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Welcome to Founders and Fortitude, the podcast where passion meets perseverance. Hosted by Audrie Dollins — a marketing strategist, retired professional photographer, visionary entrepreneur, and founder of AD Media Group, a renowned influencer and brand marketing firm — this podcast uncovers the stories behind extraordinary lives and thriving businesses.
Through authentic conversations and impactful storytelling, each episode explores the entrepreneurial journey, sharing the highs, lows, and actionable strategies for success. Gain expert advice, business insights, and inspiration from trailblazers who have turned aspirations into reality.
Whether you're a seasoned entrepreneur or taking the first step, Founders and Fortitude offers the tools, motivation, and community you need to build, grow, and thrive in today’s dynamic business landscape.
Tune in weekly to discover the grit, grace, and fortitude it takes to succeed and leave a lasting impact.
Welcome to Founders and Fortitude Conversations with Audrie Dollins, a podcast where we uncover the raw realities of being a founder, celebrating the brilliance of the teams, individuals, and families working tirelessly behind the scenes, and explore the fortitude, the unwavering determination it takes to navigate the twists, turns, and triumphs of entrepreneurship and life itself. Each week we will share candid conversations, actionable insights, and inspiring stories to empower you on your journey. Whether you're building a brand, scaling a business, an online creator and influencer, or pursuing your passions with relentless drive, let's dive into the grit, grace, and growth it takes to thrive. Let's get into it.
Audrie Dollins:Hi friends, welcome to this episode of Founders and Fortitude. I am so excited about today's episode because I am having a founder on that created the cocktails known as Avenue Eight cocktails. What's so exciting about this as they are our sponsor of Founders and Fortitude studio. So thank you so much to Avenue Eight Cocktails, and I'm so excited because let me tell you how I found out about Avenue eight Cocktails just like so many of you. I was scrolling through Instagram, probably doomscrolling at night or working during the day.
Audrie Dollins:As you know, we work, have a marketing agency here at Parlay Collective and going through and I saw a beautiful woman speak very strong and detailed on social media talking about her decisions, why she made choices and about her drinks, about her business, what her goal was. And I was like, that right there, if I could put in a bottle to show people how to talk about your business without being the face of being the face of your business, that's exactly how I would do it. Because she was speaking of what made her cocktail stand out, what makes Avenue eight stand out, what work went behind it, and I found respect in what she was saying. And so with that, we reached out. We wanted to partner because, a, I wanted to try it.
Audrie Dollins:I wanted to know why she had went through all of these steps. The confidence in her sharing publicly. And I think that's something I wholeheartedly relate to. I will share anything I do not gatekeep because I think it shows how dedicated I am and that is what I was pulling from her on social media. And just a short clip, was like, I want to know who this person is.
Audrie Dollins:There's so much knowledge behind what she's doing that it made it... Made me want her product. And it made me respect her as a business owner. And so I'm so excited to have her here today talking about talking about her, her past, her history, her experience, and then Avenue 8 today, what sets it apart and really diving in. So folks, let's get into it.
Audrie Dollins:I am so excited that you're here. I'm so happy to be here. And I wanna tell you the story on how I... Like, not that I discovered you, but, like, I was scrolling through social media and I saw a video of you talking about Avenue 8. And I was like, I love how you were so strong in your words and how you were the founder and how you were speaking to your product.
Audrie Dollins:And I was like, I wanna know who this is. And the reason why I say that is in the industry that we're in, we have a lot of business owners who are like, I don't want to be the face of my company. And I I think you have done it so well on how you've approached it. So before we go in deep Okay. Tell me about you Okay.
Audrie Dollins:And how this became and like what your... What is your experience and your... What led you to this? Okay. So I'm Tiffany Jones, and I'm from Dallas, and I'm a wife and a mother of two amazing daughters that both live in
Tiffany Jones:New York. And I'm probably the least likely person on the planet to have decided to start a cocktail company at the age of 57
Audrie Dollins:years old. I am at all. I am
Tiffany Jones:at So that's a little bit crazy. It came about really like two things were happening at the same time. One was that I had always been a wine drinker and a champagne drinker, and I'd just gotten to the age and the point where it was wrecking my body. Like I didn't enjoy drinking it anymore. It didn't matter if I had half a glass of wine or three glasses of wine.
Tiffany Jones:I was gonna have the same headache, I wasn't gonna be sleeping, and it just... It was just not working. In that sort of same time period, our girls were in college, and we were visiting them at parents' weekends and going to tailgates and parent parties and all the things. And the canned cocktails scene had sort of come on the market sort of, like, during COVID, maybe a little bit before. And so they were serving us all these canned drinks.
Tiffany Jones:And I was like, I love the convenience of this, but I'm too old to drink what's in the can. So like, it really sort of started after eight years. You know, the last parents weekend, I said to my husband, I'm like, seriously, why hasn't somebody created something better to drink in a can? Because, well, why don't you do it? And I was like, why would I do that?
Tiffany Jones:Like, I don't I don't know one thing about the alcohol industry, the drinks business, like whatever. And so it sort of just ruminated in the back of my mind for a couple weeks. And I thought, I'm gonna start doing a little bit of research because surely this already... Mean, we live in a big country. Surely somebody has already created this and I just haven't found it yet.
Tiffany Jones:And so that's really where it started as a research project looking for something that was good enough that I wanted to drink and that was satisfying sort of my requirements at the time.
Audrie Dollins:First off big high five to your husband that's so supportive like that because he was that I love that And I think that when there's strength like that... I wanna pause and ask a question. Yeah. The season of parenthood Yes. Do you think, as a founder and and doing this and and creating this and it's so delicious, do you think you could have achieved the same thing with your children being younger?
Audrie Dollins:Absolutely not. Do you... I often talk about seasons, and I think there's a season, and we were talking about that a little bit earlier, where there's a season with our children. So would it look different? Do you think you would have tried to start that when they were younger?
Audrie Dollins:I don't think so. If the idea came Yeah, in that I
Tiffany Jones:don't think so. Mean, I had an interior design business for over twenty years, and so I did work some when they were at home. But sort of like you, I worked when they were at school, and I would work after they went to bed. So I had the flexibility. My husband traveled all the time, so so I had the flexibility, but being a mom was the number one, you know, job that I had.
