
58 episodes

Movers and Shakers with April Wachtel April Wachtel
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- Arts
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5.0 • 18 Ratings
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Movers and Shakers is the podcast about people and ideas that are changing the beverage landscape. Hosted by mixologist and Swig + Swallow Founder, April Wachtel, this podcast examines stories from innovators and thought leaders throughout the beverage ecosystem.
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Dushan Zaric from Employees Only and Macao Trading Company
Hey hey Movers and Shakers, it's your host April Wachtel, and I’m pleased to present to you a most unusual episode of Movers and Shakers.
If you’re a regular listener and are familiar with our standard format- this isn’t that.
In today’s episode I interviewed an old friend and the cocktail mastermind behind world-famous New York bars Employees Only and Macao Trading Co- Dushan Zaric. Dushan is widely recognized as an industry leader and a pioneer in craft bartending; his innovative work behind the bar has revolutionized the art of the cocktail.
Dushan and I hadn’t spoken in about a decade and what started as the pre-interview ended up being the actual interview. For anyone who knows Dushan, it will not surprise you that he broke the format of my podcast, and we love him for it. Without further ado, please enjoy my interview with Dushan Zaric.
In the podcast today we discuss:
What we’ve both been up to for the last decade Dushan’s new Youtube show, 4am Chicken Soup Dushan’s perspective on avoiding burnout and rediscovering the privilege of being of service to others And so much more. It was amazing catching up with Dushan after so many years. Please enjoy my interview with Dushan Zaric.
Find Dushan:
www.dushanzaric.com
4 am Chicken Soup show on Youtube
On Instagram: @4amchickensoup
Find Movers and Shakers:
www.moverssshakers.com
On Instagram @moverssshakers
Find April:
On LinkedIn
www.aprilwachtel.com
Find Cheeky
www.cheekycocktails.co
Enter code MOVERSANDSHAKERS at checkout for 10% off your first order
On Instagram @cheekycocktails -
Elayne Duff from the Beverage Brand Ambassador Academy
Today’s interview is with Elayne Duff from the Beverage Brand Ambassador Academy.
Elayne Duff is a 20-year veteran of the spirits industry. She was Diageo U.S.A.’s first head mixologist and luxury spirits ambassador, has appeared on the T.V. show Bar Rescue numerous times as a beverage expert, and was a Global Manager of experiential events and education at Ab-InBev.
More recently Elayne founded “Duff on the Rocks,” an on and off-trade brand strategy consultancy, launched a YouTube show “Celebrating the Brand Ambassador” and created the “Beverage B.A. Academy,” the first online training academy for Brand Ambassadors.
In the podcast today we discuss:
Elayne’s extensive background in beverage The origin stories behind Elayne’s various ventures What to expect from the Beverage BA curriculum …and so much more. Without further ado, please enjoy my interview with Elayne Duff!
Find The Beverage Brand Ambassador Academy:
https://beveragebaacademy.teachable.com
Find Elayne:
On Instagram @duffontherocks
On Facebook @Elayneduff
On LinkedIn @ Elayne Duff
Find Movers and Shakers:
www.moverssshakers.com
On Instagram @moverssshakers
Find April:
On LinkedIn
www.aprilwachtel.com
Find Cheeky
www.cheekycocktails.co
Enter code MOVERSANDSHAKERS at checkout for 10% off your first order
On Instagram @cheekycocktails -
Allison Evanow from Square One Organic Spirits
Today’s interview is with Allison Evanow from Square One Organic Spirits.
Allison is the Founder and CEO of Square One Organic Spirits and Cocktails. She is a pioneer in the organic spirits space, starting Square One as the U.S.’s first all organic spirits company and one of the first women to start her own spirits brand. Square One crafts a line of USDA Organic vodkas and botanical spirits and now also has two new products lines – organic cocktail mixers and convenient ready to drink sparkling vodka cocktails.
In the podcast today we discuss:
How Allison harnessed her background in spirits marketing to launch Square One How she bootstrapped the brand to distribution in 42 states How she thinks about growth and new product launches And her advice for entrepreneurs just getting started It was amazing speaking to Allison after hearing about her work for so long-
Without further ado, please enjoy my interview with Allison Evanow
Find Square One
www.squareoneorganicspirits.com
On instagram @squareoneorganicspirits
On facebook @squareoneorganicspirits
On Pinterest @SQ1organic
On Twitter: @SQ1Organic
Find Movers and Shakers:
www.moverssshakers.com
On Instagram @moverssshakers
Find April:
On LinkedIn
www.aprilwachtel.com
Find Cheeky
www.cheekycocktails.co
Enter code MOVERSANDSHAKERS at checkout for 10% off your first order
On Instagram @cheekycocktails -
Lance Winters and Dave Smith from St. George Spirits
Today's interview is with Lance Winters and Dave Smith from St. George Spirits.
