Brett Berish, the dynamic CEO of Sovereign Brands, comes from a family with a long history in the wine and spirits industry. Yet he forged his own path, building a brand empire through creativity, resilience, and a passion for authenticity.
Known for his innovative approach and unconventional strategies, Berish has established Sovereign Brands as a powerhouse in the luxury beverage industry, with notable successes like Luc Belaire, Bumbu Rum, and McQueen and the Violet Fog gin.
His journey has been defined by taking risks, embracing failure, and nurturing organic connections with cultural icons like Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, and Jay-Z.
Watch now to learn about embracing authenticity, learning from past “failures”, and staying true to the brand.
Known for his innovative approach and unconventional strategies, Berish has established Sovereign Brands as a powerhouse in the luxury beverage industry, with notable successes like Luc Belaire, Bumbu Rum, and McQueen and the Violet Fog gin.
His journey has been defined by taking risks, embracing failure, and nurturing organic connections with cultural icons like Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, and Jay-Z.
Watch now to learn about embracing authenticity, learning from past “failures”, and staying true to the brand.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Welcome to Restaurant Influencers presented by Entrepreneur.
00:09I am your host, Sean Walsh.
00:10If this is a Cali BBQ Media production, first off, I want
00:14to give a special shout out to Toast, our primary technology
00:17partner. They partner all of our barbecue restaurants here
00:20in San Diego.
00:21They believe in storytelling.
00:23They believe in technology.
00:24They believe in the future of restaurants and hospitality.
00:27That's why they've given us this platform to bring legendary
00:31people, storytellers, legendary storytellers in the hospitality
00:35space onto our show.
00:36We are so grateful.
00:37If you're new, welcome.
00:38Please subscribe to the show.
00:40Please follow along.
00:41This is something that's a deep work thesis for us.
00:45We have a barbecue business in San Diego.
00:47We're about to open up our third location and we have a media
00:50business that we built on top of our restaurant business because
00:53we believe so deeply that we are going through a revolution
00:56of technology revolution, a content revolution.
00:59It's never been easier to get your voice, your truth out into
01:03the world.
01:03And our goal on this show is to have the best in the game come
01:11and share their expertise.
01:12Today, we have Brett Barish, the CEO of Sovereign Brands.
01:16He is also a podcaster, self-made taste better, some legendary
01:22people that he's had on his show, Rick Ross, DJ Khaled, Wiz
01:25Khalifa, the late Nipsey Hussle.
01:27He has brands that are all over the globe and he is in the liquor
01:33business.
01:33We haven't actually had somebody of his caliber from the liquor
01:37space.
01:37I'm really excited to have Brett on the show.
01:40Brett, welcome.
01:40Thank you, Sean.
01:42Thanks for having me on and excited to talk shop.
01:45Where in the world is your favorite stadium, stage, or venue?
01:52It's got to be Wrigley Field.
01:56Wrigley Field has to be.
01:58That's where I'm from.
01:59I'm from Chicago.
02:00It's got to be Wrigley Field because it's old and it hasn't
02:06changed and it's history and I was there game.
02:12It wasn't game seven was there, but I was there game seven against
02:16when they played Cleveland and they won.
02:18So it's one of the best memories I've ever had.
02:21Well, we're going to go back to Wrigley.
02:22I'm going to talk to entrepreneur.
02:24I'll talk to toast.
02:25We'll get some other big brands involved, but we want to put on
02:27a hospitality storytelling conference.
02:30So literally people that play the game within the game only, you
02:34know, so many my grandfather, he taught me stay curious, get
02:36involved, ask for help.
02:38A lot of curious people will listen to content.
02:40They'll watch a video, listen to a podcast, read a book, but we
02:43care about the people that play the game within the game.
02:45The ones that are willing to go out there, make mistakes, fuck
02:48things up and and get a little bit better along the way.
02:51And those are the people that we want to bring to Wrigley.
02:53I want to put you on the pitcher's mound and I want you to give
02:56me a TEDx speech.
02:58What would you if you had to give a TEDx talk?
03:01What would the topic be?
03:03My success is based on my failure.
03:08It's entirely based on that.
03:10It's taught me that business and life is about pivoting constantly
03:16and I've got lots of saying Sean.
03:19So one example is sometimes not having a plan is a great plan because
03:24it allows you to constantly be flexible and constantly be changing.
03:28And I think the biggest mistake people make and I was one of them
03:31is you stick to something you stick to it too long and you hold on
03:34to it and you justify everything and the key is don't justify you
03:39got a rip it apart, tear it apart, be honest about it, have an autopsy
03:43on everything you do so you can get better at it.
03:45That is a great saying to have an autopsy on everything that you do.
03:49We believe the truth vibrates the fastest.
03:52Can you why does self-made?
03:55Why does that taste better?
