Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Joseph Breda, Founder of Old Humble Distilling Company, located in Humble, TX, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
The Old Humble Distilling Company makes whiskey. We currently have 4 products: Straight Whiskey, Special Reserve, Double Oak Rye, and Boomtown Bourbon. Our customers are pretty much anyone who loves whiskey.
Tell us about yourself
When I was in college, I took up home brewing as a hobby. After college, I transitioned most of my homebrew equipment to home winemaking equipment. As a part of home winemaking, we went to several wine tastings to get an idea of the different types and styles of wine I could make. At one of these tastings, I was invited to a whiskey tasting--something I never knew even existed. Always down for an adventure, I agreed to go. At this event, I discovered the breadth and depth of the American whiskey world. I got the idea of starting my own distillery. Just a couple of years later, I had a business plan, a location selected, and a couple of stills on their way to me. Ever since then, I've been working on making the best damn whiskey, period.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
In 2020 we submitted our whiskeys to the London International Spirits Competition and won gold and silver medals for our Special Reserve and Straight Whiskey. They were the highest-rated American whiskeys in the entire competition.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
Patience. Especially in this business, where it can take several months for a product to mature and be completed. There have been several times when the work being done today won't pay off until months or years in the future, and you just have to remind yourself that it will take time. This isn't some video game where you can take an input and plug it into a formula and have a guaranteed result in a few minutes or hours. This takes time, patience, and often the full benefit of the work is unknown. It all requires patience.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Prepare more than you think you have to. This includes research and training but also funding. Businesses live on the money. Make sure you have reserves for rainy days.
- Work harder than you think you should. There will be several occasions when you think to yourself, "is it supposed to be this hard?" The answer is almost always "yes," and it's part of the process. The hard work will pay off if you're applying the hard work in the right places.
- And trust the process. You won't always know how things will turn out, and you can't always predict the outcome. But if you trust the process, have done the work, and put in the effort to prepare, even if everything doesn't work out with the business, the process will pay off with benefits you can't predict. You'll learn lessons and gain experience that you can apply to a myriad of other circumstances going forward. So no matter what the outcome, if you trust the process, you'll benefit in the end.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.oldhumbledistilling.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OldHumbleDistilling
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oldhumbledistilling/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Old_Humble
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/oldhumbledistilling/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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