Tiffany Jones:And I loved it. I loved that season. I mean, I cheered everything you could possibly cheer at school from any grade at any school. Like, just, I was always involved with them, and I took them to school every day, and I picked them up from school every day, and I went to their sporting events. And I did that season, and I loved every single bit of it.
Tiffany Jones:And then I did the empty nest season, you know, and when they were off at college, and now they're both grown in New York. And, you know, I had that little, like, part of a season two where I would travel with my husband or go on trips with my girlfriends and played mahjong all day or whatever the case may be. But I just was like, that isn't that isn't who I am. And so I was like, I need something else to do. I need something that is going to be, you know, growing my mind and keeping me sharp.
Tiffany Jones:And, you know, you can read needlepoint all day long, which I still very much love to do, but that just wasn't where I saw myself headed. But most certainly, this was not where I saw myself headed. I had had thought maybe it would be like I would design a line of wallpaper or fabric because that was the industry that I knew and had been involved in for such a long time. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought I would be the cocktail company
Audrie Dollins:I absolutely... I love the packaging. Thank you. Tell me about your approach because you said that you... I wanna get my exact 30 rounds of formulation.
Audrie Dollins:Yes. And tell me about what you were looking for in that process on what sets this apart. Because... So you searched, there was nothing that was aligning with what you were looking for. Right.
Audrie Dollins:And so at that moment, you went Let for
Tiffany Jones:me back up just a little bit. So I ordered, probably 12 or 15 different canned cocktails from around the country, thinking, again, that somebody has probably already solved this problem, and I just haven't found the right one yet. And they would come. I'd get so excited. Maybe this will be the one.
Tiffany Jones:And I'd take a sip, and I'd be like, this one sucks, too. And I'd pour it down the drain, and I'd throw the other three away. And then after 12 or 15, it became a real frustration, and the question shifted. It wasn't like, Why isn't there something better to drink in a can? It was like, Why are they all so terrible?
Tiffany Jones:So then the research shifted to sort of answer that question. And the answer to that is because 90% of them are owned by the same five or six conglomerates. And so it's really quite literally the same liquid or variation of that very terrible liquid with a different can label on it. And so that then became a real eye opener and really understanding, wanting to learn more about what the alcohol industry really was and why these were all so bad. So all of this really I mean, every single step of it was, if I'm going to do it right, I need to know how every piece of the puzzle works.
Tiffany Jones:And I need to know how the ingredients where you how you source the right ingredients for something like an alcohol because it's not like well I'm going to run to Whole Foods and I'm gonna make a soup and we're gonna decide to use organic vegetables.
Audrie Dollins:Correct. Because it will age in the can or can it stay... Can it get hot? Can it get cold? What happens when everything...
Audrie Dollins:Yes. Exactly. Yeah.
Tiffany Jones:And so when I figured out that the alcohol industry was not regulated by the FDA, that really changed how I approached what I was going to put in the can. And because of that, there are no legal requirements for any alcohol manufacturer to list the ingredients, to list the nutrition facts, to disclose anything, which is which was wildly shocking to me as a consumer. It wildly shocking. It's it's run by the arm of the government called the TTB, which is the Tobacco Trade Bureau, and they're the same arm that regulates firearms. So you've got alcohol, something you're putting in your body, and then you've got firearms, and you've got tobacco, and a whole host of other things.
Tiffany Jones:And I was like, this just doesn't make sense to me. And so it was really, really important that when I learned that, that I was using the best possible ingredients, that we were sourcing organic ingredients because I wanted it to just be as clean as possible. The more I learned about the chemicals and the fillers and all the things that are added to alcohol and other food as well that we consume, I was like, this is disgusting. And why would we put this in our bodies? And it's already like, you you're know, already drinking so you know there's there's that.
Tiffany Jones:But if we're gonna drink why not make it the best possible.
Audrie Dollins:Well and there is some alcoholic beverages and somebody will say something and I'm like, I will not drink that. I don't find it when I was younger, I may could have found it funny, but I don't find a particular alcohol funny because it's literally banned in other countries. Correct. There's some... And I'm like, How are we selling this and being okay with it?
Audrie Dollins:Because it is literally banned. And you can research that it will literally say battery acid on the label. Or not on the label, but when you start, it doesn't say it on the label because just like you're saying. But like it's, and I may be completely wrong because I do not want to name certain things or companies, but I'm like, I will not drink that. That is...
Audrie Dollins:Confluent to battery acid.
Tiffany Jones:Exactly. Well, this gets to your, the long way around to getting to answer your question of why 30 rounds of formulation because we don't use any artificial sweeteners. We don't use any added sugars. We don't use any preservatives. We don't use any fillers.
Tiffany Jones:I mean, it's really there's six ingredients in each can and a kindergartener could pronounce them. That's how clean I wanted it to be. So it took that many rounds to get it right. Know, mean, could we do have some natural flavor, but it is organic. It passes the organic certification test.
Tiffany Jones:And really, that is just to help hold the flavor through because organic fruit juice, the flavor will deteriorate over time. And so we use very, very little. Are in the process actually of being organic certified. And, so with that, we have to have 95% of what goes in the can to pass organic certification. So it's really, really, really clean.
Tiffany Jones:So that's why it took so long to formulate because, you know, getting it right with real, real ingredients I mean just just took a little bit.
Audrie Dollins:Well it's absolutely delicious with yes I was like let's pause for a sip. Pause for
Tiffany Jones:a sip.
Audrie Dollins:Let's do that. I mean the I'm telling you these are so great.
Tiffany Jones:Makes me so happy to take a sip. I know. I love it.
Audrie Dollins:It's so refreshing. And then, and I I think that's what made me so excited as well is because I loved your approach to it. I love how you spoke about it. And then, obviously with my background and what I do as marketing, and then I love that there was a story and what your mission was because what, the data is telling us now is that they do not drink as much as we did in my era.
Tiffany Jones:Correct.
Audrie Dollins:So my age range of the ripe old age, I'm proud to be 43. I used to be like, oh, I don't wanna age or whatever, but I've I'm fine.
Tiffany Jones:Spilled my age. I was
Audrie Dollins:gonna say, like, I'm fine with being 43. I really wanna move in that, like, I'm getting older and I'm loving it kind of thing even though, like, it had... My hip hurts. But in our... Like, in our era, we drank way more, and it's showing that statistics are going...