03:56I think for me it was at some point.
04:02This is a number of years ago.
04:04I was trying to figure out what what connects all my brands what
04:07connects me what what what connects everything we're doing.
04:11It's almost like a there was a hero slogan of the company and it
04:15came back to this idea that with all my brands everybody is always
04:20picking up the bottle and holding it.
04:22They're showing it off there.
04:24They're using it as a trophy and it's the same thing I've done and
04:28it's about I've done something I've achieved something I've created
04:32something so to me it was this idea of self-made of people.
04:39I want I I'm the guy who I love hearing the shit that people went
04:43through.
04:44I don't like hearing success.
04:45I hate that side because it makes it feel like it's easy.
04:49What I like hearing from successful people is the crap that they went
04:53through to get there the horror stories all the struggles because
04:57that I can relate to and that gives me a hope so to me it's all it's
05:01always comes back to this idea of self-made out.
05:04What did I get through to get there?
05:06Can you bring us back to the darkness of losing your house and having
05:10the IRS take all your money?
05:11Yeah, I think yeah, I you know, I've been asked the question, you
05:17know, why didn't you ever give up and I I think it's fear fear that
05:24I didn't want to fail and I didn't want to stop and for me stop paying
05:31my mortgage and putting all my money back in the business was just
05:35the right thing to do with the time, you know, I didn't care and I
05:38got foreclosed on I I stopped paying my taxes and lo and behold who
05:44knew the IRS would come after you and sweep your bank account, but
05:47they do they'll find you then I put my my salary in my girlfriend's
05:52name and now she's my wife, but you just you just do what you think
05:58you got to do to make it happen and and some in some ways, I don't
06:03know the you know, I wasn't young that young but I was also I think
06:08there's something to being somewhat naive because if you're naive
06:11you're fearless you just don't know any better and that was all part
06:15of this.
06:15So to me all those things is how I got to where I am and and it
06:22wouldn't have happened without those things.
06:23When did you learn that storytelling was branding?
06:28Oh, that's a good question.
06:30I think when I when I realized that I couldn't I need with all my
06:41brands and I've had a number of successful brands everything I do
06:45is based on me believing in it and if I don't believe in the brand
06:50if I don't think my rum tastes bamboo tastes better than every other
06:54rum in the world if I don't think my whiskey tastes better than all
06:56the other whiskeys in the world if I don't think my bottles look
06:59better if I don't think the name has story if I don't think that the
07:03story of production if I don't believe in all that I can't do it
07:07because that is selling I'm an old-school as you know, we got great
07:12social media and there's lots of things to talk about how we do on
07:16on building awareness, but at the end of the day I consider myself and
07:20everybody in my company were old-school brand builders were out there
07:24beating the street and telling a story and showing sparkle in our
07:28eyes to get other people excited about the brands and that won't come
07:31across social media that doesn't it's face-to-face one-on-one.
07:36It's to me.
07:37It's like a restaurant, you know, you remember every great restaurant
07:41you've ever been to based on that owner that maitre d that that chef
07:44that guy who's there every day and you want to go back and see them
07:49because you know them you appreciate that you love them.
07:51You just you feel it and that's what to me brand building is you share
07:57high-level how many brands are in the portfolio where you guys
08:00distributed shirt.
08:03So I've had I'm on my well, I like to say I'm on my fifth successful
08:09brand, which is pretty wild in in our industry.
08:12That's unheard of usually if you can be successful one time that's
08:17enough.
08:17I love what I'm doing and I want to keep doing it.
08:20If I can figure out a way to make a product better than the competition.
08:24So I bet my first big success was a brand called a suspense or Monday
08:29Brignac which competed in the champagne category.
08:31It's the most successful new champagne in a hundred years.
08:34My second brand was a is a cognac.
08:39I still own with Bacardi called you say, which is now the number two
08:42cognac in the United States.
08:43I've got a brand of bubbles that can beats in champagne called Bel Air
08:48that's in 80 countries.
08:49I've got bamboo rum, which is in 80 plus countries.
08:54It's the number one premium rum in the world and then I my most recent
08:58brand is a is a whiskey that we just launched called the deacon that's
09:01in just launched in about 60 countries.
09:03But I think you'll appreciate what they all have in common and I tell
09:08everybody this all the time is no one believed in them.
09:11No one thought they'd work.
09:13No one thought they'd ever be successful.
09:15They're not in hot categories that everyone wants to jump in their big
09:21old slow categories and everyone looks at you cross-eyed saying why
09:26are you doing this?
09:27It's not growing that I love that.
09:30That's the side.
09:31I love.
09:33You've said on shows trends are bullshit.
09:37Can you share why it's not the trends aren't BS.
09:41No trends are everything.
09:43I just think I have a view that if I'm not already in the trend, it's
09:49too late.
09:50I don't want to do it.
