Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Chelsey Salisbury. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Chelsey, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.
I took a considerable risk by deciding to expand our brand, Still Austin Whiskey Co., into Louisiana last year. I remember, about a year and a half ago, sitting down with my boss and mentor, Chris Cain, at Hotel Magdalena in Austin, TX and expressing how I wanted to grow within the company and felt that I had done everything that I could for the brand at our home base and in Central Texas. He asked me “If you could do anything within Still Austin, what would it be?” and I told him that I wanted to do something tantamount to what I had done in Austin. However, I wanted the opportunity to perhaps do that somewhere else. He responded by saying “Okay. Colorado or Louisiana?” and without hesitation, I said Louisiana. Eight months later, I packed my entire life up in a U haul and moved to New Orleans, LA to build our brand, once again, from the ground up. Mind you, I didn’t know anyone in New Orleans before moving here. Also, when I moved here, Hurricane Ida hit shortly thereafter. There have been a lot of growing pains and challenges that I have encountered from living here, but not once have I ever felt that moving to New Orleans wasn’t the right decision. Rather, with every day that passes, I feel more self-confident that I made the right choice. I am a better person for living in New Orleans and, Still Austin has slowly, but surely, created meaningful and impactful relationships within the community here as well.
Chelsey, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
My name is Chelsey Salisbury and I oversee the state of Louisiana for Still Austin Whiskey Co. I’m a bit of a Renaissance Woman, along with being a full-time Whiskey/Gin Woman. I like to say that Still Austin Whiskey Co. is my full-time partner, but I have many mistresses when it comes to interests and other goals. For Still Austin though, my focus is Sales. However, I thrive on building with and within a community when it comes to anything that I am passionate about, and Still Austin is at the forefront of that, which is why Still Austin trusted in me to help build our brand from the ground up in the lovely state of Louisiana. New Orleans is our nucleus and where I hang my hat at the end of every night. They say that New Orleans has a deep soul and that when she chooses you, it’s for a reason. Not a day goes by living here that I don’t thank my lucky stars that New Orleans chose me and that Still Austin gave me the chance to come on over here and help us shine.
I fell into this side of the industry a little naively. I have been in the restaurant/bar industry on and off since I was 16. I worked at 2 bars before I started working with Still Austin. One of those bars was the premier Whiskey Bar in Austin, TX at the time, called Blackheart (RIP, you sweet, precious angel of a rock & roll unicorn house). I was also simultaneously going to school for Astronomy, Physics, and Literature. My goal was to major in some course involving writing and then minoring in Astronomy. From there, I was either going to do research for NASA, or find some other magical avenue that had me staring at the stars all night and getting others excited about how brilliant Space truly is. Alas, life invariably has its way and I am no different than any other human being when it comes to making the choice to give up on swimming up stream and to inevitably go with the unambiguous flow that is your path.
In a nutshell, my day to day work consists of working directly with our distributor, off-premise retail accounts, on-premise accounts, and Whiskey Societies. I oversee all of our relationships and focus on illuminating our brand awareness and accruing volume in a balanced format that involves everyone sitting at the winners’ table at the end of the day. I like to call myself a “glorified bridge builder”, because I have the luxury of being the middle-woman that helps build the path from Still Austin Whiskey Co.’s distillery into everyone’s accounts, mouths, and hearts. I’m a jack of all trades and I genuinely love working with people. I also love the ethics that Still Austin has perpetually stood behind. I would follow the CEO/Co-Founder, Chris Seals, into the dark. He is hands down one of the most magnanimous beings that I have ever met. I have also seen everyone in our distillery in all kinds of light and they’re all just incredibly ingenious souls and well, I feel rich for knowing them. They have all taught me so much and I’m a greater woman for being able to not only know them, but work alongside them. I love our brand and everyone’s heart and soul that has gone into it. They’re not just my co-workers, they’re my friends, and they’re my family. We bleed from grain to glass made Whiskey and Gin deep in the heart of Austin, TX, and that is what sets us apart from the rest. We put community, what is right, and intentionality first. I’m a firm believer that it takes a village to help make the world a better place and that’s what we’re trying to do with our communities within the Whiskey and Gin world. We’re also making it more delicious, too, and no, that isn’t just me being biased, that’s me imploring you to go get yourself a bottle to see, smell, and taste what I am talking about for yourself!
As for other interests, I also am a Certified 200 HR Yoga Teacher. I am attending school for Herbalism at Chestnut School of Herbal Medicine. As well as, Intro to Music Theory at The University of Oxford this fall. I picked up a Harp and take Ceramics classes. I play fast-pitch, sticks only, sandlot baseball for the Gentilly Giants for the PBL in New Orleans (Go Green!). Also, I have been with the same DnD campaign for over a year and I hope to join the Symphony Chorus of New Orleans some time this year. I really love living life and, if you could guess from all of this, I am never bored. If ever I think of contemplating boredom, I either pick up a good book, get out into nature, or play games/trivia with my friends, and am immediately satiated.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
I chose this question and I am not even sure where to begin! I am still in the process of unlearning and relearning, it seems. Isn’t this the way of life if you want to grow though? I had a friend, Rudy Ruiz, tell me recently, as I was confiding in him about some of my vulnerabilities and hardships, “Isn’t it something that we’re 35 and still have to go through all of this self-discovery and learning new things about ourselves. Like, why didn’t we get this stuff squared away earlier?! In all seriousness though, we’ll spend the rest of our lives doing this kind of work, that is, if we’re living right.” That hit home for me and made me also thank the stars above for having him as a dear friend for damn near 16 years now.
The backstory was more related to self discovery and how much I have changed since I moved to New Orleans. How my conservative views have been challenged and also completely altered. How I can now acknowledge that I lived a privileged lifestyle, living in a predominantly white-cultured community for the majority of my adult life. I think this is one of the main reasons New Orleans “called” to me. To introduce me to real world issues that I have always seen, but had no idea how others handled them, nor any clue how to help them. When I moved here, I had a specific way that life was supposed to look. I was conditioned to believe that life was a linear path based on the belief systems that I was told was the “right” way to exist. My source of being is fueled by scratching past the surface and profoundly diving into humanity and from this accepting even more awareness and empathy. The more I connect with others here, the more I recognize that there is no linear path to existing. What I am realizing is that I have been convoluting my own existence because, in a way, I have been living a life dedicated to fulfilling others’ ideas of what happiness looks like. New Orleans has challenged me to be even more open and with that authentic. So, as of now, I am learning more about what inspires me and allowing myself space and trust to explore whatever that may be at the deepest parts of its core. A place that, at times, I have never even been before. What a beautiful and epic odyssey this life is!
Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?
I love humans and love connecting with humans. I genuinely care about others and want people to know that relationships come first. Still Austin isn’t just about putting liquor on people’s shelves. Sure, that is great and we do inevitably want that! However, community is at the essence the most important part of our brand. It took a village to build Still Austin and it will take continuous friendships and trust to continue to grow. I keep in touch with our accounts/friends by simply showing up in miscellaneous ways to show that we care. I help foster brand loyalty by doing this and practicing integrity religiously. It’s not rocket science, if you care, it will show.
Contact Info:
- Website: stillaustin.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chelseysalisbury/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=619032224
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chelsey-salisbury-97225126/