Tales of the Cocktail® New Orleans 2016

Bartenders are rising in the cocktail industry, not only creatively, but as partners in their bars and they are reaping the rewards of ownership. What does it take to find a partnership that works? How can bartenders find backers that see them as true partners, not just talent? In this seminar, we will meet three bartenders who are now partners and co-owners of their operations. They include Jim Kearns, who partnered to create Slowly Shirley, The Happiest Hour and Tijuana Picnic, Meaghan Dorman, who is a partner at The Bennett, Dear Irving and Raines Law Room with Alberto Benenati and Yves Jadot, as well as Lucinda Sterling, who is a partner at Middle Branch and Seaborne with the late Sasha Petraske. They will discuss how they found their business partners, how their relationships evolved and blossomed over the years, the challenges they had to overcome and how they balance their passion for bartending with operational responsibilities.