Audrie Dollins:But I think it's because we are more health conscious. Absolutely.
Tiffany Jones:And I see it. I spend more hours in the liquor stores than I would like to admit. And that was a piece of building this brand that I really didn't factor into it early on. But by doing so, I also talk to the consumer all of the time. And I see it and I see the shopping habits of people that are coming in of all ages, you know, and it's it's definitely changing.
Tiffany Jones:It's definitely shifting.
Audrie Dollins:And where can someone... Okay. Let's talk about this. Okay. When you were doing this as a found...
Audrie Dollins:Like, as you were developing it, was there a price range that you were trying to stay in? Tell me about those when you're... You've never done this. Yeah. What did that feel like when you're like, okay.
Audrie Dollins:Packaging and can and give me that and, like... And you don't have to tell me, like, price range, but, like, all of those little details of, like, how did you make those decisions with no... Like, this is the first time you've ever done it.
Tiffany Jones:Well, I mean, it's really I'm very type A. And so to bite off something like this, I really I could I could still be researching, to be honest. I mean, I had three three inch notebooks of old school research printed, highlighted notes in the margin, things to follow-up on like old school. And I mean, I did that for several months. And finally, my husband was like, okay, enough with the research.
Tiffany Jones:Either you got to make a decision or you got to quit talking about it because, like, what more can you possibly be learning? And so when I decided I was going to actually do this, in the alcohol industry, only 92% of the people who work in the industry are men. And so I was like, wow. Like, in 2024, that's really the statistic. And so when I decided I was going to do it, I only hired women to build the brand.
Audrie Dollins:And that's the video that caught my eye when you said that because I... It paused me because I love that. That statistic right there.
Tiffany Jones:It was really great. Yeah. So we started... Our legal team is women. Our creative team was women.
Tiffany Jones:Our brand strategy, team was a woman. And but most importantly, our formulation team was a was a group of women. And because our bodies process sugar and carbonation differently. And so if I wanted who was actually formulating and who was tasting to be the target audience that we were building for. And so...
Tiffany Jones:And then our creative team, I wanted... I didn't want anybody that had alcohol experience. I wanted luxury good experience because I wanted the package to stand out all the... It's so... Such a crowded space.
Tiffany Jones:All the packaging is so noisy, and I wanted it to be a beautiful box on the shelf that looked like nothing else in the market. And I think we did a really great...
Audrie Dollins:I think you did an outstanding job. I... That is too what brought me to your company, your brand, the way that you did it because it looks like a luxury. It looks like I don't... No kidding.
Audrie Dollins:I don't want a koozie to cover up my pants. Do you know what I'm saying? Yeah, thank you. Like I think it is so cute and it's so aesthetically pleasing that I'm just like, oh this makes me, you know, feel great. I mean just like outfits or anything like that, it makes me like, oh, this is cute.
Audrie Dollins:I... You know? It's a nice little accessory. Yeah. And I...
Audrie Dollins:You know, not that I don't love a a great beer on occasion. I'm not gonna lie. I love a good, Corona or Dosekis, but I'm like, I would carry this first. You know what I'm saying? Yeah.
Audrie Dollins:So, like, it's very classy. I'm a Texas country girl. I just made myself, you know, kinda go back with a a beard, but I just loved it because it just the design and the detail going
Tiffany Jones:So into because it's a premium product and because it's organic, here's one of the really interesting things about the government agency that approves all of these labels and everything. Because even though we use organic ingredients, unless it is organic certified, we can't use the word organic on the front of the box. And so the consumer doesn't know that right off the bat unless they turn it around and read it. And so we wanted the box to really be exude luxury because it was going to come with a higher price point. Very similar to not because we were looking to just to make a lot of money.
Tiffany Jones:We're looking just like, you know, organic ingredients cost more. They and because we don't use any preservatives, we have to have a piece of the production process that's a more expensive piece called tunnel pasteurization, which is really a gold standard of production process, but it costs you more money. And so the mass market legacy brands, they're not doing that. They're using all of the really cheapest, you know, ingredients
Audrie Dollins:bringing up the price. It was just me kind of like, how how did you land on that? Just as a question, when I look at the price, it does. I don't even blink at it because it's so good and it's so well made. Do you know what I'm saying?
Audrie Dollins:Like, I don't even compare it. Haven't even compared it, to be honest. Like, oh, what's the... You know, I haven't done that deep of research. I just love your product.
Tiffany Jones:My mind it was great.
Audrie Dollins:But I think like, I mean, when I was looking on earlier, okay, where can we shop this? I think it's great. I mean, I don't see, I would all day, every day.
Tiffany Jones:Oh yeah. Yeah. Well, in my mind, the pricing was that it would be like what we would trade for a bottle of wine. If you were not going to be drinking wine anymore and this was going be your new go to that in your mind that was an easy replacement.
Audrie Dollins:Oh I love that and that's where like a few of my questions are going to come where it's going to kind of steer to what, you know, first off, before we leave from talking about the drink itself, you won the best new ready cocktail 2025. We did. How did that feel? And how many other awards have you gotten since then? Any other, like, what are all of these?
Audrie Dollins:Because I saw that you got that award. What is the first moment or an award that you were like, okay, I did. I know it's great because, you know, we all think our baby's beautiful, Right. Exactly. But when was that moment for you and what was that?
Tiffany Jones:Well, launched in March 2025, and I believe it was the end of April or beginning of May, we received an email from the San Francisco World Spirit Competition, which in this industry, are a lot of awards that you can apply for. They're all sort of pay to play. Yes, yes. Really none of them hold really much weight except for the San Francisco World Spirit. It is like the Oscars of the alcohol industry.
Tiffany Jones:And so I had submitted my three flavors to them, and I got an email back that said our Blood Orange Paloma, which either
Audrie Dollins:of us are doing right here. It's so good.
Tiffany Jones:Had been a double, had been given a double gold award at their first, Oh my gosh. What is the word? I'm drawing a blank. Anyway, it'd been given a double gold award. Okay.
Tiffany Jones:And I was like, I was so excited. And that's really important because at San Francisco, it is a blind taste test. So it's five judges who all gave it a gold award. And because it was a unanimous gold award, you're given a double gold award. So they didn't know who made it.
