘It’d be great to have a Latin-inspired beer company,’” he says. In 2014, Dyckman Beer Co. was born.
From the brewing to the packaging, the beer carries Camilo’s memories, from the D.R. to the heart of the Heights. The Highbridge Summer Ale, a fruited beer, offers a slight sweetness to bring out the chinola, or passion fruit, while the seasonal chocolate stout is made with authentic cacao imported from the Dominican Republic.
“I guess I’m in the big leagues now.”
Although Camilo traded his business suits for brewing barrels, he built his startup by using his finance background to gather stakeholders and create a plan; he put his legal studies education to use when forming contracts with vendors. One of his largest is Yankee Stadium, which proudly offers his flagship pilsner Dyckman Brew, a Munich-style malt beer, to quench fans’ thirst during hot summer games.
“It was the perfect validation that I needed,” Camilo says of securing the storied ballpark. “I guess I’m in the big leagues now.”
But that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for further expansion. Camilo’s brews can currently be found in more than 100 bodegas throughout New York City, but he hopes to open a second location and bring the beer to hops lovers in New Jersey, New England, and Florida.
