By Emily Stewart, The Woodstock Local
Two local business owners will be chatting over drinks with other entrepreneurs in their upcoming podcast.
Bear and Fox Apparel owner Erica Marchand and Kintore Coffee Co. owner Todd Pearson are creating the Drinks With podcast. The podcast will feature small business owners and each guest will bring their choice of beverage for themselves and the hosts during in-person interviews in the recording studio. The interview occurs while they have drinks.
“We’re letting our guests have creative freedom over what drink they bring,” Marchand said. “Maybe that small business is launching a brand new line of products, so they bring champagne. Maybe they have a signature flavour in their bakery, so they make a cocktail that’s vanilla flavoured or whatever. We’re allowing them to bring whatever they want in their drink to also help represent their brand and then as a person.”
COVID-19 health and safety protocols like physical distancing, hand sanitizing and wearing a mask when not drinking will occur. No more than three or four people would be in the studio at a time.
Marchand and Pearson talked to The Woodstock Local about how the show came to be, what they like about working together, and why podcasts are ideal for entrepreneurs.
How did you come up with the idea for the Drinks With podcast?
Marchand reached out to Pearson and said she would like to feature him on her show, and he said he also thought about launching his own podcast. After talking about their plans, both realized they wanted to do a small business podcast, but Marchand’s idea had the unique element of enjoying drinks during the conversation.
“Everything else has honestly just fallen into place since,” she said.
What do you like about working together?
Kintore Coffee carries Bear and Fox Apparel products and the business owners have a lot of mutual friends in common but until last year, they hadn’t crossed paths.
“Our business relationship just has grown so much in the last year that it really did seem like very natural for us to pair together. We work really well together,” Marchand said.
Pearson added that Marchand’s driven with everything she does, whether its Drinks With or Bear and Fox Apparel.
“You look at the first year that she did in business and she absolutely killed it,” Pearson said. “She’s in multiple stores and she sells a crazy amount of clothing out of our store and everything. She’s super ambitious so teaming up with her was a no-brainer for me.”
When will the podcast launch?
So far, the podcast should launch around March 17. The recording will start for the first few episodes, as podcasters need about three or four episodes before publishing the content. However, if another lockdown occurs, it could push the date back as the in-person interviews would not be allowed.
Why do you think podcasts are the way to go for entrepreneurs?
Marchand said that podcasts are appealing to small business owners because of creative control. Compared to radio, television, or print media, there are less restrictions over what can be said in a podcast and the audience listening understands that.
“You can kind of let your guard down a bit and really let your personality shine,” she said.
Pearson also liked that he and Marchand can control the podcast content and the medium’s on-demand aspect.
“We can control who comes on, how long it is,” he said. “The customer or the listener can control when they want to listen to it instead of having a show come on at a certain time.”
Anything else?
Pearson said the Drinks With Podcast will be a good show.
“Erica’s hilarious. I do a lot of talking. We have some really, really great guests lined up. We’ve got funding and backing from a few different places, so I think there’s a lot of support behind us,” he said. “I feel like if this is getting out there, people should be listening to it because it’s going to be entertaining and it’s going to provide a voice for a lot of small companies from the area.”
Follow the podcast on social media by visiting facebook.com/drinkswithpodcast and www.instagram.com/drinkswithpodcast.