09:51You know, there's a huge, you know, we've had trends the RTD trend, you
09:55know, ready to drink and and coolers and and you know, the the white
10:01claws of the world if I wasn't already in that I don't want to get in
10:05it.
10:05It's too late, you know, so to me it's I would rather and it's the
10:10harder part.
10:11I think but I'd rather do things in categories that are not trending and
10:15I because I'm hoping I can be the trend.
10:18So if I use my rum, which is this thing bamboo, I launched this five
10:23years ago.
10:23Sean, everybody said don't do this because if you look at data data
10:29says this brand should not exist.
10:30The rum category is not growing premium rum isn't a thing.
10:34It's never going to happen today.
10:37We are the trend.
10:39We are growing the category.
10:41We are bio outperforming the category were twice the price of the
10:45category.
10:46So to me, it's about being being ahead of the trend be and therefore
10:51then you're part of the trend if that makes sense, but that's a difficult
10:55thing to do because data tells you don't do it data in this case is your
11:01enemy and so you can flip it and start showing people look at the data.
11:05Look what's happening.
11:05Look how it's growing.
11:06Look what's going on.
11:08So that data and I love I am a numbers guy.
11:12So I love data, but I want to use it in my favor.
11:17Do not skip this ad.
11:19This is important information.
11:20I unboxed toast our point of sale at our barbecue restaurants and now
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11:57So we're recording this on July 24th 2024.
12:01I just checked your personal Instagram.
12:03It's Brett bearish CEO almost a hundred thousand followers, but in your
12:09stories is Rick Ross posting about your brands.
12:14Tell me the Rick Ross story.
12:15So one of the things that I made the mistake early on was trying to be
12:23like all the other big companies and that was one of my mistakes meaning
12:29I can't I don't know I can't be Bacardi.
12:32I can't be Johnny Walker.
12:34I can't be, you know, Diageo and the rest.
12:37I have to lean into what feels right for me.
12:41What makes me happy?
12:42What moves me and one of those things is specifically music and within
12:47music.
12:48I love hip-hop.
12:49I'm probably a bigger fan of the artists themselves.
12:52The versus the music because I love the struggle side.
12:55I love the storytelling side and and once I started doing that I started
13:01realizing gosh, this is a lane.
13:04I like playing it and the more that I realize I'm not chasing people.
13:09I'm not chasing numbers.
13:11I want true true ambassadors who love my brands and Rick Ross would be an
13:16example of that.
13:17I think we've been working together for 14 years now and whether it's Rick
13:22or Wayne or Callit or Post or G Herbo so many people friends so many people
13:28in this space what's great about it is these are long-term relationships all
13:33built not based on me not based on you know, someone introducing me.
13:38It's based on they picked up the bottles and love the brands and therefore
13:42I love them back and if I can work with them in any possible way, I want to
13:46do that.
13:47I don't want it to be another way to put it is it's not a transaction.
13:50It's it's a true relationship.
13:53So I I listened to your Nipsey Hussle interview.
13:56Can you share it was such a powerful interview?
14:00What does it mean to it's all about popping your trunk?
14:04It's I remember him saying this to me and I remember asking if the hell does
14:10that mean and it means everything pop in your trunk is literally taking
14:15whatever you're selling in the trunk of your car going down to the corner
14:18corner popping it and sell it sell your goods.
14:21That's being fearless.
14:23That's being it's being willing to do anything and everything to get the
14:30shit done and this dates back for me, you know, my mom my mom is still my
14:36hero and she will always but my hero but you know, I used to give her and
14:41I was I would do it too.
14:42I would literally call liquor stores and ask for my brand just so that they
14:49hear the brand so they recognize the brand but you gotta you gotta be
14:57willing to do it and to date nothing's changed.
15:01My favorite thing in the whole world is working the market visiting accounts
15:04talking to buyers talking to owners talking to restaurant owners bartenders
15:08mixologists getting out there.
15:10You gotta be willing to pop your trunk and do the shit yourself.
15:14And I think that's again.
15:16I dates back to my biggest mistakes is is waiting for somebody else to do
15:22something.
15:22They said they do and I'd still be waiting if I didn't pop my trunk and do
15:27it myself.
15:29When did the Brett bearish brand?
15:34Get born.
15:35It's a good question.
15:36So my brother and I my brother's my partner and years ago not years ago
15:43throughout our entire company's existence.
15:45We've always had a motto.
15:46It's not about us.
15:48It's not about us.
15:49It's not I don't have my on my business cards or on my emails founder and
15:54CEO.
15:55It's not about us.
15:57It's always about the brands who cares about Brett bearish.
16:00I think when that changed was a few years ago when I started realizing I
16:06can influence our brands.
16:08I can be part of the brand story and more importantly Sean I I I look at
16:16myself.
