Russ Broker, founder of Blacksmith Distillery, shares his family's passion for distilling, how he overcame challenges to start his business, and the secrets to his success. Learn how he's using smaller barrels to age spirits faster and how he's expanding his business through private labeling.
Key Lessons
- Starting small and building incrementally based on family passion can lead to successful growth over time
- Understanding regulations fully from the beginning and having proper processes in place can avoid issues down the road
- Creativity and experimentation with different aging and finishing techniques allow for unique product profiles
- Direct customer engagement through tastings and events is important for building awareness as a small brand
- Finding niche opportunities like private labeling can help scale the business beyond production constraints
- Ongoing education helps refine operations and identify areas for improvement or expansion
- Effectively communicating roles and responsibilities among family/partners is critical for coordination
"I've stood in front of thousands of people and gotten the best feedback you can ever get, facial expressions. I mean, people can try to be nice, or try to not be nice or whatever, you know, but nobody wants to just say something terrible. But you can tell genuinely when people really like your product over and over and over again." -Russ Broker
Russ Broker
TheForge@BlacksmithDistillery.com
Connect with the Host
Matthew Shipp
Be a guest: https://emberisolutions.com/harvest-to-pour/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewshipp/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/matthewjshipp/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/emberisolutions
Emberi Solutions: https://emberisolutions.com/