Tiffany Jones:They didn't see the packaging. All they did was taste it And on the that was really, really, really deal. Exciting.
Audrie Dollins:That's a big deal. With that,
Tiffany Jones:we had also been named a finalist, for best in class for that category, which we did not win that. But, right before maybe Halloween... No. Right before maybe in September 2025, we got another email that said we had been nominated to be, a finalist for the best new ready to drink cocktail in the entire country. And that that encompassed vodka, tequila, gin, Anything that that came in a can ready to drink or a bottle, honestly, we were in that category.
Tiffany Jones:And I opened that email and I thought, this is a joke. Who sent us to me?
Audrie Dollins:Did you check to see, like, is this a Gmail? Closed it. I was like, let's just come back.
Tiffany Jones:And I was like, oh my gosh. And I said, I forwarded it to somebody who was consulting with us at the time, and he's like, that's a really big deal. And
Audrie Dollins:I was like,
Tiffany Jones:my gosh. And I felt so proud because I was like, there were so many other things that have been sort of going wrong with the launch, and I was like, this this is validation. I mean, this is like, I knew we made a good product, but then to have somebody like that tell you you'd made a good product, it was like,
Audrie Dollins:yay. When you were telling friends or family members, I always I always feel like no matter what type of business you own, with our our experience, somebody or friends of ours that are business owners, somebody always has an opinion in regards of... Even if it's a helpful one. Yeah. How do you kind of weed through, I know even if it's someone excited for you or someone maybe thinking like oh maybe you should do this?
Audrie Dollins:How do you stay strong? Do you have moments where you question or I have because I do as a business owner, you know what they call it the roller coaster? Yeah. Where it's like we wake up and we're like we're winning and then by the afternoon it's like oh oh man it's over this is hard and then you
Tiffany Jones:can be slightly optimistic and completely unhinged in a matter of, like, an hour.
Audrie Dollins:Thirty minutes. Yes. Yes. Exactly. And how do you how do you deal with that?
Audrie Dollins:But most, pretty... Particularly, I think about close friends and especially within the industry that I'm in and which I I get to work with amazing people like you that they don't quite understand what I do. And so it's very different, but they... There's opinions that are coming. How do you handle those?
Audrie Dollins:Or do you get any at all? And they're just like, it's sort
Tiffany Jones:of two different things. I mean, for me anyway, like, all... My friends, I'm sure, think I have completely lost my mind. Like, why would I... Why why wouldn't I wanna be playing mahjong?
Tiffany Jones:You know? Like, I don't know. Yes. And it is interesting which ones are supportive and which which ones have chosen not
Audrie Dollins:to be successful. And it's... They're not vicious with it. They just don't know how to support in a way.
Tiffany Jones:True. And then the opinions, I get... I mean, so so that I don't really get many opinions from them because I think they... This is so crazy that I think they're like, I don't even understand why she would wanna do this much less what's happening. Yeah.
Tiffany Jones:The opinions I get, mostly, I got early on from people in the industry that I was talking to trying to learn, and everybody's saying, stop. Like, what are you doing? You don't have any industry experience. This will never fly. You don't know, you know, one thing about building a brand.
Audrie Dollins:What's that fortitude? Because that's what's scary for someone to start something with all the industry because I get like that. I'm a small dog, you know, in the big playground out here and at the dog park and sometimes I'm like okay these other agencies are bigger but then I get this god wink and somebody comes What's that fortitude for you? Because that would be scary for me if a big company is like, you're not... This isn't gonna go.
Audrie Dollins:Well, Godwink, that's a
Tiffany Jones:really interesting way to phrase it because I have said that about this wild journey from the beginning is that every time I would stop and think, what do I think I'm doing? Why am I doing this? I... Something would happen that would... I'd run into somebody that I hadn't seen in fifteen years that worked for a beer distributor, you know, or some...
Tiffany Jones:You know, just like, why why did she cross my path today? You know? Something that would just say, just keep going. Just keep going. But there was one particular instance that really built the Fortitude, if you will.
Tiffany Jones:A good friend of ours connected me with someone in the distribution layer in Dallas. And as an alcohol brand, you cannot go to market without a distributor. And the distributors only want to play with the big multimillion dollar legacy brands that are paying them quite literally hundreds of millions, if not more, a year to move their products. So they're really not interested in new products and new things coming to market, especially from women. And so I had a call with this guy who, thankfully, it was on the telephone and not a Zoom call because we started the thirty minute conversation.
Tiffany Jones:And I think I spoke for about three minutes, and he asked me what my background was. And I told him, I said, I'd been an interior designer. And then he started laughing. And then for the next twenty seven minutes, he completely berated my idea, told me why, me, my idea, why it would never work. And then closed the call with saying, Honey, let me give you a piece of advice.
Tiffany Jones:Buy a lottery ticket. You'll have a greater chance of success. And I hung up the phone with that man and I cried. I mean, like, like cried like someone had died. Like my husband and one of my girls was home and they were like, what has what is happening?
Tiffany Jones:And I told them, I'm like, I'm so sorry. I've wasted all this time. I've wasted all this money. What did I think I was doing? And they were both like, I'm sorry.
Tiffany Jones:Who are you? Like, you get five minutes, and then get back up and keep going. And re... Remember that guy. Every single time you think you can't do it.
Tiffany Jones:Just keep going.
Audrie Dollins:Giving me chill bumps. And now it's like, I wanna know that man. What's his number?
Tiffany Jones:Oh, the thing that threw my head on on a weekly basis about what I might say. You know what?
Audrie Dollins:But you're right because that is you... And it's how you... Thank goodness for your family and those that see it as well and your strength because that is motivation. That says that you cannot and, well, now you're taking a picture and watching me.
Tiffany Jones:Exactly. Exactly. So, I mean, we still have a very long way to go. But, you know, I mean, the fact that I even have a product that's a physical product that is in Total Wine, that is in retailers that you can physically see that looks this beautiful. I mean, I already feel like I'm so grateful for the road that's come.
Tiffany Jones:I mean, we've a long way to go, but to build the brand and to educate more people on the industry and all the things. But I mean, just like where I was at that moment to where we are now, I mean, it's it's amazing.
Audrie Dollins:It is amazing. How how many are... I mean, how... I know it's new to me. It's not new to you.