16:16I look at my younger self and wish there was somebody like me who was just
16:22telling me the shit stories that they went through to be successful and I
16:26think that's the part.
16:27I love the most because I think most people don't want to tell that side.
16:32They want everything to be rosy and it was easy and I could do anything but
16:37it's just from in my case that wasn't the case so I I appreciate I like
16:42telling this shit side because I think there's somebody like me younger or
16:47my age who needs to hear this stuff.
16:50He needs to hear the shit that went that that I went through and look where
16:54I've come.
16:56Which was the brand that didn't make it or was a failure the one that got
17:02away, you know Tom Tom Brady somebody that I used to always hate but I
17:05respect the hell out of his athletic prowess and as many Super Bowls as he
17:09won.
17:09He'll always talk about the losses.
17:11What are the losses those brand losses?
17:13I have a different way of putting it my my most successful brand is the one
17:19that didn't make it which one it was my first brand and the reason I say it
17:25this way is it's because of that brand.
17:28I everything I've learned saying don't follow trends saying, you know, if you
17:34don't sometimes I'm having not having a plan is a great plan saying, you know
17:38waiting for people to say what they're going to do to do what they're going to
17:42say and they never do it.
17:43It's taking ownership and everything we've learned is based.
17:49I'd say, you know still to this day 80% of my success is based on that first
17:55brands not mistakes, but learnings, you know it and and that's the key to me.
18:03That's the key.
18:03You got to get you got to you got to go through that pain to figure out what
18:08works and what doesn't work.
18:09I have an analogy and let it I like to use is is almost like a a stand-up
18:17comic someone doing improv and when I when a comic goes on stage and tells a
18:22joke they go back the next night and they change that same joke based on the
18:27previous audience and then they go back up again and do it again and changed
18:31it again and maybe it's the 20th or 25th time of performing where it just
18:36it's perfection, but it changed 25 times to get there that to me is brand
18:41building in any capacity in anything you do in life.
18:44It's about constantly constantly figuring out what can be a little bit
18:50better.
18:50What what what can I do don't accept that it's it's perfect except what how
18:55can I get make it even better?
18:57I'm so happy you brought that up.
18:59That is something that we teach when I'm fortunate enough to go and talk to
19:02restaurant owners and technology professionals.
19:04We I always talk about comedians because it's the Jerry Seinfeld's.
19:08It's the Kevin Hart's.
19:09It's the Chris Rock.
19:09We all see the stadium tour on Netflix.
19:12We don't see the thousands of reps that like literally if you do like the
19:17comedians and cars or once they get into the craft of real comedy and real
19:21storytelling, it's the iteration on the joke.
19:24It's the extra adjective.
19:25It's the word choice.
19:26It's simple.
19:27It's cutting.
19:28How do you cut and how do you iterate to make that thing that much better?
19:32And I think and and now to bring it back to social media is an example.
19:36I think for me social media is that audience.
19:39It's a way of determining what works and what doesn't work.
19:43How does it impact?
19:44How does it doesn't impact?
19:45We know what happens what doesn't happen.
19:47So a hundred percent.
19:50It's you don't again.
19:52You don't see you're right.
19:53You don't see that side.
19:54You only see the end.
19:55But the end they got there by doing 365 days before of trial and error
20:01figuring it out.
20:02Yeah, there's a great quote about Michelangelo and he was carving a
20:07sculpture and those one of his, you know, many sculptures that he carved
20:10and there was someone that came up to him and they were asking him, you
20:13know, he had been working months and months on the sculpture and he had
20:16finished the front but he hadn't finished the back and he started
20:19working on the back of the sculpture and they go.
20:21Why do you why are you doing that?
20:22No one's going to see the back and he goes, I will know.
20:25Correct and that's I will know but that's the same with a brand, you
20:30know, there's an X on the bottom of the bottle.
20:32There's a reason there's an X on it.
20:33There's readers.
20:34There's no paper on this package.
20:35The reason there's the big tell us tell us the story.
20:38So you're right now if you're what if you're listening on Spotify or
20:42Apple podcast, please go to YouTube, please go to entrepreneur.com so
20:45you can watch the video, but we are looking at the bottle and we're
20:48going to get a master class in storytelling.
20:50Please present to me.
20:53Everything is a story.
20:55Everything is important in and it was crazy is I don't really care if
21:00you don't know but I know so I have to believe in this.
21:03I have to feel it.
21:04I have to feel that this I've done everything blood sweat and tears are
21:08in these brands and with bamboo and all my brands are like this.
21:12The name is an example bamboo in the 16th century merchants traveled
21:15the West Indies the Caribbean sailors and they didn't they would drink
21:19Rum, which they called grog, but they didn't like the taste of it and
21:23they would craft their own out of it adding their own spices and
21:26characteristics and they referred to that as bamboo.
