3 Smart Startup Moves with Carin Luna-Ostaseski Of SIA Scotch Whiskey
Carin Luna-Ostaseski was enjoying a chill night out with a friend when she encountered the amber colored liquid that would change her life. “ I found my way to scotch one day in New York, after work. My friend asked me if I wanted a glass of scotch,” she told Director of Communications, Christina Brown, during #undividedATTENTION. “I told him I don’t drink scotch. That night I went out, and I instantly fell in love with this one brand,” she revealed. “ What I love most about scotch is that it’s this misunderstood spirit. There are so many brands out there that can change people’s minds — and that’s what I want to do is change people’s mind.” Changing hearts and minds wasn’t apart of her previous job description. “For 17 years, I spent time designing things for people who stared at their screens all day, but it wasn’t what I wanted my legacy to be,” she said. See how she focused on building her legacy without losing herself below.
1. She Learned What Made Her Special
Luna-Ostaseski is an outlier in the spirits industry. Today she sees that as an asset but she didn’t always. “In my younger years, I tried to assimilate to what I thought was American,” she admitted. As she grew she realized that her unique perspective and story were valuable
“From a cultural perspective, embrace your culture, to use it, and to not ‘Americanize’ yourself,” she recommended. “Whatever that is about your culture, do not be ashamed of it — embrace it,” she added.
“My mom and dad immigrated from Cuba without a penny to their name. There’s a sense that I owe it to them to take care of them when they need me. I owe it to my culture that Immigrants here have a place and we belong. Especially now, we’re all learning to be together,” she continued.
Because she was able to do that she had an authentic story that supporters were interested in. When they clicked on her crowdfunding site it was because they wanted to know, “Who is this Hispanic woman, living in California, raising money for her whiskey brand?”
Their fascination with her not only led to valuable seed funding, it provided her with information she could take to future investors. “Crowdfunding is a great proof of concept, product-market-fit, and interest,” she said. “you can crowdfund for equity. There’s larger sums being raised. In 2012, mine was $50,000, but now millions are being raised.”
2. She Moved At Her Own Pace
The Founder and CEO resisted the urge to prove how successful she was by prematurely quitting her job. “Some people leap off the edge, but I was more careful,” she said. Sage advice steered her on the prudent path towards success. “Someone told me — whatever money you think you’ll need, triple it,” she said,
“I was very gentle in taking that leap. I had a mentor who guided me through the process,” she continued.
Luna-Ostaseski proudly announced that the mentor was another woman. Women were instrumental in her learning about the market and finding a way to leverage her strengths.
“You think of it as an old man’s world, but all my doors have been opened by women,” she said. She even has a nickname for her squad of supportive peers. “The Whiskey Sisters — they’re my family now,” she said.
“I have talked to a ton of female entrepreneurs — it’s part of the brand’s promise. When we talk about partnerships — it’s so much easier when you have a partner. Find someone who can do the things you can’t do so you can focus on what you want to do. A lot of people think you have to start out with a partner, but sometimes they don’t show up on day 1, they show up along the way.”
When she did choose to let go her safety net she was equipped with more than data and dollars. She was toting a mortgage-sized motivation. “If i’m going to quit my job, I have to commit 100% to this business if it’s going to succeed,” she told herself.
3. She Didn’t Take Things Personally
Luna-Ostaseski was in an emotionally vulnerable place when she started her business after a breakup but she didn’t allow that fragility to color her perception of the feedback she was given.
“It’s important to focus on the people who believe in you,” she said.
“Rejection comes in so many ways. Some people just ghost you, some have a very polite note. There’s so much that can cause doubt. It’s important to remain steadfast to who you are and who the brand is.”
With every note she took, she got closer to her company becoming a success. “Learn your mistakes on a small scale before you go too big.
She advised founders not to assume that everyone is going to fall in love with their brand as quickly as they did. “You think everyone is going to jump on it, but you’ve gotta sell it,” she said. “Get your skin pretty tough.”
That tough skin came in handy when assessing the limits of her support system. “Your spouse and friends are probably sick of hearing you talk about it,” she said frankly.
“Finding a community is huge — especially women because women are natural community builders. If you can’t find it, build it yourself.”
Some founders rally against some of the benchmarks associated with communities by boycotting awards panels and industrial vetting systems but she gave herself the opportunity to stand out and make new contacts by entering the race. If she won she would get the validation, if she didn’t she’d at least earn attention from buyers and marketers.
“Align yourself with people of credibility and find awards in your industry that can provide you with that credibility,” she advised.
For more information about how digitalundivided supports founders like Carin Luna-Ostaseski, head to our website. Follow us @digitalundivided on Instagram to tune into #undividedATTENTION live on Wednesday nights.
