In the middle of Calgary, Alberta, where the Rockies cast long shadows over a city full of new ideas, Manjit Minhas became a force of nature. Minhas was born on May 31, 1980, into a Punjabi Sikh family with Dogra roots. Her parents owned a chain of liquor stores that would later become the foundation of her empire. She had a strange talent for business from a young age. For example, she moved lemonade stands to rich neighborhoods to see if she could charge more based on how much money people made there. This early work was a sign of things to come: a career that would break glass ceilings in one of the most male-dominated fields in the world: brewing.
From Engineering Dreams to Entrepreneurial Fire
Minhas’s academic journey was far from straightforward. She enrolled in petroleum engineering programs at the University of Calgary and later the University of Regina. She did well in STEM classes, but she couldn’t help but feel drawn to creation over calculation. “After a few years, my focus changed to entrepreneurship,” she later said, choosing to give up her degree for the excitement of starting businesses. Minhas was only 19 and still in school when she sold her Toyota RAV4 for $10,000 and joined forces with her brother Ravinder to start a business in the alcohol industry.
Their first business in 1999 was small: they brought in private-label spirits for their family’s liquor stores. In 2002, they switched to beer and started Mountain Crest Brewing Company. The siblings’ risky move paid off big time. At the young age of 25, they bought the Joseph Huber Brewing Company in 2006. This was the second-oldest brewery in the U.S., having been founded in 1845. They had to deal with rules that crossed borders and bring back old brands like Huber and Rhinelander. By changing the name to Minhas Craft Brewery in Monroe, Wisconsin, they became the youngest brewery owners in the world. Today, the facility is the ninth largest brewery in North America, making over 90 brands of beer, spirits, liqueurs, and wines that are sold all over the world, from Costco private labels to Trader Joe’s exclusives.
Minhas Breweries, Distillery, and Wineries has grown into a $220 million-a-year business under Minhas’s leadership as CEO and co-founder. As of 2020, it was the 10th largest brewery in the world and the 18th largest craft operation in the U.S. There are a lot of new ideas: Minhas was the first to put voluntary warning labels on beer cans in Canada about the risks of drinking and driving and fetal alcohol syndrome. This earned him praise from organizations that help people with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. She also made a gluten-free beer made from sorghum that is half the price of other gluten-free beers, which helps people with celiac disease. The Minhas Micro Brewery opened in Calgary in 2012, combining local style with a global reach. Sales reached over $187 million by 2019, which shows how good Minhas was at marketing and branding.
A Dragon in the Den: Mentoring and Being in the Media
In 2015, CBC noticed Minhas’s charm when she joined Dragons’ Den as a “Dragon” for its 10th season. She has been a Dragon for nine seasons and has invested in more than three dozen businesses in a variety of fields. She shares hard-earned knowledge as a venture capitalist: “Our time and energy are limited. Make smart investments in both. Her on-screen presence, which combines sharp criticism with infectious enthusiasm, has made her a household name, and she shares her investing knowledge with millions of people every week. She is an angel investor and corporate consultant off-camera, and she runs workshops to help women succeed in fields where men are in charge.
She has more power than just in the boardroom. She joined the board of ATB Financial in 2017 and the Calgary Airport Authority (YYC) in 2020. She worked as an advisor for Decibel Cannabis Company and was nominated to its board by 2022. That same year, she was named Honorary Lieutenant Colonel of the Queen’s Own Rifles by the Canadian Armed Forces. In this role, she boosts troop morale and teaches them about the military’s contributions. In a historic move in 2024, Minhas and Ravinder became the first woman-led ownership duo in the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL) when they bought the two-time champion Edmonton Stingers. This added sports to her portfolio.
Honors, Awards, and a Promise to Give Back
People have noticed Minhas’s groundbreaking work. She’s won a lot of awards, including PROFIT magazine’s Top Growth Entrepreneur, Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 (2018), Chatelaine’s Top Entrepreneur Woman of the Year (2011), Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year (Prairie Region), and the Sikh Centennial Foundation Award (2015). She won the first Alumni of Influence Award from Junior Achievement Southern Alberta in 2017. The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and the Canadian Business Icon Award came next, along with the 2024 King Charles III Coronation Medal.
What was her biggest achievement in 2024? The Global Citizen Laureate Award from the United Nations Association in Canada went to one person for their work on gender equality and UN Sustainable Development Goal 5. Minhas’s charitable work stands out here: she co-chairs United Way campaigns, helps girls in India go to engineering school, and works with YW Calgary to raise $50 million for a crisis shelter for women and children escaping domestic violence. The UN said, “Her success embodies resilience and innovation, inspiring women and girls to drive change.” She is a bestselling author and a Top 10 Apple podcaster who spreads these messages. She says, “You can start late, start over, lose it all, fail again and again, and still succeed.”
Finding a balance between Empire and everyday joys
In the middle of board meetings and brewery expansions, Minhas and her husband Harvey Shergill, who is also an entrepreneur, live in Calgary with their two young daughters. Family is what drives her. Father’s Day posts honor her dad, and Stampede shoutouts celebrate her local roots, like when she sponsored chuckwagon tarps with driver Todd Baptiste. Her X feed (@manjitminhas) is full of unfiltered energy. She goes hiking in Quebec, cheers on the Edmonton Oilers, and shoots clay pigeons to relieve stress. She says, “The time to relax is when you don’t have time for it,” which is a great example of work-life alchemy.
Sustainability is a big part of her philosophy: Minhas Breweries puts eco-friendly practices first, from getting materials from responsible sources to teaching people in the community. As a South Asian woman in the brewing industry, she deals with stereotypes with humor and strength, saying that her family helps her balance being a mother, a wife, and a mentor.
Legacy: Making Change Happen in a New Era
Manjit Minhas is still going strong at 45. Minhas Breweries wants to reach more people around the world, and her time on Dragons’ Den will include guests like Simu Liu in 2024. She’s brewing more than just beer; she’s brewing a plan for success that includes everyone. In a 2025 X post promoting Canadian-made lagers during trade tensions, she said, “Time to support, buy, and invest in Canadian alcohol companies/products.” What is her story? A reminder that empires start with $10,000 and a dream. Women like Minhas don’t just break down barriers; they break them down one bold brew at a time.