21:29That's literally where we brought that back.
21:32That's where the name comes from and we've got this gold X on the bottle
21:35and the X to me just feels like X marks the spot.
21:39It's the treasure.
21:40You're found the treasure.
21:41I wanted a big long cork.
21:43I bet this is the biggest cork you can have in spirits because I wanted
21:46to be feel like you're going to pop it out like a pirate would pulling it
21:49out of its mouth and it gives a big top to it to the bottom of the bottle
21:53has an X to the top of the cork has an X to there's no paper on the
21:58package.
21:58It's all serigraphy onto the bottle to the story of of bamboo and the
22:05islands in the Caribbean everything has meaning and I think just like a
22:10restaurant just like anything in life, you know, it's got to look nice.
22:14It's got to feel nice.
22:15Maybe you'll walk by and boy that looks interesting.
22:17I'll try that.
22:18That's what a brand is.
22:20Hopefully the brand itself will will will stand out you'll but the key is
22:26it's going to taste good because you can have the most beautiful restaurant
22:29or the most beautiful bottle or the most beautiful whatever stadium.
22:32But if you've got a bad experience and what you just tasted if the food's
22:36not good at Wrigley Field of the if the liquids not good in the bottle
22:39they'll be disappointed.
22:41They won't come back again.
22:42So all those things for all my brands have storytelling storytelling
22:47storytelling is what builds brands.
22:51For you, you have to have had people that told you Brett.
22:56Why are you starting a podcast?
22:58You already have successful businesses.
23:00Why do you need to start your own media company?
23:03Are you like what's the ROI?
23:05What's the return on investment?
23:07What have you learned in your podcasting journey?
23:09Your your storytelling, you know more on the more on the media side building
23:13the media side of your business.
23:14So we I started this we started this probably five or six years ago before
23:19to me.
23:21It was before podcast because I don't even think we there was that
23:24definition.
23:25I just wanted to talk to I'm around all these famous people.
23:29I know them.
23:30I know some of their stories and the shit they went through but it was my
23:36way of of giving back it was my way.
23:40Hopefully you talk to somebody who's going to tell you the truth.
23:42That's the key, you know, who's going to tell you the back-end story and
23:46the shit they went through.
23:47That's the goal and for me it was again getting back to it.
23:51You know, I keep I keep hearing people's success and it's demotivating
23:56because it just feels like everything is easy.
24:00It should happen fast and when I first started the company, I assumed it
24:03was going to be easy.
24:03I assumed it would be really fast and everything would happen.
24:06That's just the opposite.
24:07So I got to start talking to people and then what happened for me on a
24:14personal side is they're motivating the shit out of me, you know, because
24:18I get to hear these stories.
24:19So it's almost selfishly I get excited.
24:21I learned something and it's even to the point and I use this as a for
24:26artists as an example at one question.
24:28I always ask a musical artist at your most successful song.
24:34Did you think it was going to commercially?
24:36Did you think it was going to be successful in 99% of the time?
24:41They say no never expected.
24:43It didn't like the song didn't think it would do anything.
24:46And my next question is what you learn and what you learn is you got to
24:51let it go.
24:51You just got to try shit because if you're over analyzing and over
24:55thinking it you're not going to let it go.
24:58And that's the key you got to try that you don't bet the farm, but you
25:02got to try things you because you're going to be surprised.
25:05You're always going to be surprised.
25:07So it to me, it's I get a ton out of it.
25:10I think other people get a ton out of it.
25:12I think you hear great stories for people that want to be motivated by
25:16based on, you know, what people went through to get there and we'll
25:22keep doing it and and sorry Sean and to Dick and to show I'm always
25:27surprised where something will take you.
25:29So I started doing the series in Africa with all these African artists
25:34do and and and producers and singers in Africa and now we're doing a
25:41massive project doing our own music album in Africa based on Africa, but
25:46then never would have happened if I did not started something like
25:49self-made.
25:50So there's always something else coming from any direction you go and
25:54the key is to lean in on what works for you.
25:57That's magical magical advice.
26:01How do you build your team?
26:02How do you get your team to buy into the story?
26:04Oh, it's a good one.
26:07You won.
26:08You got to do everything you you tell them to do meaning you got to
26:12lead by example.
26:12That's key to is, you know, in terms of people we hire everybody we
26:18hire.
26:19I can teach you the business.
26:21I can't teach you is to be a self-starter to be somebody who's
26:26going to go lead do not wait to be on the street to get out there.
26:30That's the hard one.
26:32So we're always it's not based on age.
26:34It's not based on qualifications and history.
26:36It's based on do we think they're motivated to go do something as I
26:40want people that are are their own entrepreneur there at your on an
26:44island.
26:44You got to go make it happen.
26:45And I think it's constant communication.
26:49I think it's constantly to me.
