FLAIR EVOLVES! Breeding the perfect allies

Updated: September 1, 2009

Something I have learned in the 15 years I have been in this business is that passionate and dedicated people are destined for good things. These are two traits that many Flair bartenders across the globe have in common… and because of this “The Flair Bartenders of today become the industry professionals of tomorrow”.

Think about it… To be a professional Flair bartender you have to be passionate about the craft. Everybody wants to be the best at what they do… so we research, practice, compete, mix, share, shake and pour our way to becoming the best. Whether you mean to or not, Flair is exciting, addicting and contagious. So it makes it easy to enjoy it and want to share with others. When you share something, or talk professionally about something, you want to be as knowledgeable and charismatic as you can be. This helps drive your point across as well help giving and retaining the right information. With that the passion of what we love and do comes across.

Now all of these moves and routines take time to perfect. That’s where the dedication comes into play. For every five minutes a Flair bartender is on stage there are hundreds of countless of hours that go into preparing for that moment. Commitment to what we enjoy and believe in comes second nature. We are used to putting in the time and working towards something and achieving our goals.

On top of that, because of our vast experience behind the bar we are natural sales people. We are used to selling and suggestive selling products we believe in. Now factor in our effortless ability to start a conversation with anybody, anywhere at anytime coupled with our charismatic personalities that helped make us successful behind the bar and will help make us successful in anything we do afterwards as well… and oh yeah, did I mention we actually know and understand alcohol and everything that goes on in a bar (or at least we all think we do… Lol).

So we already have an edge on any suit with a PHD and no experience in the field, just out of college applying for a position in the beverage industry when we have already been through the school of hard knocks and all the drunken parties afterwards. Our livers and relationships are already bred for the business of brand ambassadors and industry leaders with demanding travel schedules and copious amounts of drinking… that is if you can convince these untapped resources of bartenders to change their lifestyles from getting up at 1pm to 8am and somehow throw enough money at them to convince them to accept the position.

Now, If you agree that Flair bartenders have these two traits we talked about earlier then it only makes sense that because of their passion and dedication will drive them to further push themselves towards bigger and better things within the industry we all love. Lets break down the evolution a little more in detail…

THE EVOLTION OF THE FLAIR BARTENDER TO AN INDUSTRY PROFFESIONAL

OBSERVE: First off after working their way up through the ranks of porter, bus boy, server or bar back… they get a lucky break and start off as a bartender. They start off as a bartender, learning the basic recipes and doing what they see others do and what they are told. Learning from doing and observation.
LEARN: Next they either move on from our industry or the seed of success gets planted and they have a desire to want to learn more.
ACTION: From that seed they have a desire to want to become better at their craft and evolve into a Flair bartender and Mixologist. From observation they move on to doing and take action in researching and learning on their own. They venture out and start competing and learning about our craft through other industry professionals.
SHARE: With competition and community helping drive then into a “professional” Flair bartender and Mixologist, they begin to network and help shape the future of our industry by sharing ideas and procedures that they learned or even originated on their own.
TEACH: This is where they teach and pass on their information to the next generation to keep the cycle going. After that, because of their networking skills and knowledge of the craft, they eventually move into an industry professional role of some kind and become the decision makers of tomorrow.

Some of the industry professionals of today that were Flair bartenders of the past include… “Magic” Mike Warner, Mike Tolley, Brian Loukmas, Tobin Ellis, Philip Duff, Dean Serneels, Robin Weiss, Anthony Alba, Jim Allison, Ken Hall, Christian Delpech, Phil Raimondo, Mike McLean, Cheryl Charming, Graham Kimura, Wayne Collins, Jason Crawly, etc…

Now you might recognize some, none or all of just a small list of these names of bartenders that were involved with Flair but realize this… they are making decisions that directly or indirectly affect the hospitality industry we all love and are involved in today. Just some food for thought for all you corporate sponsors out there. Lol.