MAFFEO DRINKS is a leading drinks business podcast, listened to in 120 countries with 130+ episodes. How the industry actually works, from the bar and what it means for the boardroom.

In episode 030, I had the pleasure of talking to Paul Thomas. He is the Global Head of Shopper Insights at Beam Suntory. He has previously worked for Asahi International, Diageo, Ferrero, and Ipsos. He has an incredible global experience in Drinks Industry Insights. It was a pleasure to discuss it with such pragmatism and common sense. I hope you will enjoy our chat

(00:50); Insights in the Field
(13:43); Adapting to Market Conditions
(19:40); Chasing Trends; A Very Bad Idea
(23:30); Why Do We Have To Chase Gen Z?
(34:26); What A Bar Tender Needs To Know About Your Brand
(36:18); Penetration Vs Spread
(42:47); How Much Localization Is Good?
(51:25); Bridging Categories
(55:47); Insights At The Bar Level

About The Host: Chris Maffeo

About The Guest: Paul Thomas

This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS.

Wanna know what the conversation above means for your team? It's in the paid section.

You get access to Maffeo Confidential (Private Podcast), this analysis, and the full catalog of 130+ episodes, each one translating industry conversation into the commercial decisions underneath it. Find out more at maffeodrinks.com or on Substack.

MAFFEO DRINKS is a leading drinks business podcast, listened to in 120 countries with 130+ episodes. How the industry actually works, from the bar and what it means for the boardroom.

In Episode 029, I had the pleasure of chatting to Brian Rosen. He is the Chairman of Growth Beverage and Founder of InvestBev, Sprout Beverage, Bev Strat and Algoma Capital. He has decades of experience in building drinks brands in the US. He gave us incredible insights about the dynamics of the US market. I hope you will enjoy our chat.

Time Stamps

(5:08) How To Spend Money Effectively
(12:28) Building Demand Effectively
(15:04) Home Court Advantage
(18:39) Doing The Boring Stuff
(27:35) Running Out of Money
(31:25) Breaking Into The US
(40:00) Demand Generation

About the Guest: Brian Rosen

This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS.

Wanna know what the conversation above means for your team? It's in the paid section.

You get access to Maffeo Confidential (Private Podcast), this analysis, and the full catalog of 130+ episodes, each one translating industry conversation into the commercial decisions underneath it. Find out more at maffeodrinks.com or on Substack.

MAFFEO DRINKS is a leading drinks business podcast, listened to in 120 countries with 130+ episodes. How the industry actually works, from the bar and what it means for the boardroom.

In Episode 028, I had the pleasure of chatting with Duncan McRae, Co-founder of Woven Whisky and a Drinks industry veteran, having previously worked with William Grant's & Sons and Diageo. A living example of Building Brands Bottom Up. I hope you enjoy our chat.

Main Topics Discussed:

(00:00) Building Demand

(03:08) Brand Awareness

(08:58) Managing Relationships

(10:44) KPI's & Incentives

(13:46) "Blue Tick Moments": Becoming Known in the Ecosystem

(15:40) Bottle Shops vs. On-Trade Growth

(26:46) It starts with the liquid

(32:00) Adapting Your Sales Pitch

(37:52) Better Brand Training

(44:35) Taste Profile before categories

(52:00) Special Pours & Drawbacks

About the Host: Chris Maffeo

About the Guest: Duncan McRae

About the product: Woven

This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS.

Wanna know what the conversation above means for your team? It's in the paid section.

You get access to Maffeo Confidential (Private Podcast), this analysis, and the full catalog of 130+ episodes, each one translating industry conversation into the commercial decisions underneath it. Find out more at maffeodrinks.com or on Substack.

MAFFEO DRINKS is a leading drinks business podcast, listened to in 120 countries with 130+ episodes. How the industry actually works, from the bar and what it means for the boardroom.