Audrie Dollins:How long has this journey been? So you started... Oh, yeah. You said twenty twenty five. Sorry.
Audrie Dollins:My year No. Is when you, first launched.
Tiffany Jones:Or when did you I started researching in the fall of twenty twenty three. Okay. That's right. I decided in January 2024, I was gonna do it. It took about thirteen, fourteen, fifteen months to sort of get the formulation, get it all together, get it into production.
Tiffany Jones:And then we launched direct to consumer initially on, 03/01/2020
Audrie Dollins:Right. That is correct. Sorry. I needed to write that down and read my notes. With that motivation, that that gentleman, And how do you...
Audrie Dollins:They would never send that to another man. No. They wouldn't. And that's my thing. So I struggle really hard, and I'm gonna go on a little bit of a tangent.
Audrie Dollins:Okay. Is... I struggle so much is because I am all about women and female founders. I mean, obviously, I am one, and I work with tons of women. And we have male clients, female clients.
Audrie Dollins:We would never... And I say this all the time, and I love social media and we joke about it. But I said, I will never do, like, a TikTok dance or an Instagram dance. I will never dance, which I do now. Like, I've I've I've lightened up.
Audrie Dollins:But what I've said to my team is a man does not walk in a room to get business and dance. I mean, he can on a different industry.
Tiffany Jones:For sure.
Audrie Dollins:But please don't expect me to go on social media and dance to get attention for my business. Yeah. And I feel like kind of like what you're saying too. I would never look at a man, unless he is my husband to call him honey or babe. I can't believe we still live in a time...
Audrie Dollins:And we gotta... You know, we we sometimes get some texts where it's like, you know, it's fine in a sense of, like, I think they're trying to be kind. But no. I don't think I've ever made a business deal and said, thank you, baby, to a man. Right.
Audrie Dollins:Would I ever say that No. And say, listen, sweetheart. I'm gonna tell you. Never.
Tiffany Jones:I didn't even believe it.
Audrie Dollins:Yeah. It... And I think that's where I do feel like there's an additional layer of eyes, an additional layer of fortitude that you have... That that strength that you have to push through because there is that when it comes to females. Whether I...
Audrie Dollins:Because I hate the term... And if you use it, it's totally okay. But, like, boss babe, all that stuff, I'm not I'm not a boss babe. I'm a boss. Yeah.
Audrie Dollins:I'm not a... What... You know? I... I'm fine with being a female.
Audrie Dollins:Badass is really Badass. I prefer. Yes. I mean, you can call me the b word too. I'll answer that because, you know, that to me shows strength and then I know what I want, I guess.
Audrie Dollins:I don't know Right. How someone wants to perceive it, but that's still shocking me because you're so elegant and nice with your approach that someone felt that they just had the opening to say and speak to you. You weren't asking him to bankroll it. Exactly. I wasn't even asking him for help.
Audrie Dollins:Was just a general informational conversation. And I'm really big about that. I think that's why I know that's why I started this podcast, Founders in Fortitude, because I've always been, and that is our mission here, is always been willing and wanting to help. Can we educate? And that is why it's so important for you to be here is to share those details of the product but also the person that you are and those strengths.
Audrie Dollins:Because I do think, and again, going back to our industry of what I do, that we do obviously show the highlight reel, but we don't often show that we did cry. You said that they gave you five minutes, and then my saying is, I'm gonna cry today and I'm gonna rise tomorrow. Yeah. And so I'll sit in it but then the next morning I'm putting that lipstick on, my heels on, and I'm going to show up to my office early and I'll be the last one to leave to make sure we, like, if we have to overcome something or do something new. And I think that there's motivation in someone, you know.
Tiffany Jones:100%. There's a lot of industry events that I go to that are conventions for various and ascendiary sections of the industry, if you will. And as you can well imagine, if 92% of the industry is men, 92%, if not more, at these conferences are men as well. And the first one I went to, I walk in with all my like, you know, it was the middle of winter, my little cute black leather outfit, you know, ready to go. And I walked in and it was not like, which one of these is not like the others?
Tiffany Jones:It was so blatant that I was like, so out of, like a fish out of water. And I was like, oh my God, everybody had on jeans and like flannel shirts. And I was like, what am I doing here? And then I was like, no girl, that's the whole point. Like, get up and get back in there and own it.
Tiffany Jones:And from that, that was the very first industry event I went to. And from then on, I show up at every single one of these events in my high heels with my lips on and my hair done. I'm like, you may not know my name and you may not know my brand yet, but you're not going to forget me because I don't have the multimillions of dollars to put behind the marketing for the brand. And so you're going to I'm going to make sure that you next time you see me, you were like, oh, she was here last year. Oh, shoot, you know?
Tiffany Jones:And that, you know, no, I'm not somebody's wife. Yes. I'm effing here to
Audrie Dollins:change the industry. And I think you have. And I love every... Your marketing, and I think that's so important. And like you're saying, I obviously was drawn in by your social media.
Audrie Dollins:Tell me about that. Media. Tell me about that. I know. This.
Audrie Dollins:What gave you the courage to go on social media? Probably drinking. Yes. Right? No.
Audrie Dollins:Let me tell you, though. One of the biggest deals I've ever made is I've... I had a martini. This was several years ago, and I sent an email. And I scheduled it out, like, so it didn't look like it was going out at 2AM.
Audrie Dollins:Yeah. The best deal I ever made was after a martini because I put me aside and looked at the bigger picture and was like
Tiffany Jones:You said what you wanted to say instead of
Audrie Dollins:Yes. Yes. Now I did read that several times because I already had a drink, but I sent that email and I mean everything I wanted out of that came out of it and more. Yeah. And so I I do think...
Audrie Dollins:But with that being said, you know, the importance of social media, the impact of that, and your marketing process, tell me about why you were like, you know what? Okay. I will. Because you're very well spoken spoken on those, and you do some funny ones on there as well.
Tiffany Jones:Some funny ones. Yeah. The, that is the push of my social media girls. I'm sure my own children would be like, mom, please get off of TikTok. But, it is it is not some...
Tiffany Jones:Something I'm comfortable doing. I mean, like, I am very much an introvert. And if I could build the brand sitting behind the computer, I'd do that all day long. But that, unfortunately, is just not. So I mean, I've had to get over myself, and I've had to loosen up a little bit, and I've had to be comfortable being in front of the camera.
