Jay Tramonte left a career in private banking at JP Morgan to pursue a career in spirits. Tramonte founded Excelsior Imports, which launched Água Luca cachaca, a sugar cane-based rum, in 2004. He also launched Maven Brands, whose product, Savíd Sangría, debuted in the summer of 2009.
Tramonte, a 32-year-old Georgia Tech grad, spoke with the AJC about the transition to entrepreneurship and his businesses:
Q: Why did you leave JP Morgan to start a liquor company, and then a second one?
A: I was working intense hours at JP Morgan, and my heart wasn’t in it. I thought that if I was going to work this hard, then it better be for something I enjoy and for myself. I didn’t want to waste any more time.
Q: How did you make the entrepreneurial jump?
A: One of my clients introduced me to the beverage business, which is run by large beverage companies and distributors. It piqued my interest because I realized that you couldn’t break into the business without an innovative new product. It was the only way for an outsider.
Q: What are examples of outsiders making their mark in the beverage business?
A: Grey Goose, Jägermeister, Skyy Vodka. Plus, you have nonalcoholic examples like Vita Water. There are numerous examples.
Q: You just introduced Savída Sangría. How did that come about?
A: I had already launched a premium rum and sold the company so I was familiar with the beverage business somewhat. I had confidence that I could do it again. I realized that the new trends, especially with the new mixology trend, were to pick up on new flavors and use them in traditional drinks. Sangria was one of those products. People were ordering it at restaurants, especially women, but there wasn’t a good sangaria product that you could buy and take home. Twenty percent of alcoholic beverages are sold in bars and restaurants; 80 percent in retail outlets. The restaurants did the work in creating a market for a premium sangria. But, you couldn’t replicate the restaurant experience easily. So I decided to create that experience in a bottle and sell it.
Q: Can’t you buy bottled sangria at the stores?
A: Yes, but it’s not a modern-style sangria. They’re not made with good wines, different fruits. And, they add lots of sugar. Gallo works the low-end, jug style. It’s not modern. We work with a top juice company as well as a boutique winery. There is no sugar in our sangria and the alcohol content is 11 percent.
Q: How are you marketing it?
A: I tried to do a deal with the big retailers but they wouldn’t budge so we decided to concentrate in Atlanta first. We were able to partner with Atlanta-based National Distributors, which is the second largest distributor in the country. We’re focused on specialty wine stores and places that are owner-operator who can make buying decisions.
Q: That’s a long road toward success.
A: It is, but we finally got in front of Whole Foods. They were interested and our product fits into their model. We were persistent and now we are in all Whole Foods in Atlanta.
Q: What’s next?
A: We just got a national authorization from Kroger, which after we secure distribution (which is a legal requirement) we can sell in those stores.
Q: What’s your goal?
A: We’ll do $1 million in sales from July 2009 to July 2010. For five years, you know, it’s hope and dreams. There are so many variables. I’d say in five years we could be selling 500,000 cases with 12 bottles in each case.
Q: The beverage business is dominated by large companies. Is the plan to be bought by one of them?
A: When I started Excelsior Imports in 2004, we launched Água Luca cachaca and it became one of the nation’s leading brands of premium Brazilian rum. In 2007, we sold to Heaven Hill Distilleries, the largest privately held spirits company in this country, because I realized that they could push the product in a way that would take us five to 10 years and a lot of capital. I raised less than $1 million through angel investors to help start Maven Brands. I am going to have another round next year where we’ll raise between $1 million to $2 million so that we can fund our own national expansion.
Q: Why do you think you’ll get the money?
A: Financial people understand the brand. They know it’s a lifestyle product. They can touch and feel it; it’s tangible.
Q: What will be the key to your success?
A: The greatest challenge right now is to get the right team — the right people — in place to execute the plan. I also know that I must focus on one product and build it the right way. We will be 100 percent focused on this rather than developing other lines.
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