26:50It's like building an army you got you all have to be connected.
26:55You all have to share the same story and share the same passion and
27:00constantly reinforce messages that you believe in and because if you
27:04believe in those you want to repeat them over and over and everyone will
27:08buy in on that and I I believe in that.
27:11Do you have mentors?
27:12Do you have a story about a mentor that's made an impact on your life?
27:15It's such a good one, you know, I it's funny.
27:23I'd love to say I I had one.
27:26I wish I did.
27:27I think it's I think the way to describe how I've learned is I take bits
27:33and pieces from everybody.
27:34I constantly take bits and pieces.
27:37I love I use Rick Rick Ross is a mentor to me in in in ways that I never
27:43would have thought of in the sense that he he's the perfect example of he
27:48Try shit.
27:49He's not he's willing to do he's willing to try anything to see if it
27:54works and he goes all in and I think that's the one thing that that many
27:58famous people don't do is they're afraid they're afraid of failure.
28:02They're afraid of being seen this failing so they're timid on how far do
28:08I go?
28:09How much do I do and Rick always shines a light to me on God just go all
28:14in you can make anything look cool and I believe that.
28:19When you are you when you create brands are you creating brands from
28:23scratch or are you coming in at a different different level?
28:26No complete scratch.
28:28So what's that always from scratch?
28:30What typically happens is my brother and I'll start drinking the category
28:34will will will move in our latest brand the deacon which is a whiskey was
28:42we started drinking whiskey Irish whiskey Japanese whiskey US whiskey
28:45Canadian scotches.
28:48There's a profile that we wanted to come across and we don't think is out
28:52there.
28:52We back in we backed into in this case.
28:55We couldn't do it in Canada or or or Japan or the US or even Ireland based
29:02on the taste profile.
29:02We wanted we wanted smoky.
29:04We wanted sweets.
29:05We wanted bonfire.
29:06We can get that in Scotland.
29:08We created this amazing blend in this taste profile that's a little bit
29:12smoky and sweet, but it tastes rich.
29:16It tastes expensive and we created the story around that and that to me is
29:24brand building because we're always starting with the liquid.
29:27If we can make the liquid better than our competition, we've got we've got
29:30a story to tell that's how it starts.
29:32How long does the process take it's it's a great question.
29:37And my answer would be it depends on it always depends on the brand.
29:43It's it's if the analogy I use is like music sometimes an artist will have
29:47a hook that they love and they just hold on to sometimes an artist will
29:50have a beat that they love and they'll hold on to sometimes an artist has
29:53a story that they want to sell to tell and the key is to intertwine all
29:58of those.
29:59This is the same with us with brand building.
30:01There is, you know, and this is the deacon.
30:03So there's a story wanted to tell the copper bottle matches.
30:07The copper pot stills in Scotland.
30:09There's this dope looking character on it that dates back to the plague and
30:15he's wearing a mask and to me it almost feels like Burning Man or steampunk
30:20or Mad Max.
30:21That's a feeling we wanted to give there's X's in the in the glass and the
30:25white X in the background that has to do with Scotland.
30:27The name deacon comes from in Scotland.
30:30If if you're the best at what you do, if you're the best podcast or the best
30:33economist, the best barber, you're given a title the deacon.
30:36So it's creating that story that wraps around so it can take years.
30:42We've got brands.
30:43We've been working on for years.
30:44It could take it's usually a few years to get there.
30:47But the beauty is we're not in a rush.
30:50It's all about trying to do things the right way and and and managing
30:56expectations on what success is.
30:59Share a little bit more about how you personally view social media.
31:03I mean, we talk about storytelling.
31:05We talk about anybody that's listening to this show.
31:07They have the opportunity to be their own media company.
31:10You don't have to create YouTube.
31:12You don't need to create Spotify.
31:13You don't need to create Instagram.
31:15Those things are there if you're willing to post if you're willing to share
31:18your truth, how do you share your truth?
31:21And how do you how do you build upon that?
31:23Because you have so many brands you have over you have millions of followers
31:26across all of these brands.
31:28That's a lot of content that needs to get out into the world.
31:31It's um, it goes back to what?
31:36Sorry, let me let me take it.
31:38Let me take a different approach.
31:39When I first started the company, there was no social media.
31:42So our way of promoting our first brand, Asa Spades or Mondebriniac was
31:47traditional PR media.
31:49So it was magazines and newspapers and sometimes music videos and then
31:54slowly became blogs and then and then it turned into, for example,
31:58Instagram and the beauty of Instagram to me.
32:03If I just use that medium is it's a way to find your audience and find
32:08fans and find people who like what you're doing.
32:11And the key for us is which I find amazing.
32:15If I use bamboo bamboo has more followers than Captain Morgan and
32:18Bacardi.
32:19That's so awesome.