Lance is the Master Distiller and Dave is the Head Distiller for St. George Spirits, one of the pioneer craft distilleries in the United States.
Founded by Jorg Rupf in 1982, St. George originally distilled eau de vie, then birthed and sold the Hangar One brand, and expanded their portfolio across categories to include base spirits like Gin, Vodka, and Whiskey, as well as liqueurs and more esoteric offerings like Absinthe and Shochu.
In the podcast today we discuss:
How Lance and Dave have grown the brand organically within minimal startup funding How they think about pushing the boundaries with craft spirits How they consider the intersection between innovation and commercial opportunity And their advice for entrepreneurs interested in launching a spirits brand Lance and Dave are icons in the spirits industry, and it was such a pleasure having them on the pod.
Without further ado, please enjoy my interview with Lance Winters and Dave Smith.
Find St George
www.stgeorgespirits.com
On instagram @stgeorgespirits
On Twitter @stgeorgespirits
On facebook @stgeorgespirits
Find Movers and Shakers:
www.moverssshakers.com
On Instagram @moverssshakers
Find April:
On LinkedIn
www.aprilwachtel.com
Find Cheeky
www.cheekycocktails.co
Enter code MOVERSANDSHAKERS at checkout for 10% off your first order
On Instagram @cheekycocktails -
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Kim Lawton and the Fourth Annual Enthuse Foundation Pitch Competition
Today’s interview is a special episode on the Enthuse Foundation Pitch Competition coming up in November of 2022.
Some of you know, I worked with the Foundation when they were starting out four years ago, and the event remains near and dear to my heart. It’s a competition for women founders in food, beverage, and cpg, with some great cash prizes and marketing services available to the winners.
I was fortunate to have Kim Lawton, the co-founder of the Enthuse Foundation and co-owner of Enthuse and Inspira Marketing join me on the podcast to talk about the Foundation, the competition, and how potential applicants can put their best foot forward.
Before we jump into the interview, I wanted to share some specific dates and deadlines-
Applications for the competition open August 15th (2022) They are due October 3rd Finalists are notified October 18th And the pitch competition will be held in New York City on November 3rd Without further ado, I hope you enjoy my conversation with Kim Lawton!
Find The Enthuse Foundation
www.enthusefoundation.org
On Instagram @enthuse_foundation
On Facebook @enthusefoundation
On LinkedIn @enthusefoundation
Find Enthuse Marketing and Inspira Marketing
www.enthuse-marketing.com
www.inspiramarketing.com
Find Movers and Shakers:
www.moverssshakers.com
On Instagram @moverssshakers
Find April:
On LinkedIn
www.aprilwachtel.com
Find Cheeky
www.cheekycocktails.co
Enter code MOVERSANDSHAKERS at checkout for 10% off your first order
On Instagram @cheekycocktails -
Andrew Merinoff from DisPact Ventures and Chinola on the biggest mistake entrepreneurs make and his advice for entrepreneurs raising capital in the current investing climate
Today's episode is an interview with Andrew Merinoff.
Andrew is the founder of DisPact Ventures, an investment fund focused on emerging retail, food & beverage and technology brands, and is also the co-founder of Chinola Passionfruit Liqueur.
Andrew’s experience spans multiple sectors and industries, including F&B, Wine & Spirits, Hospitality, Investing, and Marketing. Most recently, Andrew worked to develop intuitive spirit branding for Proximo Spirits, where he focused on brand development for the company’s current portfolio.
In the podcast today we discuss:
How Andrew thinks about failure The biggest mistake entrepreneurs make How to strategically set your spirits brand up for acquistion… And Andrew’s advice for entrepreneurs raising capital in the current climate. I think you’ll agree Andrew shared some incredible advice in today’s interview, and I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did.
Without further ado, please enjoy my interview with Andrew Merinoff.
Find Andrew
On LinkedIn
On Instagram @heymerinoff
Find Chinola
www.chinola.com
On Instagram @chinola
Find Movers and Shakers:
www.moverssshakers.com
On Instagram @moverssshakers
Find April:
On LinkedIn
www.aprilwachtel.com
Find Cheeky
www.cheekycocktails.co
Enter code MOVERSANDSHAKERS at checkout for 10% off your first order
On Instagram @cheekycocktails
Customer Reviews
Incredible content!
I highly recommend anyone in the Beverage industry or any king of business to listen to this podcast. The amount of insights from some of the best in the business is truly incredible. April does an amazing job by asking the right questions and helping the audience gain as much as possible from the guests.
Calling All Entrepreneurs
I started listening this podcast earlier this year and it has quickly become one of my must listen to shows. April Wachtel finds amazing industry icons and really lets the open up in the interview. I've learned so much from listening.
My review
This is a fantastic and thoughtful series of information and dialogue that showcases a different side of the beverage, hospitality and entrepreneurship community. Definitely different kinds of people but at the same time people I completely relate to. This is an exceptional podcast and one of my favorites.
Cheers!