From the Bar to the Boardroom: April Wachtel on Entrepreneurship in Hospitality

In this episode, Shawn Soole sits down with hospitality trail-blazer April Wachtel — a bartender-turned-entrepreneur with more than 25 years in the beverage world, now founder and CEO of Cheeky Cocktails. She opens up about shifting from behind the bar to building a scalable brand, and how she’s helping both professionals and home enthusiasts elevate their game.

🧠 What You’ll Learn

• How April progressed from busser and bartender to brand ambassador for major spirits companies — and finally to creating her own line of professional-grade mixers and syrups.

• The story of Cheeky Cocktails: why she spotted a gap in the mixer market, how she rebranded and scaled during the pandemic, and what “premium cocktail ingredients made accessible” really means.

• Key lessons in entrepreneurship: product development, early-stage manufacturing, route-to-market strategy, and how to survive in a male-dominated industry.

• Live Q&A: focusing on how to start with small budgets, build brand equity, navigate failure, and make a meaningful impact in the beverage industry.

⏱ Timestamp Highlights (Approximate)

• 00:02:30 – April’s early hospitality beginnings: bartending, beverages, brand work

• 00:14:00 – Recognizing the gap: why mixers and syrups needed a rethink in the craft-cocktail era

• 00:28:00 – Building Cheeky Cocktails: pivots, scaling, distribution & pandemic dynamics

• 00:42:00 – Live Q&A: advice on entrepreneurship, inclusion, and staying creative behind the scenes

• 00:58:00+ – What’s next: product innovation, education, and building community around the bar-to-business journey

🎯 Who It’s For

Bartenders, beverage directors, hospitality entrepreneurs, CPG founders, and anyone curious about how the bar world and product world intersect — how you turn craft into brand and experience into scale.

✅ If You Loved This Episode

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