We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Brad Parkes a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Brad , so happy to have you with us today and there is so much we want to ask you about. So many of us go through similar pain points throughout our journeys and so hearing about how others developed certain skills or qualities that we are struggling with can be helpful. Along those lines, we’d love to hear from you about how you developed your ability to take risk?
Inherently we’ve always believed that every choice is a risk. Starting a business is a risk, but so is not starting a business. Developing a new product is a risk, but so is not developing a new product.
Risk is viewed negatively because of the potential for failure. As cliché as it sounds, failure is temporary and its necessary. Its a way of learning and a guide to getting on the right track.
To us, the risk of NOT doing something and forever wondering where it could have taken us is much greater than taking a risk and failing.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
My wife BeBe and I have developed a number of new and innovative alcohol products. We released Masq Hard Tea about 2 years ago. Masq was born out of our search for an alternative alcohol product that we enjoyed. We both like beer, wine and liquor, but wanted something healthier. We do like seltzers, but find that they contain minimal flavor and no health benefits. Masq Hard Tea is made with organic, functional ingredients like Yerba Mate, Blue Agave Nectar, Chamomile and Passion Flower. If the alcohol was removed it would essentially be an organic, function tea.
Six months ago we released Masq Hard Coconut Water – 90 calories, 1 carb, <1g sugar. It is made with the simple ingredients of Coconut Water, Rum and Natural Fruit Flavors. It still contains a ‘hero’ ingredient (Coconut Water), has a nice ingredient panel, but uses rum as the alcohol.
Our next release will be in 2024 – Palm Republic Ultra Premium Rum. It is a bottled rum that is a blend from 3 rum producing countries : USVI, Jamaica and Panama. There are many blends on the market, most of which are cut with a cheaper liquid to save on costs. Palm Republic is 3 very quality rums, blended to emphasize each of their unique ingredients and flavors, aged 8 years in sherry casks and bottled.
Our goal with Palm Republic is to give consumers who enjoy rum a more premium, quality option.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
First off would be resilience – there are so many bumps in the road and pitfalls that can become overwhelming. A lot of times, it is the company or brand that hangs around the longest is the one that wins the race.
Creativity comes to mind – there is always a solution when you’re open to being creative.
Positivity seems like a given, but is overlooked. Most problems are only problems because of how they’re framed. If they can be seen in a more positive (or even a less negative) light, they are much less daunting.
As we end our chat, is there a book you can leave people with that’s been meaningful to you and your development?
I’ve always enjoyed The Slight Edge. It can be read and re-read several times and different aspects stand out differently depending on what is going on currently. The whole premise is based around compound interest – small tasks that seem miniscule add up overtime and eventually compound exponentially. Another great piece that comes out of the book is that these small step to success are very simple to do, the problem is that they are also very simple not to do.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.DrinkMasq.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cew_iqjpwXe/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drinkmasq/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brad-parkes-26972386/
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