Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ariana Nester. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Ariana, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

During COVID lockdown we found ourselves participating in a weekly zoom trivia and cocktail hour with friends to stay connected and be social. For these events I would research and develop a craft cocktail for us to enjoy and as a result started to make a lot of my own ingredients – from liqueurs, to syrups, to bitters – I experimented with it all. As things started to open back up I was able to share a lot of my creations with friends and neighbors and the idea for the business was born. People saw the value of creating their own delicious concoctions at home, and appreciated a good cocktail out even more than before. I wanted to provide great flavors to help supplement the limited supplies provided in the ABC stores of our control state and craft world class cocktails from home or your local bar. I also wanted to provide the best quality of products made with all natural ingredients and crafted in small batches. What excited me most about this idea was the ability to craft flavors seasonally that would help you adjust your menu to reflect these seasonal changes throughout the year.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I grew up in the hospitality and service industry and have always had a knack for flavor, which I usually applied to cooking and baking, however during lock down we also could not go enjoy a craft cocktail at bars and restaurants. This resulted in my creating flavors of syrups and bitters to make quality craft cocktails at home. Since then I have brought over 30 flavors or bitters to market and hope to launch some flavored syrups before the end of this calendar year.

Our bitters have been greatly popular in the industry as well with bartenders, managers, and owners recognizing the excellent flavor and quality of our products out the gate. I am proud to be partnered with so many excellent establishments and it makes me giddy to see my product on so many back bars throughout the state and country.

I am also exceedingly proud of our partnerships with charities locally and abroad. Being a second generation Ukrainian American, we launched two Ukrainian inspired flavors that we donate $5 for every bottle sold to World Central Kitchen. We have also done multiple fundraising events, including donating 10% of our retail sales to our local food cupboard recently to help with the increased need in our community.

Okay – so how did you figure out the manufacturing part? Did you have prior experience?

We manufacture our own product, which was an interesting endeavor as there is a lot of misunderstanding related to the nature of cocktail bitters. While the product contains alcohol it is regulated at the federal level as a grocery item because you would never use them in a large enough quantity to make it an alcoholic beverage – things drops and dashes, not ounces. It took many phone calls to make sure which state agency would regulate our product and what processes needed to be followed, included where the product could be produced. I have learned a lot about Consumer Packaged Goods and how the state of North Carolina regulates them.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Our number one source of new clients has been relationship building and word of mouth. Networking has been crucial in getting introductions to business owners but also our willingness to go and get to know a business before even trying to recommend our products for their use. We believe in excellent customer service and understanding our clients needs and supporting their success. We are fortunate that so many of our clients love our products and tell other people about them! We love when a new client seeks us out because they have heard about our product from other professionals.

We also have a strong local following of home cocktail enthusiasts from our participation in our local farmers market and other pop-up and vendor events. We love getting to know our neighbors and what they enjoy, and love it even more when they bring their family and friends by our booth to show off our products, or buy them as gifts for birthdays and holidays.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.remedycocktailcompany.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/remedycocktailcompany/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/remedycocktailcompany
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/remedy-cocktail-company/\
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@remedycocktailcompany

Image Credits
Headshot by Jenny Midgley Storytelling Photography + Content Marketing All other images original to Remedy Cocktail Company, LLC