A few years ago, I read a long article in the New Yorker about private equity acquisitions of mom and pop HVAC companies in small towns across America. The point of the strategy was simple: keep the same family name, just change the service. Instead of helping local homeowners maintain and repair their air conditioning, they would instruct their workers to recommend upgrades, even when no upgrade was needed.

The continued growth of the American neo-tiki community has reached such a fever pitch that even Vogue magazine published an article this week about the Tiki Bar Renaissance. What I think most major publications misconstrue about the tiki movement is the idea that the culture is inherently tied to a fixed network of thematic bars, when in reality it’s moved beyond those limited locations entirely.

The tiki movement, while born in the bars of Don the Beachcomber and Trader Vic, is now fully integrated with vintage clothing collectors, Americana preservationists, classic Hollywood fans, Disney adults, maximalist artists, and general enthusiasts of kitsch.

There was a time when the most important thing an emerging wine or spirits brand could do was partner with a local retailer, sell tickets in collaboration with a nearby bar or restaurant, and create a dining experience that would educate, enlighten, and drive sales based on the enthusiasm from everyone in attendance.

That was then, and then was a very different market than now.

Not that it doesn’t happen now. You just need a few thousand bucks to throw at each event, multiplied by the amount of cities you plan to visit, coupled with airfare, logistical costs, and hotel rates. If you’re sitting on $50,000 to $100,000 annual marketing budget for consumer events, then experiences like the aforementioned dinners are a great opportunity to meet customers and build relationships.

For nearly a decade, I wrote a blog about alcohol, the wine & spirits business, and my experiences navigating the industry, updated just about every day without exception. This was before the iPhone, before Instagram, and before our attention spans were completely destroyed by short-form video.

It started in 2009. I was a new buyer for the beloved K&L Wine Merchants looking for a way to share my ideas with customers. When 20-30 people began tuning in, I was thrilled. Five years later, I had thousands of people reading what I wrote and producers flying me out to cover their distilleries, brand releases, etc.