Connecting with other women in the alcoholic beverage space is so exciting for me, and I can’t wait for you to hear today’s conversation with Brittany Merrill Yeng, the co-founder and Managing Partner of Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey. We talk all about how she launched this brand with her husband, her approach to scaling, and what it’s like to build business relationships. Brittany shares how she’s learned to articulate her vision and point of view, even when people around her have doubts. She has a rock-solid mindset that has kept her focused on the path forward and grounded in her beliefs that everything happens for a reason. Listen in to hear more about how Brittany runs one of the fastest-growing spirit companies!
Connect with Brittany
Connect with Lori
About Brittany:
Spearheading the fastest market rollout in the history of the spirits industry, Brittany Yeng, co-founder and managing partner of Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey, is a chemist, turned lawyer, turned spirits brand owner. Yeng was one to watch as she took her husband’s wacky idea of combining peanut butter and whiskey and turned it into a shelf-stable product and Hollywood favorite that reached national distribution in just one short year. An industry disruptor and a woman making waves in a male dominated industry, she is a highly educated woman juggling parenting while running a leading spirits company, creating a brand that goes beyond just whiskey. Skrewball is a lifestyle that is welcoming to all manner of weirdo, maverick and misfit that brings people together in a world of uncertainty. When Yeng isn’t taking over the spirits industry one bottle at a time, she enjoys spending time with her daughters and getting off the grid while traveling to far remote places with her family.
Discussion Questions & Episode Highlights
( 1:00 ) Welcome back to Earn Your Happy. Today, Lori is joined by Brittany Merrill Yeng.
( 3:59 ) Brittany joins the conversation.
( 4:58 ) Lori asks Brittany, “Tell me a little bit about the company that you started and why you started it.”
( 7:00 ) Lori asks Brittany, “What did you sit down and put together for, for example, your pitch deck to convince other people of this opportunity?”
( 9:32 ) Lori asks Brittany, “What were your thoughts on how to get this out? What were the modalities that you already kind of had experience within? And then what were some that you knew you were going to have to go into and how did you get into them?”
( 12:40 ) Lori asks Brittany, “If you could go back to Brittany when you were starting this out, what’s your first business advice?”
( 15:45 ) Lori talks about this episode’s sponsor, Indeed.
( 17:22 ) Lori asks Brittany, “What was the thought around, we can maintain this price and it’s going to work for people?”
( 19:40 ) Lori asks Brittany what her R&D experience has been like.
( 21:58 ) Lori asks Brittany, “What were your thoughts around when you were thinking about people and market share of how many customers that you need to feel like this was a success?”
( 24:47 ) Lori asks Brittany, “Who did you have? Was it your husband? Did you run in a circle who believed in you and kind of pumped you back up after you would have those days where you’re like, I don’t know, maybe this is a bad idea?”
( 27:58 ) Lori shouts out another sponsor, Storyworth.
( 30:17 ) Lori asks Brittany, “What is that voice in your head that keeps you going?”
( 32:39 ) Lori asks Brittany, “Can you tell me about just how you keep a positive attitude about the founder, the CEO, or the leader that you are, even when you’re feeling like every week there’s a big mistake every day?”
( 35:20 ) Lori asks Brittany, “I’m curious if you had to learn how to compartmentalize things that happened in your company and separate your emotions a little bit more than your husband?”
( 37:21 ) Lori asks Brittany, “How do you like to grow yourselves personally? And then how do you like to go discover how to grow the business?”
( 38:37 ) Lori asks Brittany, “When you are growing your team, number one, did you work with anyone to help you grow it? Number two, did you know how you were going to grow it?”
( 39:55 ) Lori asks Brittany, “How have you made sure to grow your network or get into different networks or email that you want to connect with, or ask questions or things like that?”
( 42:32 ) Lori asks Brittany, “Can you tell me a little bit about what your kind of daily workflow looks like?”
( 43:59 ) Lori asks Brittany, “Tell me what your zone of genius is, and then what you absolutely could not wait to get out of because you felt terrible at it.”
( 45:53 ) Lori asks Brittany what she and her husband dream about for the future of the company.
( 47:59 ) Skrewball Whiskey is available at major alcohol retailers, and skrewballwhiskey.com.
( 48:34 ) Listeners can tag @brittanymerrillyeng, @skrewballwhiskey, and @loriharder and share what their biggest takeaway was.