Tiffany Jones:And I'm just still not very good at it. And that... That's a skill that doesn't come easy for me. So it's it's taken a lot of effort and a lot of pushing through the cringe, I guess, if you will.
Audrie Dollins:Because it's cringe to us or our children, but to other people we don't see. And everything that you're saying, we talk to our clients all the time about, even myself, because I'll... Oh, that's... They don't wanna see that for me. Exactly.
Audrie Dollins:Like, why doesn't anyone wanna hear my story? And then my team's like, but you have... Yet they don't wanna hear from us. They wanna hear from you. And I'm like, okay.
Audrie Dollins:I'll do this, but y'all need to do this because we need to do... But, you know, I think there's a strategy there.
Tiffany Jones:I
Audrie Dollins:think so too. But we do... And I do say this, and and again, you are what drew me to it because you were speaking so elegant. And I think that there is a great balance of not being the face of your brand and letting the brand, you know, develop on its own. But I think doing a great job at it.
Audrie Dollins:And I use people like Reese Witherspoon or someone like that, that she is speaking of the book club, she is speaking of her production company on her social channels, but she's not just the face of it. You do not have to have your face on the label. Right. Exactly. And if you build a strong brand like you have, it will carry it.
Audrie Dollins:And so I I just love everything that you and your team are doing. That's why I'm like, I may be stalking you by the way that I'm saying everything, but I just love the balance. And I love that you're... The humor that you bring to it as well.
Tiffany Jones:Sometimes I have to put on my sunglasses and kind of hide behind the behind the skit or whatever it is we're doing, but it... I mean, I'm working on it.
Audrie Dollins:Because you... And this is what I tell my clients because you see the bigger picture. I don't want to go on there either, but like you said, it's it's a... It... That is the way of marketing these days.
Audrie Dollins:It is. It really is.
Tiffany Jones:It is. And if I'm not telling the story, then nobody else is telling it the the way I want it to be told, which Yes. I don't know if that sounds like... But you know what I mean.
Audrie Dollins:Yeah. I think in it... Yes. I think that when you're wanting to really let that messaging come out there, I think that there's ways. And and then when you can kind of develop...
Audrie Dollins:Because that's what I was about to ask you. Now is I've been seeing you do a lot of, you did, so SMU, you know, you do a lot of things where I really truly believe in person activations and allowing people to have your product, taste your product. But you're very... What I'm loving is there is a very on brand with what you're doing too. And I think that people are flocking to this because there is a sense of what...
Audrie Dollins:There is a luxury to it. And I just love the process. So with that, what is your long... Like your long game? Like, what is your vision in the next year?
Audrie Dollins:What would you like to see this become? What's your next goal that you've set for yourself? Because success to us as founders, like, to me, you've done... You know, like, keep building it. So what is that now?
Audrie Dollins:Somebody asked me
Tiffany Jones:that recently, too. I was, a guest lecturer in a class at SMU, and they asked me the question, you know, when will you know that you've been successful? And I told them, I said, line of success, as you know, when you're building something, it moves all the time. And so I felt like it was a success when I saw the first can come off of the production line. I was like, Oh my God, like, this is so amazing.
Tiffany Jones:And then when you see it get on a retail shelf, like, that's another line of success. And then when you see somebody who's buying it again, now the biggest success for me is when I see the same the same customer I've seen before in a store come in and they're buying it again, or somebody walks into a store and they buy it without having to, like, taste it first because they've already had it somewhere. They've seen the excitement about it. Like, that's another measure of success. And so where do I see this going in the next year?
Tiffany Jones:Like, I would really like... You know, we're starting to make our planning for 2027. We're looking at expanding at a few markets outside of Texas. Right now, we're only available in Texas. It's not again, it's not a mass market product, so it's not like, I'm looking to take over every store in Texas.
Tiffany Jones:I'm looking to take over the right stores in Texas. And so then when we expand to whatever our next couple of states are, it'll be the same way. It won't be like, let's take over the state of Florida. It's like, let's take over the right pockets of Florida where people care about what they're consuming, that they're reading labels, that they care about their bodies, and that we're just helping from the alcohol alley.
Audrie Dollins:I think you're so well spoken on being specific on your vision and choosing what the right stories are. And I think that that is something that if anyone is listening or watching that they could write that down is being specific with those steps or you're, you know, like you're saying, like there's every little, I believe success is living and breathing, like you're saying, the line always moves. But I think being very specific with the right stories. I love that wording because it is intentional and you need to be intentional with the paths. Not like, just say out loud, like, Oh, I want all of this.
Audrie Dollins:Well, how do you get there? Because I feel like a lot of people that wanna start a business or something like that want it all and they don't know the path from those steps.
Tiffany Jones:It's really difficult to be really dialed in and focused on how we're building it because you do... You see all these other bigger brands and and, you know, other people in the market that are... That seem to be growing faster than you. And it's really hard to... But are they?
Tiffany Jones:I mean, I don't know. You just have to really stay focused. And I will say the other thing that's really important to me about this brand is not only expanding, but bringing in more of lifestyle component because it's not just about drinking, it is about entertaining and it's about, you know, hosting with your friends and it's just about the the community of being together. I mean, this goes great with mahjong. This goes great with, you know, playing cards at the club or after you've had a tennis match with your friends.
Tiffany Jones:And we launched August eight, eighteight, we launched the Avenue eight Society, which is really nothing more than just a newsletter that comes out on the eighth of every month, but it brings my old life of designing and entertaining. It ties it in with my new life of cocktails. And we just... It's a once a month newsletter that just says, this is how you can elevate your everyday tailgate. You know?
Tiffany Jones:And about like, forget the red cups. Like, let's just bring the cute cup. Love that. It's not hard. Not expensive, but let's make it more of a community because I do think we're still sort of shaking out all the fallout from COVID of still not getting together.
Tiffany Jones:And I used to have dinner parties all the time and entertain people all the time at my house, and I don't do that really as much anymore either. And so it's just finding that way through Avenue 8 to bring that community and that companionship and that just good time, you know, with your friends, you know, back into the mix.
