This past weekend, my friend Jay opened up Jukebox, a “beverage studio.”
Jukebox is America’s first custom sparkling beverage studio, where creativity meets refreshment. We mix premium ingredients, fresh flavors, and endless customization options to craft beverages that are as unique as you.
Jay and I worked together for many years. He left his VP gig in corporate America to start this business. He calls it a “quirky cocktail bar without the cocktails.” Think “dirty sodas” and flavored seltzers and slushies. (You can read more about Jukebox in Cincinnati Magazine and and CityBeat.)
I stick to water (“nature’s champagne”) for my beverage intake. (OK, sometimes it’s water with malted barley, hops, and yeast.) So I don’t fit the target customer profile. But Jay did the research on where to open his store. He also spent countless hours sourcing ingredients, testing flavor combinations, doing consumer research, refining the concept, the marketing plan, the social media strategy… all the million things that go into starting a business.
The odds are stacked against him, and against any small business. “If you build it, they will come” doesn’t always work outside of the movies. But I know Jay’s smarts, enthusiasm, and passion for getting it right will serve him — and his customers — well.
I also know he’s happier being his own boss. The safe route would’ve been to remain a cog in the corporate machine. But that’s not the route that brings him true happiness. And I’m happy that he’s able to pursue his dream, and add more flavor to his life. And yours!
If you live in the ‘nati, check out Jukebox. It’s at 5859 Deerfield Blvd in Mason, in the Deerfield Towne Center. (You may hear a familiar voice doing some promo breaks between songs on the in-house sound system… Morgan Freeman, watch your back!)
You done said…