Life+ Meets: Mélanie Masarin, founder of Ghia
On launching, taboos and how to relax during a pandemic
Alcohol’s popularity is waning amongst millennials and Gen Z who are craving healthy alternatives and new experiences. Enter Ghia, a non-alcholic, fruity, earthy aperitif inspired by mediterranean living and a culture of chilling out and disconnecting. You may recognise their distinctive and playful branding from their online marketing campaign this summer. Originally intended to launch offline, the company switched up its strategy because of Covid-19 and launched D2C across the US. We spoke with CEO Mélanie Masarin about career moves, early critics and being customer-centric.
— Whereabouts are you today, what have you been up to?
I live in Los Angeles and I am running my business, Ghia!
— Tell us a bit about you, what you did before founding your company and what led you to create Ghia.
My entire career helped pave the way for launching Ghia. I was previously the Creative Director and Head of Marketing at Dig Inn where I led the re-brand of the company overseeing everything from messaging, communication, store design, branding, digital presence, paid advertising, and offline marketing. I was also the Head of Retail and Offline Experiences at Glossier where I led the offline and experiential strategy including conceptualizing permanent and temporary spaces and leading the team that brought them to life.
My own health journey was definitely a factor in the creation of Ghia — I had been experiencing stomach pains and fogginess for a while, and like so many people, I didn’t know why. Both alcohol *and* added sugar are a major trigger for anyone with gut issues, and Ghia has neither. I realized there was a hole in the market for a non-alcoholic beverage that was for drinkers and non-drinkers alike, so we created a drink for sipping from dusk until dawn that allowed people to wake up the next morning feeling clear-headed and physically well.
— What inspired you to switch from branding at Glossier to a drinks company?
I’ve always loved hospitality and before landing at Glossier–everything I have done the past five years has been in the name of creating meaningful experiences for diners and customers alike, and Ghia is no different. My past hospitality experience and my own personal health journey inspired me to create a non-alcoholic beverage that was for drinkers and non-drinkers alike with a bitter profile and minimal sugar — something that wouldn’t make people feel excluded in a social setting.
— What are some lessons you learned from your time at Glossier that you apply to your own company now?
The importance of creating a special and memorable customer experience is something that I took from my experience at Glossier when building Ghia. Everything from our packaging to user experience and recipe book is created with a ton of intention that has the user in mind.
— Can you describe what it’s like to launch a company during a pandemic in 3 words?
Unpredictable. Challenging. Rewarding.
— What has been the most surprising thing you have learned whilst launching Ghia?
We expected a lot of our early adopters to be friends and friends of friends, but it turns out that on our launch day we shipped to 32 different states! Even in these times when we can’t be out in the world giving people a physical taste of the product, word is spreading, and I’m so thankful to all the people that have contributed to this word of mouth.
— Do you have any role models as a founder, marketer or thinker? Who are they?
I have been really lucky to work for smart and hard-working people who took an interest in my development — Adam, the CEO of Dig Inn was my toughest critic and often said that feedback is a gift. Now that I am leading my own team, I understand what he meant. He invested so much time in teaching me how to think and communicate and giving me the space to learn by doing. I learned on the job thanks to him but I realize it also greatly inspired my leadership style.
— We love our downtime in the Life+ team and doing small things to make ourselves happy. What daily rituals do you look forward to indulging in?
I watch the sunrise every morning and jump out of bed to visit my garden before drinking a hot water with lemon.
— What are your thoughts on drinking culture: is choosing not to drink the new taboo?
I think it has been for many years and I hope that it’s changing — hopefully in a few years pushing a drink on someone will be as odd as say, pushing cigarettes on someone. But for that, we need to tear down the stereotypes that beverages giants have invested decades of marketing in building: that alcohol is associated with strength, masculinity, fun
