2020 was a year of change for the entire world. For me, the change saw me turn my passion into an entirely new business. I’m a marketer by trade. I have 20+ years in corporate marketing, branding, and consumer strategy. In 2015, I left corporate America to start my own boutique marketing agency. When the pandemic hit in 2020, marketing consultant opportunities became scarce, so to help cope with anxiety and stress, I started making cocktails as a way to stay and remain creative.
Pull up a chair and Join Me for Cocktails & Conversations.
My creative outlet was to create one cocktail a day and post by 12pm. By creating an original cocktail every day, I gave myself an assignment and also I had something to look forward too. For me, it was a great personal motivation tool.
I would post the different pictures of cocktails with recipes on my personal, private Facebook page everyday and soon began to receive likes and comments from my friends. I continued do do this for a few weeks and then a good friend suggested I move beyond just my friends.
I was a bit nervous moving outside of the comfort zone of my FB page, but I did want to share my love of cocktails with others, so I decided to create a FB cocktail group called Crafted Cocktails (NOTE: Insert Link). I started this group in April 2020 and now we’re over 1K members!
My close friends know that I’m a Whiskey Enthusiasts, but few knew that not only did I have a bartending license, but that I could also make a great cocktails. From being open in the group and sharing my love of cocktails and recipes, my friends, and even strangers, started asking me to attend their virtual happy hours and teach them (along with their friends) how to make cocktails.
Since June 2020, I’ve consistently been holding cocktail demos and teaching cocktail classes. What started out as a way to deal with anxiety and stress by doing something I loved, has turned into an entirely new business model with a life of it’s own. Don’t get me wrong, starting something new can be a scary thing to do. I was lucky enough to have friends that kept me encouraged.
I am happy to have made the pivot last year, and in less than a year, I have a thriving new business. Want to know you how can turn your passion into a business? Feel free to reach out and connect. In the meantime, don’t be afraid to bring out your inner mixologist!
Cheers!
