We were lucky to catch up with Guy Whitehead recently and have shared our conversation below.
Guy, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today. Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?
Starting a distillery is mostly about paperwork. Whether the vision is large or small, the amount of paperwork required by state and federal authorities is a bit daunting. There are what appear to be “Catch-22” moments, when you need A to apply for B, but in order to get A, you need to have B.
Legal work, from trademarks to LLCs, to applications and legislation, add up quickly. I first drew the logo for the distillery on a bar napkin sometime in 2015 (sadly, I don’t have the napkin) and it wasn’t until 2017 when I began the trademark and logo work. I also applied for the federal license in 2017. Back then, I think there were less than 20 distilleries in the state of Minnesota. I think there may only be that many in Wisconsin now, despite the legal and regulatory environment in this state just absolutely embarrassing that in Minnesota; Wisconsin is that much easier to work in.
The needed approvals came through in early 2018, and we turned on the stills for the first time on March 23rd, 2018. My wife’s birthday. The first location, in Minnesota, was supposed to be a “proof of concept” location, to ensure that I could actually learn to distill a product, and one good enough that I would want to drink it in lieu of more readily available spirits.
By the time I knew I was ready to take the next step, the pandemic had begun. It doesn’t matter what you believe in regards to the nature/severity/approach to that time with Covid, because it definitely destroyed some small businesses, and kept others from opening (I was one). It added roughly 2 years to our timeline. By the time we finished building our new location (in Wisconsin, due to aforementioned problems that the legislators in Minnesota are choosing to ignore) it was March of 2022.
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 background and context?
I’ve spent the last 20+ years in the investment business, working as an institutional equity salesperson. Public stocks, where we brought a certain level of knowledge to our customer base, mostly institutions investing in public equities. Our firm was small, I was in the first 10 people. We grew to over 100 strong, and after 20 years, it wasn’t that I wanted to get out, I just felt that it was time to do something different. I still work there in a reduced capacity, and my partners there have supported this new venture.
Additionally, I wanted to leave something to my children that I helped to create with their help. I’ve been a do-it-yourself type of person ever since I was young. Tinkering with bikes, 3 wheelers, cars, etc. Joined the National Guard when I was 17, in order to help pay for college, and my first job there was a blessing: carpenter/mason/electrician/plumber/sheet metal worker. I was able to learn a craft that allowed me to renovate the first 5-6 places we lived, saving many dollars along the way.
As to the name, it’s called Lucky Guys not because my name is Guy, but because me, and my 3 sons, are Lucky Guys to have my wife Michelle. She’s constantly driving us to be better, brings a very talented and discerning eye to the equation, and has impeccable abilities in taste and in people. If she likes something or someone, she’s rarely wrong.
This business is about providing hand crafted spirits, from local sources, to a regional area. I don’t have a dream to become the next Tito’s, but I do have a dream of making a lot of people with 250 miles of here appreciate what we bring to the table. We started making Bourbon, but I became fond of making Gin, and now our spirit line includes 12 items, and I think we may be the only maker of Ouzo, a Greek spirit, in the upper Midwest.
We want our customers, our distributors, our partners to LOVE what we make, and to know that it’s our attention to detail that will elevate us amongst our peers. Not just time invested, but in higher quality ingredients, more time spent, more collaboration with others to continue to improve the product and the packaging that contains it.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
Primarily, our business is self funded. Our financial partners, and there are a few, are all friends and family who wanted to participate in this journey. About 10% of the business was funded through these close friends, and we hope to not only give them a nice rate of return, but to have a really fun time along the way.
Any fun sales or marketing stories?
In this industry, distribution finds you. Told several times that I shouldn’t even waste my time chasing it down. It proved true over the first 2-3 years, and no one really even considered bringing me on. My style, however, isn’t really conducive to wait and see, so I kept pressing. Eventually, our distribution partner in Minnesota, Rue 38, came along. They liked the family background, and having been a wine distributor and NOT carried a distilled spirit, decided to take us on as their first foray into that side of the business.
So far, the reception has been great. While it’s tougher on-premise, where a bar and/or restaurant usually already has certain brands in every category, the liquor stores have been quite welcoming to new products with a twist. They like to support local, and since we’re not part of the larger distributors, they feel they have a choice to support us.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.luckyguysdistillery.com
- Instagram: @luckyguysdistillery
- Facebook: Lucky Guys Distillery, Hudson