Audrie Dollins:We're seeing that a lot with our clients, with our brands, where it's that experiences, the experiences are coming back. Yeah. And I think that you're a thousand percent right is they want a lifestyle. If you are spending, you want to spend and and feel great and it look great and, you know, everybody right now with what... Because we have another event coming up within within the few months and it...
Audrie Dollins:I feel like our company is really seeing that experience come back and creating that lifestyle very much so. And I and I... That's why I love your brand. That's why I said I was like, don't wanna put this in a koozie. That's so beautiful.
Audrie Dollins:And your marketing shows that as well. And that's why I like everything from flavor to the packaging to your marketing, it's so great with pieces of you in there as well. That's why I... I'm like, I just... I have to know her.
Audrie Dollins:I asked, Ashley, our head of our collaborations team, I was like, reach out to Avenue eight because we were going to LTK. I wanted all of our creators. Everybody loved it. I was like, oh, let's open one. You know, like, let's drink it while we're here.
Audrie Dollins:And so delicious. It was... It's so fun sharing it because it it is great, and it
Tiffany Jones:looks surprises people because I think if you've never been a seltzer drinker, you're like, that's not that's not what I drink. And if you have been a seltzer drinker and you know how much junk is on the market, you're like, I'm not wasting my money on another one. And I think that's really part of the fun is the the full on happy surprise when people take a sip and they're like, oh my gosh. That is so good. It is.
Tiffany Jones:Okay. Let's pause for a drink. Let's pause for a sip. Yeah. I think my phone's ringing.
Tiffany Jones:Is that a... Sorry. Is that gonna mess up? I
Audrie Dollins:don't think they'll hear it because these mics are so good. Okay. I had to get another drink. I'm like, I had to get two. The reason...
Audrie Dollins:Okay. Let me look at my... Because I wanna make sure. Because I read over these, and I know there was a lot, but I was like, I really wanna ask... Answer...
Audrie Dollins:You're answering so many great questions as we go. Oh, good. I wanna say one thing as far as, like, your time. And as Anne Hathaway said this the other day, and she said... Somebody asked, are you tired?
Audrie Dollins:And she goes, oh, yes. I'm tired, but for... I'm a good tired.
Tiffany Jones:I've heard that. I completely agree.
Audrie Dollins:Do you agree too? I completely agree. How... To go from a little bit back to a little bit personal. Yeah.
Audrie Dollins:How do you... I don't... I personally... I don't believe work life balance exists.
Tiffany Jones:I don't I don't think so.
Audrie Dollins:I think we've talked of seasons of family. Do do you intentionally put time out there for your kids, for your husband? How do you do that? Tell me your secrets.
Tiffany Jones:There are. I'm still figuring that. I mean, have never worked harder in my life. I work fifteen to eighteen hours a day, seven days a week, and I couldn't love it anymore. Even on the bad days, on the bumpy parts, on the...
Tiffany Jones:Like, I couldn't... I mean, yes, I'm tired, and I love the reason I'm tired, which is really good. I mean, thankfully, my children, you know, they're they're grown. They have full time jobs. And so, yes, I make time to go see them.
Tiffany Jones:I'm gonna go next weekend and visit them in New York City, and, you know, they they pop home every now and again. And so... Yes. But, I mean, they're busy working too, so that works well. My husband still, you know, is working, and he travels.
Tiffany Jones:And so, you know, I just... I'm focused on this. You know? Like, I... They've...
Tiffany Jones:I've had thirty years of marriage to my husband, and, he's had the And my kids have had the focus. And hopefully I've done a great job or a good enough job as a mother that they are functioning on their own. And I've checked that box. I feel like that's a success. But just because I'm now spending my time doing this doesn't mean I give up the other parts of those jobs, being a wife and being a mother.
Tiffany Jones:If my girls call, they know I will stop whatever I'm doing and I will pick up the phone and I will be there for them. But all of my time, quite honestly, right now is spinning, building a brand.
Audrie Dollins:I always look at myself as different. Think, I mean, it's so funny to look at the people like my best friends, They were all kind of opposite. And I think that's a great balance, you know? Like, okay. She...
Audrie Dollins:I mean, she's a hunch... So busy as well. But I always feel, like, different. I'm like, I love to work.
Tiffany Jones:Out of two.
Audrie Dollins:I love to wake up just as if somebody loves to wake up and run-in the brisk hours of
Tiffany Jones:the morning. You would never catch me doing it.
Audrie Dollins:I mean, only if the house is on
Tiffany Jones:fire. Million years.
Audrie Dollins:Only if the house is on fire, am I running? And and I used to... Like, I loved sports. I used to work out, but now my... I mean, I can wake up and have my cup of coffee with my laptop, and I just love working.
Tiffany Jones:No. I love it. This morning, literally, I woke up, and it was, like, 05:05, and I was like, what am I doing? Like, oh, I stopped another like hour and a half. And I was like, no, my husband's not here.
Tiffany Jones:I can turn on the light. I worked until 07:15 in my bed, in my pajamas, getting just like stuff out of the way. Yeah. So that I could then have the rest of the day to do stuff like this and visit stores and and things. I'm like, it was such a good morning.
Audrie Dollins:I I... Okay. It it was a good one. I I'm not gonna lie. I was up at 3AM.
Audrie Dollins:I don't know what it is, but I love it. I love waking up at 3AM and just having cause my kids are older too. So it's, you know, we have a 17 year old daughter that has her own life. And so we are pretty much... And our son is in North Carolina.
Audrie Dollins:So we are pretty much empty nesters and filling it. So, but tell me... I know this is going back, and I never wanna end this conversation. You said today that you were gonna visit stores. Yeah.
Audrie Dollins:Tell me about the first time that you did, and tell me about the first time someone said yes. So you went in yourself Yes. To the
Tiffany Jones:The guy that we had hired sort of to be our consultant, young guy, and he's like, you just go in and you... And I'm like, I don't... Yeah. I can't go in and ask. Like like...
Tiffany Jones:And it was Monticello Liquors at Knox Henderson
Audrie Dollins:Okay. On the
Tiffany Jones:corner of Monticello And 75. Yes. And he goes in with me to be my wingman, and we go in and we talk about it. And they were like, sure. We'll bring you in.
Tiffany Jones:And I thought I was gonna cry. Like, I didn't even know what to say next. Like, I was like Yes. Really? Okay.