In episode 027 I had the honor of interviewing Steven Grasse. He is the founder of the renowned agency Quaker City Mercantile and of Tamworth Distilling. He is a legend in the drinks industry, having created brands such as Hendrick's gin, Sailor Jerry Rum, and having crafted great rebirths such as Pilsner Urquell, Guinness, and Miller High Life. I hope you will enjoy our chat.

Main Topics Discussed:

0 to 1 Bottle:

- Differentiating Liquid

- Why Not to Chase Trends

- Bridging Categories through Taste Profile

1 Bottle to 1 Case:

- Building a Rich Brand World

- The Importance of Rituals

- Choosing Partners & Distributors

1 Case to 1 Pallet

- On, Off-Trade and State Monopolies

- Institutional Knowledge

- Award Show

About The Host: Chris Maffeo

About The Guest: Steven Grasse

This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS.

Wanna know what the conversation above means for your team? It's in the paid section.

You get access to Maffeo Confidential (Private Podcast), this analysis, and the full catalog of 130+ episodes, each one translating industry conversation into the commercial decisions underneath it. Find out more at maffeodrinks.com or on Substack.

MAFFEO DRINKS is a leading drinks business podcast, listened to in 120 countries with 130+ episodes. How the industry actually works, from the bar and what it means for the boardroom.

This is the second part of the chat with Maurice Doyle, CEO of Compass Box Whisky. He is a business coach and brings 3 decades of industry experience, having held senior leadership roles at Bacardi, William Grant & Sons and Suntory. I hope you will enjoy our chat.

Main Topics Discussed:
0 to 1 Bottle

-Figuring out pricing

-Back bar analysis

-Targeting the right bars

1 Bottle to 1 Case

-Cocktail opportunities in bars

-Strengthening customer-brand relationships (Love & Money)

-Creating volume focused KPIs

1 Case to 1 Pallet

-Beyond the back bar

-Ironing out the value chain

-Incentivizing your value chain

About the Host: Chris Maffeo

About the Guest: Maurice Doyle

This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS.

Wanna know what the conversation above means for your team? It's in the paid section.

You get access to Maffeo Confidential (Private Podcast), this analysis, and the full catalog of 130+ episodes, each one translating industry conversation into the commercial decisions underneath it. Find out more at maffeodrinks.com or on Substack.

MAFFEO DRINKS is a leading drinks business podcast, listened to in 120 countries with 130+ episodes. How the industry actually works, from the bar and what it means for the boardroom.

This is the first part of the chat with Maurice Doyle. He's the CEO of Compass Box Whisky. He's a coach and brings three decades of industry experience, having held senior leadership roles at Bacardi, William Grant and Sons and Suntory. I hope you will enjoy our chat.

This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS.

Wanna know what the conversation above means for your team? It's in the paid section.

You get access to Maffeo Confidential (Private Podcast), this analysis, and the full catalog of 130+ episodes, each one translating industry conversation into the commercial decisions underneath it. Find out more at maffeodrinks.com or on Substack.

MAFFEO DRINKS is a leading drinks business podcast, listened to in 120 countries with 130+ episodes. How the industry actually works, from the bar and what it means for the boardroom.

In Episode 024, I had the privilege of interviewing Alex Ouziel, Founder of 9diDANTE Vermouth and CEO of FIOL Prosecco. He's a veteran of our industry, with many years in the game. He has previously spent ten years in Bacardi, from VP and Managing Director of Eastern Europe to President of Asia, Middle East, and Africa. He possesses a truly international perspective on drinks. I hope you enjoy our conversation.

Main Topics Discussed:

From 0 to 1 Bottle

From 1 Bottle to 1 Case

From 1 Case to 1 Pallet

About the Host: Chris Maffeo

About the Guest: Alex Ouziel

This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS.

Wanna know what the conversation above means for your team? It's in the paid section.

You get access to Maffeo Confidential (Private Podcast), this analysis, and the full catalog of 130+ episodes, each one translating industry conversation into the commercial decisions underneath it. Find out more at maffeodrinks.com or on Substack.