32:20That is such a that is hard stop.
32:23That is amazing.
32:24Correct.
32:25And we don't advertise the amazing.
32:27Bel Air has more followers than probably any liquor brand close to
32:32over a million and a half between his two students are credible.
32:36And what I I I it still comes back to being authentic being true to the
32:42brands and what they mean being true to story.
32:45It's like you at you said how big is storytelling storytelling leaning
32:50into it.
32:51I don't want to fake it.
32:52You know, if I was in if my my if my musical, you know, love was was
32:58country.
32:59That's what I would lean into but that's not my first love.
33:03So it's always about being authentic and and trying things.
33:08What are the what do your fans?
33:10What do they like?
33:11What do they want to see?
33:12And then it comes back to, you know, how much you give back?
33:15What are you doing for people?
33:16And for us, it's it's connecting the dots where you know, there was a
33:22great one week or two weeks ago.
33:24There was an artist in Latvia who put bamboo in a song and a music
33:30video.
33:30So we I we heard about this kid.
33:33He's he's only has let's say 15,000 followers, but we had all our
33:39big-name artists support him because he supported us.
33:42Wow, he blew up in his in Latvia, but that's the key is you got to
33:49show you got to give love back to people.
33:51You got it.
33:52If there's someone's going to do a solid for you, you got to give them
33:54a solid right back and I I think most big companies are afraid of
33:59that.
34:00They're afraid of approaching people because they're afraid of oh,
34:04it's going to cost us or what do they want or what are we going to
34:06do to me?
34:07It's be authentic.
34:08Be true to yourself and go for go to them.
34:11Talk to them.
34:13Why is gifting important?
34:15I've noticed you you do a phenomenal job of of getting your product
34:20in front of people.
34:21I think the easiest way to say it is I believe in my brand.
34:27I believe in I want people with my brands and if you have a chance
34:33if you have not tasted them, I think you're going to react to them.
34:37I think I can get a reaction out of you.
34:39If you've never drank rum or not a rum drinker, you're going to be
34:42shocked what bamboo tastes like if you like whiskey and you drink
34:46the deacon, you're going to be shocked at the deacons profile.
34:49So what I love is it's my ammo.
34:52It's my way of convincing the world boy.
34:55This is a great product and I think then if I didn't believe in this,
35:00I wouldn't do it.
35:01It's it's my biggest.
35:03It's my biggest and no matter what I say, no matter what I do, the
35:08taste is going to hopefully win over everybody every time.
35:12So the more people I can taste the more people I can get out there
35:15The more people I can convince to come be part of our are what we're
35:19building.
35:19If you were you are the deacon of branding the deacon of the liquor
35:27and spirits building brands and that's your superpower.
35:30If I asked your brother, what's your kryptonite?
35:33What would you tell me?
35:36That's a good one.
35:38What's your blind spot?
35:40Where's your weakness?
35:41That's a good question.
35:42I don't want to give a stupid answer like we work too hard and shit
35:47like that.
35:48But where does he where's he the yin to your yang?
35:53Oh, we're completely different.
35:54Yeah, but I he's he's
36:02We're completely different lifestyle and a different
36:06We're completely different but the beauty is is we don't even have to
36:11speak and we'll go weeks without speaking but he'll call me when he
36:14has a question or needs my input.
36:16I'll call him if I need his input.
36:18I know he's working harder than it me.
36:20He knows I'll do anything for him and that's the beauty of having family
36:24and we figured it out.
36:26We both have different roles.
36:27We both have different jobs.
36:28We both have different jobs.
36:29We both have different jobs.
36:30We both have different jobs.
36:31We both have different jobs.
36:32And that's the beauty of having family and we figured it out.
36:35We both have different roles different responsibilities and we own our
36:38lanes.
36:39So I think what we've gotten better at is not being sentimental because
36:45I think that's where you can make mistakes in business.
36:47I think we treat it as a business, even though you know, I have a bunch
36:53of family members.
36:53My all my brothers involved.
36:55It's a business.
36:55It's a business.
36:56It's a business.
36:56Yeah.
36:59That's that's amazing.
37:01I am grateful Brett for you taking the time.
37:04I'm grateful that for this audience, please follow Brett.
37:08Please go and try his brands.
37:11Please make videos about his brands.
37:13We have a smartphone storytelling community at digital hospitality
37:16community, but Brett before I let you go, I want to find out about your
37:20own personal storytelling habits.
37:22So are you an iPhone user or an Android user iPhone, which version?
37:28Oh God, that's a good one.
37:29I don't even know.
37:31It's probably the last time you got a new iPhone probably your at least
37:34a year.
37:35Okay.
37:36What is your favorite app that you use?
37:41I'm not why has to be Instagram.
37:44Okay, but I'm not on it.
37:46I'm not on it socially.
