We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Alex Lindsey a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Alex, thanks for joining us today. Owning a business isn’t always glamorous and so most business owners we’ve connected with have shared that on tough days they sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have just had a regular job instead of all the responsibility of running a business. Have you ever felt that way?

As a business owner approaching 5 years of whiskey production, I frequently discuss with my partner whether this is truly worthwhile. The inherent risk, insecurity, stress, and responsibilities all become a weight at some point, and they can be extremely heavy at times. I also wonder if we have the skills and abilities to remain competitive while organically growing our brand; can we actually accomplish our goals? Some days you just wake up and go back to work because that’s all you know how to do to survive. Needless to say, there is always doubt.

What recently helped me refocus my perceptiions was a question from a local college student who recently interviewed me wanting to get into the spirits industry; he asked “What advice would you give to someone trying to get into the spirits world?” I paused and looked internally to ask myself that same question; what would I tell myself years ago while I was making whiskey in my garage. Ultimately; remember you have a fun job, making whiskey is fun, and the products that you make help create memories and moments with people that are shared across states and in homes and at restaurants and bars. That’s special.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My business began as a weekend hobby that quickly grew to a whiskey brand with 5 states of distribution. It started in my garage and a passion for whiskey and history. I genuinely wanted to know if I could build a business around a brand of whiskey and thru lots and lots of learning was able to get it launched. Our brand is unique for whiskey; we focus on blended whiskeys and believe they are a superior style of whiskey for sipping. As opposed to single cask offerings; a blended whiskey presents a bouquet of flavor that tells a story; there is a beginning middle and end. Story is important to us and we believe in telling them thru our brand. We are located inside a pre-prohibition era tunnel built in the 1890’s; a time where society and technology were rapidly changing. We created a fictional forefather we admiringly call ‘Murdock’ to represent that era. The titans of industry who held a ‘top hat traditionalism’ like Ford, Rockefeller, etc. were driving industry and infrastructure in America represented by the top hat and monocle. But it was the thousands and thousands and men and women doing small pieces at a time that ultimately grew the middle class which is showcased thru his mechanical jaw. I’m very proud of the brand and what it represents but our flagship whiskey Kansas City Whiskey is what I am most proud of within the business. Crafting a custom blended whiskey was difficult, but after we received multiple awards including Double Gold as well as a stunning 99 point rating within our first two years of operation we knew we had a special product.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Authenticity and community have helped our brand in the market. From the outset, we were upfront about our product, how it was made, our contributions to its creation vs. sourced materials etc. At times it felt like overshare but we were so focused on really telling people what our whiskey is and why its special. This authenticity was and is refreshing to consumer and in our community it was appreciated and welcomed. The more we started reaching out and having wonderful business interactions and partnerships the more we saw our brand be recognized.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

in. 2024, we launched another whiskey into distribution and it didn’t “take’ like we wanted so we started to explore options for changing that. At that time, our industry was going thru some hard changes and it felt dire unless we changed paths. It was during that period in seeking ways to make money I turned back to what we were good at and that is creating whiskeys; specfically blended whiskeys. That was a moment of reflection for us and how we can push our brand and products together. – our brand identity was starting to form. This kicked off many changes for us from how we produce, ordering, staff training, customer messaging etc. It was and still is invigorating to find that new focus and drive and work towards it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.westbottomswhiskey.co
• Instagram: @westbottomswhiskeyco
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/westbottomswhiskeyco/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/west-bottoms-whiskey-kansas-city-3

Image Credits

Garrett Blackwell