MAFFEO DRINKS is a leading drinks business podcast, listened to in 120 countries with 130+ episodes. How the industry actually works, from the bar and what it means for the boardroom.

In this episode of the Maffeo Drinks Podcast, we continue interviewing Paul Hletko, Founder of FEW Spirits & Owner of Goza Tequila. FEW was part of the vanguard of the Craft Spirits Movement, with Paul leading the charge. They are a masterclass in building a drinks brand bottom up. I hope you enjoy our chat.

Main Topics Discussed:

Zero to One Bottle

• Finding your target occasion

•Bootstrapping Vs Investor Starts

One Bottle to One Case

• Is your target occasion scalable?

• Adapting your drinking occasion

• Winning distributors

One Case to One Pallet

•Advantages of a broad portfolio of drinks

• Importance of Founder Field Visits, even when big

•Transitioning to Indirect Sales

About the Host: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Chris Maffeo⁠⁠⁠⁠

About the Guest: Paul Hletko

This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS.

Wanna know what the conversation above means for your team? It's in the paid section.

You get access to Maffeo Confidential (Private Podcast), this analysis, and the full catalog of 130+ episodes, each one translating industry conversation into the commercial decisions underneath it. Find out more at maffeodrinks.com or on Substack.

MAFFEO DRINKS is a leading drinks business podcast, listened to in 120 countries with 130+ episodes. How the industry actually works, from the bar and what it means for the boardroom.

In this episode, Chris Maffeo talks with Paul Hletko, Founder of FEW Spirits and CEO of Goza Tequila. He is one of the founding fathers of the Craft Spirits Revolution, founding FEW in 2010, and has a unique perspective on the evolution of the drinks ecosystem over the past 13 years. He is the Former President of the American Craft Spirits Association. We hope you enjoy our chat.

We discussed:

From 0 to 1 bottle

• What's Your Target Occasion?

• Evolution of Identity over Time

• Home Turf Advantage

From 1 bottle to 1 case

• New Consumption Adaption

• Traditional Vs Modern Occasions

About the Host: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Chris Maffeo⁠⁠⁠⁠

About the Guest: ⁠Paul Hletko⁠

This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS.

Wanna know what the conversation above means for your team? It's in the paid section.

You get access to Maffeo Confidential (Private Podcast), this analysis, and the full catalog of 130+ episodes, each one translating industry conversation into the commercial decisions underneath it. Find out more at maffeodrinks.com or on Substack.

MAFFEO DRINKS is a leading drinks business podcast, listened to in 120 countries with 130+ episodes. How the industry actually works, from the bar and what it means for the boardroom.

In this episode of the Maffeo Drinks Podcast, We continue interviewing Alex Frezza, Owner of L'Antiquario Bar in Naples, part of the World's 50 Best Bars. He's credited with building up the Neapolitan Cocktail Bar Scene, provides top-shelf hospitality and, best of all, recognized me when I was a customer at his bar. I hope you enjoy his wisdom as much as I did.

Main topics discussed:

From 0 to 1 bottle

• The importance of the Target Occasion

• How occasions change by City, State, and Country

• Dark Demand Generation

From 1 bottle to 1 case

• Up or Out: how cool bar owners choose their brands

• Analyzing cocktail menus to decide where to focus on

• Avoid brands vs. following brands: different strategies

From 1 case to 1 pallet

• Big brands & the taste setting effect

• Choosing the right Distributor for your brand.

• Localization Challenges

About the Host: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Chris Maffeo⁠⁠⁠⁠

About the Guest: Alex Frezza

This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS.

Wanna know what the conversation above means for your team? It's in the paid section.

You get access to Maffeo Confidential (Private Podcast), this analysis, and the full catalog of 130+ episodes, each one translating industry conversation into the commercial decisions underneath it. Find out more at maffeodrinks.com or on Substack.