Take a fascinating tour through the cocktail world with Josh Rooms, a bartender turned brand ambassador for Market Row Rum. In an exclusive interview, Josh who is a hospitality professional for almost 14 years now, discusses his career progression, the complexities of his work, and the tactics he uses to increase brand recognition and consumer interaction.

Tell us a little about yourself? How did you progress into this role?

I was working at The Cocktail Trading Company in Brick Lane when Mikey and Chris came in to get me to sample Market Row. I really liked the rum but didn’t think I would be able to stock it at the time as we had just launched a new menu. A couple days later Chris got in contact asking if I knew anyone who would like to work with the brand and I decided I wanted a new challenge. I had been bartending for over a decade with only a small change of career for Covid and was looking for a new challenge and happily I got the job.

 

Could you define your role and tasks involved in your role.

I am a bit of a jack of all trades in my role. I started out working in sales for the brand, visiting bars and restaurants and building relationships. I started doing trainings for the brand soon after and slowly started moving into production.

Recently I’ve been working with Mikey Hirsch, the head of operations on polishing the Brixton Dram, one of our SKUs, and have been training to take over the majority of production for the rest of our range. I have also been developing a kegged cocktail range that we are looking to roll out later this year.

Image: Josh Rooms

How do you Increase visibility and promote brand awareness around consumers and trade?

A lot of what we have been focusing on recently is primarily consumer events and tastings, especially over the summer and in the run up to christmas. We also try to do takeovers and brand training as much as possible. This year we are hoping to get involved in a few festivals as well as continue what we were doing last year.

 

What strategies do you use to gain distribution, increase volume sales and gain cocktail placements? Could you give me an example with an account you recently cracked?

I generally approach bars from a more personal perspective. Depending on the venue I will offer consultancy on drinks, support from our social media team or some way to help with ease of service. In my experience being honest and direct is probably the best strategy to getting accounts.

 

What is the biggest challenge you face in your role.

Balancing production with sales is probably one of the larger challenges. It can be quite hard to switch mindset from distilling to going out on the trade although at other times it can be a welcome break.

 

What are the 3 things you focus on while pitching your product to buyers?

Our brand story is one of the most important things I focus on, the flavour and possible uses is second and finally I will talk about the financial aspect. Obviously not every venue is the same and I find it very useful to cater my approach to each account.

 

What do you focus on in your trainings and masterclasses? Could you take us through your training module.

Generally we focus on the history of rum and the differences between the different styles of rum we use and why we use it. We sometimes take people through mini distillations so that they can get an idea of how Market Row comes about. This is always a hit as it takes a bit of the veil away from spirit production and it's great to have something interactive.

 

How do you ensure the success of your training programs? Through routine follow ups or?

Generally follow ups are great, I think there is a lot of value in just sitting at the bar and having a chat, not trying to sell anything to them. I feel that once someone has sat through the technical aspect of your product, nurturing enthusiasm, whether it is in your product or just the hospitality world in general is the best thing you can do.

 

What kind of marketing collaborations do you do with Hotels and Restaurants? Could you give examples?

We generally stick to giveaways and competitions as we don’t yet have the scale to do massive takeovers. Bar takeovers with bespoke menus and music events are always great as well. We recently did our 12 days of Christmas promotion on Instagram, partnering up with some local businesses such as Ruben’s Rubens and Substation and doing giveaways. Obviously our favourite collab is Market Row Frost’s Liquid V Pineapple Rum with the legendary Jumping Jack Frost.

 

Maintaining relationships with your clients is a big part of your role, what are a few simple yet effective ways to keep that going?

I think facetime is the simplest and most effective way to maintain relationships. Obviously picking your timing is very important, you never want to get in the way of the venue being able to operate smoothly and I feel there is a very fine line between being attentive and overbearing. I think it's very similar to when you’re dealing with guest at a bar, you want to be present but you don’t want to make it all about you.

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What kind of digital marketing do you do personally to promote your brand?

I actually do very little in terms of digital marketing, that is all taken care of by Lizzie Dulieu and Abiola Onike. The closest I have come is working with Lizzie on some drinks styling and development. As a company we are very present on instagram and try to tell the story of our brand through our account. Our website has also been developed with this in mind.

 

How do you motivate distributor sales reps and what peice of advice would you have for newly appointed brand reps?

The company was actually in the middle of breaking away from their distributor, just as I joined back in the beginning of 2023. Since then Market Row has looked after it’s own distribution. I spoke to Mikey Hirsch, our Head of Operations on the decision. It was always something our brand struggled with to be honest. As a start up, you end up working on a limited budget which means you only get a certain amount of attention from the distributors and it always felt like we weren’t getting the bang for our buck. We went through two distributors in our first two and a half years. It’s definitely been a struggle to maintain relationships with wholesalers but in the end I think it was a financially smart decision.”

 

What sort of consumer brand awarness programs worked for you in 2023 and what do you plan to do in 2024?

I definitely think the main thing is to be able to meet people face to face and have a chance to tell them about what makes us special. The whole team has such a passion for what we do and that only translates in person. We had a great time at the Spirit of Christmas show in Kensington Olympia. We actually collabed with our friends from down the road - Brixton Gin. I can’t remember how many times I had to say the same spiel about our 3 brands but it definitely felt worth it by the end of the week.

One thing we’re doing a big push on this year is festivals. We managed to get a last minute slot at City Splash Festival which was so much fun for the team (even though we barely had a weekend to get everything sorted.) We’re hoping to push on and potentially have some huge events lined up - watch this space!

Image: Josh Rooms

What are the current challenges the spirits industry is facing according to you?

I think the spirits industry is getting squeezed from both ends, costs have been going up for the past couple of years and this affects both our side of the industry and consumers. A lot of trend reports are saying that people are spending less or if they are spending the same it is on one big purchase, which ultimately leaves hospitality in the lurch a bit. That will then have a knock on effect to spirit producers as our costs have gone up and the spends have gone down.

 

What skill or topic you are learning currently and why?

I am currently learning as much as I can about food science from whatever resources I can find. As I have moved into the production role I’ve encountered a fair amount of issues that weren’t quite covered by my A level Biology and Chemistry. It’s always been a bit of a side interest anyway so it’s been amazing to have a job that justifies me delving further into it.

 

Your role involves collaborating with bartenders and mixologists. How do you foster creativity and innovation in crafting unique cocktails that showcase the distinct characteristics of your spirits?

Generally a bar will know their clientele and style much better than you. I know that when I was running bars, having someone come in to suggest serves to me always felt a little strong handed. If a bar manager asks I do have a list of classic twists that I know our brands work in that I will send over but apart from that I think it's always best to give the people who are actually going to sell the drinks complete control over what they are going to be selling.

 

Your favourite 2-3 distilling or spirits books?

I started out with The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks by David Embury which I think is a must read for anyone starting out in the alcohol industry. I am currently reading The Craft of Whiskey by Bill Owens and The American Distilling Insitiute and Whisky Science: A condensed distillation by Gregory H.Miller.