MAFFEO DRINKS: Built Bottom-up

Happy 2026. This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS. A Deep-Dive Analysis of This Episode is Available at maffeodrinks.com In Episode 038, I continued the conversation with Daniel Szor from Episode 037. Feel free to listen to that, as well. He has an incredible story as he left his 30-year Investment Management career in NYC, Paris, and London behind to build one of the first English Whisky Distilleries. I hope you will enjoy our chat. I hope you will enjoy our chat. Time Stamps (0:00) Introduction (0:10) Home Turf Advantage (3:05) Starting A Distillery: Sales (8:44) Bridging Categories (16:34) Discerning Your Market (20:46) Home Turf Authenticity (27:57) Creating A Sales Team (33:51) Small Brand Owner Expectations About the guest: Daniel Szor About the Host: Chris Maffeo This episode is brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS, an Advisory helping drinks leaders execute bottom-up growth while managing stakeholder expectations. You can get in touch at bottomup@maffeodrinks.com 

Happy 2026. This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS. A Deep-Dive Analysis of This Episode is Available at maffeodrinks.com In Episode 037, I had the honor of chatting with Daniel Szor, Founder of the Cotswolds Distillery. He has an incredible story as he left his 30-year Investment Management career in NYC, Paris, and London behind to build one of the first English Whisky Distilleries. I hope you will enjoy our chat. Time Stamps (0:00) Introduction (1:14) Building Demand & Background (8:02) Why England? (12:52) Developing English Whisky (19:49) Whisky Innovation (25:58) Distilling Brand Messaging Down (32:09) Getting Your Foot In The Door (36:33) The Beauty of Off-trade About the Host: Chris Maffeo About the Guest: Daniel Szor This episode is brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS, an Advisory helping drinks leaders execute bottom-up growth while managing stakeholder expectations. You can get in touch at bottomup@maffeodrinks.com 

Happy 2026. This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS. A Deep-Dive Analysis of This Episode is Available at maffeodrinks.com In Episode 036, I continued my conversation with Sebastian Barnick in Episode 035. Feel free to listen to that, as well. Starting life in the Royal Navy, he became a certified distiller and WSET educator with a wealth of experience in wines and luxury spirits. He is an NPD professional and runs a sustainable contract distillery in the UK. I hope you will enjoy our chat. I hope you will enjoy our chat. Time Stamps (0:17); Authenticity in Brands (11:23); Modern and Traditional Target Occasions (17:17); Hometown Authenticity (22:28); Bridging Categories (26:43); Categories from a Distiller's perspective (33:55); Early Adopters (38:28); Best Part of being a Distiller About the Host: Chris Maffeo About the Guest: Sebastian Barnick This episode is brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS, an Advisory helping drinks leaders execute bottom-up growth while managing stakeholder expectations. You can get in touch at bottomup@maffeodrinks.com 

Happy 2026. This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS. A Deep-Dive Analysis of This Episode is Available at maffeodrinks.com In Episode 035, I chatted with Sebastian Barnick, Director at Pleasant Land Distillery. Starting life in the Royal Navy, he became a certified distiller and WSET educator with a wealth of experience in wines and luxury spirits. He is an NPD professional and runs a sustainable contract distillery in the UK. I hope you will enjoy our chat. Timestamps (1:36); Origins of a Liquid and Brand (7:48); Rectifying Vs Distilling (11:10); Disconnect between Pricing and Quality (18:42); The Bottom Up Era (20:04); Value Chain Construction (27:01); Where Do The First 10,000 Pounds Go About The Host: Chris Maffeo About the Guest: Sebastian Barnick This episode is brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS, an Advisory helping drinks leaders execute bottom-up growth while managing stakeholder expectations. You can get in touch at bottomup@maffeodrinks.com 

Happy 2026. This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS. A Deep-Dive Analysis of This Episode is Available at maffeodrinks.com This bonus episode was recorded at Bar Convent Berlin 2023, where Chris Maffeo held a presentation as a guest of Park Street University. Interested in having the slides? Download them here: https://chrismaffeo.gumroad.com/l/demystifyinggenz?_gl=1*1dg8lxc*_ga*NzY1NzcyNzM1LjE3MDAzMTE5Nzk.*_ga_6LJN6D94N6*MTcwMDUxMzAyMC41LjAuMTcwMDUxMzAyMC4wLjAuMA.. About the Host: ⁠Chris Maffeo⁠ About the venue: ⁠BCB - Bar Convent Berlin⁠ All rights reserved: ⁠Park Street⁠ This episode is brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS, an Advisory helping drinks leaders execute bottom-up growth while managing stakeholder expectations. You can get in touch at bottomup@maffeodrinks.com 