Tiffany Jones:Really? And, so that was... Monticello was our... They will always be my favorite store regardless of anywhere in the country we are... They...
Tiffany Jones:Because they were the first ones who said yes, and they're one of our best accounts today. And, you know, they help us build the brand, you know, with their clientele, and it's really... That's really exciting. But then the next time that it was really exciting was I was walking into Big Total Wine at the one by North Park, know,
Audrie Dollins:Dublin. Yes.
Tiffany Jones:And I was walking in to go and check to see if we had been put on the shelf, and I was walking in to make sure we had some inventory. And I see a girl who I've never seen, like, I don't know her, and she had a box of our strawberry lemonade and was walking up to the checkout. I'm like, Oh my gosh, How does she know about us? Why is she buying us? Like, yay.
Tiffany Jones:She's buying us. But Yes. Like, those are just odd Yeah. You know, weird
Audrie Dollins:I'm, like, excited for you. Like, did you chase her out to the car?
Tiffany Jones:Like I have done that. I have done that.
Audrie Dollins:You have done that. Would totally do that too.
Tiffany Jones:I didn't to her, but I have done that.
Audrie Dollins:Yes. Yes. And so And and then do you, like, nurture those relationships? So today, will you go back... You're gonna find new play...
Audrie Dollins:And so you're very strategic about the places that you go to.
Tiffany Jones:Yep. Today, I'll just be... I've got a big CPG event this afternoon. So in between here and that, I'll just go and visit some of the stores that we already have partnerships with and just building that relationship I with
Audrie Dollins:think that's what I love because I think that's so important too, of those that support as we as we go up. You know? Exactly. I love that.
Tiffany Jones:Know, I mean, as the business grows and we expand to other states, obviously, that's not a sustainable business practice. But, I mean, but while we're building and winning in our home market, that's really important to me.
Audrie Dollins:Well, I I think that you being willing to go and do that, you know, you have to be able to swallow the pride or swallow the nerves, anything, and to walk in there to be able to accept the yes. Because if you you have to push it aside for the vision and it... That would be so hard. It's so hard when somebody when somebody tells you no, which happens all the time. It happens all the time.
Audrie Dollins:It happens in every... I've I've been told no. I mean, think we're told here, like... Because we are in marketing. You know, I think something really is...
Audrie Dollins:You will be critiqued all day every day. You're in marketing. That's, like, that's the way that it is. Whether it's a word, a color, a design, caption Yeah. Anything all day long.
Audrie Dollins:And if you're not able to handle that, It's going to be tough no matter, and I think in any type of industry it'll be tough if you can't handle it to see your vision through. Yeah, you just have to stay consistent. Yes, keep showing up even when you are afraid And then maybe drink one. And then maybe drink one. You could share something, what is either everyday life, a business tool for something...
Audrie Dollins:For somebody to implement in their business or everyday life, what would you tell someone? What would you even tell yourself or that you could really... That they could tangibly put in their everyday life or business?
Tiffany Jones:As I would say, as you know, being a founder, like you wear all of the hats all of the time. And I'm the only full time person building this business. I mean, we have a handful of fractional people who do various and sundry things, but I'm the only one who's building it every day. So it again would be very easy to sit behind the computer and just do all of the things. And I was not an early adopter to the AI Claude, ChatGPT.
Tiffany Jones:My husband's been using it for years and he was like, if you would just plug that in, it'll spit that right out for you. And I'm like, I'm not doing that. Like, that's cheating. Like, oh my gosh. I mean, I can now plug in every Sunday, my sales reports and like, and it's done where that would have taken me half the day, you know, or maybe a full day to do that and learning to, I'm still not very good at it, but learning to sort of integrate some of the things that could be everyday sort of time sucks into, Claude building a spreadsheet.
Tiffany Jones:Like, that is monumental in how it is progressing, how I can move forward with the business. So, I mean, I think... I don't have any, like, tips and tools for that because I'm still learning. But I mean, it's... It is pretty remarkable what it does.
Audrie Dollins:No. I think you're saying it so great of using the specific... Whether that's goals, the analytics, the data that you're receiving, and how to meet those levels of success that you're going for. And even, you know, I even look at it as, you know, I am very specific when I use AI tools like that, whether that's writing and don't just set it and just let AI, you know, I'm very controlled on it. But I think like even how you speak to someone that when you're asking to be in their store and using like, how should I approach it?
Audrie Dollins:What should I say? And then the analytics and the data that's coming from that. How you pivot your marketing, how you, you know, send that specific email. I think that is an amazing tool, being very precise on what you're saying within those tools.
Tiffany Jones:The data in this alcohol industry is so very, very fragmented, and it's also very, very expensive. And so as a startup brand, I could never afford to pay for the Nielsen data that is, you know, dollars 70,000 a month, you know? So I have to rely on all of the scrappy data that I can get when I'm out in the field. And so I track how many cases we sell and which stores they're going to. And then when I can put all that in and then it can give me a story that I can tell about my brand, which even those big data sources couldn't You know,
Audrie Dollins:it just... It makes me feel more confident with with going in and selling and and and spitting out why they should have us. Yeah. I I a thousand percent agree with you, and I really cannot wait to the day that, when you were just nationwide and we invite we invite that gentleman to a party.
Tiffany Jones:Will invite that gentleman indeed.
Audrie Dollins:I mean, yes. I would... Yeah. I love that. Well, I cannot thank you enough.
Audrie Dollins:Is there so much fun. I know. It is so much fun. Like, I just... I wanna go with you.
Audrie Dollins:I'm like, oh, you're gonna go to I wanna go with you to talk to all these places. But thank you so much for sharing your story
Tiffany Jones:and your guy and our story.
Audrie Dollins:This delicious, delicious cocktails. Like, they are so good. Thank you. I... I'm not gonna lie.
Audrie Dollins:Me and my operations manager, I'll be like, we have some. And she's like, yeah, every Friday after work we're like, So let's have a
Audrie Dollins:thank you so much and thank you for being such a supporter of us and we just just adore you. Thank you. Thank you for tuning in to another episode of Founders and Fortitude Conversations with Audrie Dollins. For details and links from our incredible guests, be sure to check out our show notes. You might even find exclusive discounts and special items we share that aren't even mentioned during the show.
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