What do pot washing at one of London's finest hotels, promoting underground raves, building an iconic Shoreditch bar, a cease-and-desist from Bruce Springsteen and launching an international spirits brand have in common?
They're all chapters in the extraordinary career of Gerry Calabrese, founder of Hoxton.
In this episode of The Drinks Entrepreneur Podcast, Alex sits down with Gerry to explore more than two decades at the sharp end of London's bar, hospitality and drinks scene and the lessons he's learned from the successes, failures and occasional chaos along the way.
Gerry was born into one of the most famous families in the bartending world. His father, Salvatore Calabrese, is an internationally renowned bartender whose career has included the legendary Dukes Hotel, The Lanesborough and Fifty St James.
But Gerry was determined to forge his own path.
From pot washer to front-of-house hospitality, Gerry's career then took another unexpected turn after discovering London's dance music scene. He quit his job, became a club promoter and started organising parties and raves, eventually returning to hospitality and training as a bartender at the legendary LAB Bar in Soho.
Then came entrepreneurship.
Gerry developed his reputation creating and turning around hospitality concepts before spotting an opportunity in East London.
He believed Shoreditch needed somewhere that combined the area's creativity and energy with genuinely high-end drinks and hospitality.
The result was The Hoxton Pony.
Even that nearly started under a different name.
Originally intended to be called The Stoned Pony,
Gerry received a cease-and-desist from Bruce Springsteen just two weeks before opening because of the trademark surrounding New Jersey's Stone Pony. The hurried replacement name proved rather successful.
The Hoxton Pony became one of London's defining venues of the era, attracting everyone from bartenders and creatives to DJs and musicians, with the likes of Calvin Harris appearing behind the decks and Professor Green using the venue to film a music video.
Gerry speaks candidly about businesses that worked, those that didn't, the lessons that came from failure and how experience has changed the way he approaches entrepreneurship today.
That journey ultimately led to Hoxton, Gerry's portfolio of premium, naturally flavoured spirits built around a belief that the rapidly growing flavoured category can offer something better than overly sweet, synthetic products.
In this episode, Gerry and Alex explore:
🍸 Growing up in one of bartending's most famous families and finding his own identity within the industry
🏨 Starting at the bottom as a teenage pot washer at The Lanesborough
🎧 Leaving hospitality to promote clubs, parties and raves around London
🍹 Returning to the industry and learning the craft of bartending
💡 Why understanding customers and human behaviour can completely transform a hospitality business
🐴 Creating The Hoxton Pony and capturing a unique moment in Shoreditch's history
🎸 The extraordinary story of receiving a cease-and-desist from Bruce Springsteen two weeks before opening
📈 Success, failure and why entrepreneurship rarely follows a straight line
🥃 The thinking behind Hoxton and the opportunity Gerry sees in premium naturally flavoured spirits
🌍 Building distribution and taking a British drinks brand into international markets
👥 Why Gerry has learned not to hold an idea too tightly and the importance of allowing a team to shape a business
🔄 His belief that hospitality will endure despite the challenges facing the sector
As he explains, experience has taught him humility, the importance of collaboration and that the best version of a business is rarely created by one person alone.
It's a hugely entertaining conversation about drinks, hospitality, entrepreneurship, resilience and more than 20 years of lessons from London's bar scene.
🎙️ The Drinks Entrepreneur Podcast.....with Gerry Calabrese, founder of Hoxton Spirits.
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