Happy 2026. This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS. A Deep-Dive Analysis of This Episode is Available at maffeodrinks.com In Episode 034, I spoke to Gaetano Chiavetta. He heads UK & Italy On-trade at Everleaf Drinks | B Corp. He has previously worked for Global Brands and brings Bar Manager and Bartender experience from several On-trade venues in London. I hope you will enjoy our chat. Time Stamps (2:26); Building Demand (7:46); Targeting Via Wholesalers (17:17); Building Systems For Connection (26:28); Value of The Cocktail Menu (29:58); Do The Homework (39:10); Growing Beyond Your Home Market (42:12); Contact Gaetano About The Host: Chris Maffeo About The Guest: Gaetano Chiavetta This episode is brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS, an Advisory helping drinks leaders execute bottom-up growth while managing stakeholder expectations. You can get in touch at bottomup@maffeodrinks.com 

Happy 2026. This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS. A Deep-Dive Analysis of This Episode is Available at maffeodrinks.com In Episode 033, I continued the conversation I had in episode 032 with Julian Marsili. He is a Global Drinks Brand Director who has many years of experience in the drinks business. He is behind the successful global rejuvenation of the Carlsberg brand, the launch of Alcohol-Free brews and other Portfolio Innovations. He has previously managed Peroni Nastro Azzurro in Italy. I hope you will enjoy our chat. This is a two part-episode, so Don't forget to listen to episode 032 as well. I hope you will enjoy our chat. Time Stamps (00:35); The Bottom-up Trade (02:45); Target Spaces (07:23); Recovering Brand Essence (12:24); Marketeer Disconnection From Trade (19:57); 1% Everyday (25:30); Distinctiveness Vs Differentiation This episode is brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS, an Advisory helping drinks leaders execute bottom-up growth while managing stakeholder expectations. You can get in touch at bottomup@maffeodrinks.com 

Happy 2026. This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS. A Deep-Dive Analysis of This Episode is Available at maffeodrinks.com In Episode 032, I enjoyed speaking to my friend and ex-colleague Julian Marsili. He is a Global Drinks Brand Director with many years of experience in the drinks business. He is behind the successful rejuvenation of the Carlsberg brand globally, the launch of Alcohol-Free brews and other Portfolio Innovations. He has previously managed Peroni Nastro Azzurro in Italy. I hope you will enjoy our chat. This is a 2 part-episode so Don't forget to listen to episode 033 as well. I hope you will enjoy our chat. Time Stamps (1:38); Brand Saliency (11:57); Maintaining Basics (17:05); Disconnected From Product (24:31); Demand Space Vs Target About the Host About the Guest This episode is brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS, an Advisory helping drinks leaders execute bottom-up growth while managing stakeholder expectations. You can get in touch at bottomup@maffeodrinks.com 

Happy 2026. This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS. A Deep-Dive Analysis of This Episode is Available at maffeodrinks.com In episode 031, Chris Maffeo had the honor of meeting in person with Joonas Mäkilä, a close friend and Co-founder of Mother's Milk Beverages, a Spirits Company based in Finland. He is a Finnish Commercial Advisor with two decades of experience in FMCG multinationals, private equity-backed hospitality groups, and other industries. We hope you will enjoy their chat. This is a video episode if you watch it on Spotify. About the Host: Chris Maffeo About the Guest: Joonas Mäkilä Time Stamps (2:00); Lingoncello Launch (9:10); Breaking Into Outlets (11:50); Taking Advantage of The Back Bar (13:50); A Outlet Owner's View of Attempted Sales (18:38); Small & Big Brands (28:45); Brand Stories (38:00); Target Occasion > Target Consumer (40:20); Expand Or Focus Distribution (50:00) Win at Home (57:00); Internal Competition (1:02:35); Cash Efficiency This episode is brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS, an Advisory helping drinks leaders execute bottom-up growth while managing stakeholder expectations. You can get in touch at bottomup@maffeodrinks.com 

Happy 2026. This Episode is hosted by Chris Maffeo and brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS. A Deep-Dive Analysis of This Episode is Available at maffeodrinks.com 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 brought to you by MAFFEO DRINKS, an Advisory helping drinks leaders execute bottom-up growth while managing stakeholder expectations. You can get in touch at bottomup@maffeodrinks.com