Today we’d like to introduce you to Danette Newton.
Danette, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
When I was in college getting my Biomedical Engineering degree, I had the idea for a pre-mixed martini. This was around 2001. There were no premixed cocktails on the market at this time. I got the biggest flavor house in the country on board to do my flavors at no cost because they liked the idea so much. I had innovative flavors including apple rose, peach, pear, pomegranate in really cute 200 ml wavy bottles. I had zero capital at the time to get the product to market so I sat on it for a few years. 2-3 years later, I go into the liquor store in Knoxville Tn and see the first on market pre-mixed martini. It sold to a larger company in less than a year, then the market was becoming saturated with pre-mixed cocktails. So I decided not to try and bust through that at the time. After I graduated, I began to use my Masters in biomedical engineering for orthopedic research and at the same time, always had an eye to be an entrepreneur and developed a professional natural skincare line. With this business, I was dealing with herbs and functional categories such as soothing, moisturizing, etc. Then the day came when I thought to blend the two ideas and create vodka infused with functional herbs! I brought my husband ( who is a chemist and biologist), my brother (a corporate attorney), and a good family friend ( production engineer) on board. With this the name “Lass & Lions” was born. I am the Lass and the boys are the Lions. Well with a bunch of scientists on the team, we scienced the crap out of this vodka and made it super clean, smooth, and pure. We also use a high mineral spring water ( we evaluated the water bill of many different sources for mineral content) and chose one with the closest proportions we wanted and it worked out well because it imparts a smooth mouth feel and a tasty complexity to the base vodka. We thought the functional blends would be our key to the market since that was currently not being done, but we have sold the plain vodka 10:1 due to the overall premium quality of the base vodka. We are quickly switching vodka drinkers over to Lass & Lions from their previous favorite brand due to the super-premium quality and economical price point. We are looking to expand markets now and getting into Texas, California, Illinois, with goals set for a few more very soon.
I have also recently partnered up with my best friend on a hemp farm and a line of hemp products. With my background in the skincare formulating industry, I was able to design our line of products. We are all-natural, don’t use any pesticides, or inorganic fertilizers and have really cultivated some nice strains with high Cannabinoid levels for better results. The website is www.firefarmstn.com. I have listed my partner below as the first recommendation for other female entrepreneurs.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Definitely not a smooth road! Keeping distributors motivated and trying to find that “sweet spot” with pricing has been our biggest struggles. My advise would be that every business starts from an idea. You more than likely will not know at the start of the idea how to plan it all out or put it together and may get discouraged and think that you can not do it or follow through with it. You can. Just take it step by step and figure out one challenge then the next, and so forth. You need to realize that if there is a “brick wall” in front of you with any of the struggles, there are always ways to go over it, under it, or bust right through it, but never let it stop you.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Lass & Lions Craft Vodka – what should we know?
We are proud of the fact that we all have an extensive science background and have engineered a truly exceptional product. We take no short cuts and pay premium prices for our materials. We even had dip our wax closures with scented wax to enhance the consumer experience. We are also as environmentally conscious in every way we can be. We reuse/recycle everything we can and have plans for solar energy.
Do you feel like there was something about the experiences you had growing up that played an outsized role in setting you up for success later in life?
Yes, I was not given everything I wanted as a kid. My parents told me if I wanted to go to college, I had to figure that out and pay for it. I made really good grades and obtained both academic and soccer full scholarships. While in high school, I was also working because I had to pay for my own car and insurance, etc. So it was go to school, then sports, then work, then home for homework and do it all over again the next day. All this taught me hard work, determination, reaching goals, and realizing that I can mold my life to what I want it to be and not what was provided for me. The possibilities truly are endless if you just don’t give up and stick with the mission.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lassandlions.com
- Email: cheers@lassandlions.com
- Instagram: @lassandlions
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lassandlions/
- Twitter: @lassandlions
- Other: www.firefarmstn.com
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