37:50I'm more on it from a from what's going on in my world space.
37:55If that makes sense.
37:55Sure.
37:56Do you prefer phone calls or text messages?
37:59It depends on who it is.
38:04So I'd say I'd say text an email.
38:08There's no question leaving a message just sucks for people when I do
38:12that more for fun.
38:12So do I make them listen to it?
38:17How many emails do you get a day?
38:18Oh God 400 at least.
38:21How many do you enjoy reading?
38:22I read everyone love it.
38:24My goal is my brother's the same way.
38:27The goal is to have nothing checked.
38:29No checks where you've got to follow up.
38:31I instantly respond all the time and I feel like shit if I've got 10 left
38:37at the you know that I have to respond the next two days.
38:39I hate it and instantly respond to text messages as well.
38:43Instantly instantly instantly again.
38:46I think I have to set the tone if I to me is setting the example.
38:50I've got one guy emailed me saying can you please at one of our importers,
38:56you know, try to avoid emails on the weekends.
39:00I'm just fuck you.
39:00Are you kidding?
39:01It's ridiculous.
39:04You're lucky that I'm thinking of you.
39:05Yes, I like come on like you get out of the game then you shouldn't be
39:10doing this.
39:11Yeah, before I let you go on importers.
39:14What is something that an importer can do?
39:16What what are the best importers do?
39:18What kind of characteristics do they have?
39:20The the the key is, you know, I wouldn't even say import anything.
39:26It's anybody if they start out the conversation telling you about GDP and
39:30growth and inflation and how bad things are that that's a bad sign.
39:35Yeah, because it's just an excuse.
39:38It's an excuse because you know, that's the one thing I've learned.
39:43We all have problems.
39:44We all have issues.
39:45You know, I like to tell a story, you know, in we do amazing business in
39:50Ukraine.
39:50Absolutely amazing.
39:52Wow.
39:53My importer is loves our brands.
39:55The sales team loves our brands.
39:57We're going to hire somebody in the Ukraine.
39:58Who has it harder people in Ukraine or somebody in, you know, Indiana or
40:05or or or a little bit of the world?
40:08Yeah, it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's it's
40:13or or or or UK or wherever come on somebody always has it worse.
40:20So the key is you can't you can't use that stuff excuse just go out and
40:24and and beat the street which map app to use Google Maps Apple Maps ways
40:31Google Maps Google Maps.
40:33What which how do you listen to music?
40:36I I use Apple music Apple music.
40:41Do you use Apple music?
40:43Is there anything that you would like to share with our audience of
40:47restaurant owners hospitality professionals storytellers something
40:51that that you'd like to leave leave our audience with
40:58Maybe I'll give a shout out to one of my favorite restaurants in New
41:02York.
41:02Oh my gosh.
41:05Oh, sorry is sorry in New York have been going it's been there for 40
41:09some years.
41:10It's it's Raul's French French Bistro on Prince Street one of my favorite
41:16all-time places finale is also on Prince.
41:18I think everything's on Prince one of the oldest restaurants in New York.
41:23They serve your brands.
41:25Yes.
41:26Yes, and no, but we'll get them but yeah, I think reminder.
41:31Yeah to me.
41:32It's not about that.
41:33It's more, you know, what I love is is it's the same.
41:40It's it's like we it started the conversation.
41:42It's the same people you go back and see the same people.
41:46It's the same waitresses.
41:47The same waiters the same hrd, you know what to expect.
41:52That's what that's what great brands are, you know, exactly what you're
41:55getting and you love it for that reason.
41:57Well, I can't thank you enough for taking the time.
42:00I will talk to Eric my general manager and find out how we can get some
42:04of these Sovereign Brands poured at Cali barbecue here in San Diego
42:08because I would love to tell the story of having bread on our show.
42:12Thank you so much bread.
42:13If you or anyone from the team make it to the West Coast, please let
42:16me know.
42:17We'd love to share some barbecue with you and that goes for anyone
42:19in the audience.
42:20We are grateful that you listen to the show.
42:22We're grateful that you share this show.
42:24We believe in you.
42:25We hope that we feature you one day on entrepreneur if you're listening
42:28to this, but thank you so much bread.
42:30We really appreciate the time.
42:31Thanks for thanks for having me on really appreciate it.
42:34All right.
42:35And as always if you guys want to get in touch with me, it's at Sean
42:37P.
42:38Walshef on Instagram SHAWN PWALCHEF.
42:43That's all the platforms stay curious get involved and don't be afraid
42:46to ask for help.
42:47Catch you guys next week.
42:49Thank you for listening to restaurant influencers.
42:51If you want to get in touch with me, I am weirdly available at Sean
42:55P Walshef SHAWN PWALCHEF Cali barbecue media has other shows you
43:03can check out digital hospitality.
43:05We've been doing that show since 2017.
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