Ask the Collective
The questions independent drinks founders ask most — answered. Distilled from years of community knowledge so the good stuff never disappears in the feed again.
Where should drinks founders source talent for brand development, marketing, and operations roles?
Recruitment is competitive in the drinks sector, but several channels have proven effective. **LinkedIn Recruiter** has been the most successful for members—it allows filtering by job title and industry (e.g. "digital marketing executive" in "food and beverages"), then reaching out via DM to relevant candidates. The volume of generic applicants via standard LinkedIn job posts is high but mostly irrelevant. **The Copy Club** has been recommended specifically for marketing and operations roles. They pre-screen applicants before forwarding them to you, which eliminates unsuitable candidates. Members can request a contact number internally. **University careers teams** — if you have connections at universities around the country, careers teams can be a source of graduate talent; members with academic links are happy to facilitate introductions via DM. **Professional networks** have yielded the best candidates for members filling recent roles, suggesting that word-of-mouth and industry connections outperform formal recruitment channels. Members note that the recruitment market has been tough, with many generic job-board candidates being unsuitable. The most successful approach requires active prospecting rather than passive job posting.
What are the best practices and platforms for recruiting drinks-industry talent?
Members report mixed success with traditional job boards. **LinkedIn** has become problematic due to its one-click apply feature, which generates high volumes of irrelevant applications; recruiters using the platform also tend to put forward the same candidates repeatedly, often with inflated salary expectations relative to the role. The community's preferred approach is **organic sourcing through personal recommendations and networks**. Several members emphasize this yields better-quality candidates than paid recruitment channels. Direct referrals from trusted contacts within the industry appear to be the most reliable method for finding relevant talent, particularly for specialist roles. Note: The market is currently challenging for mid-market employers without large recruitment budgets; candidates are increasingly seeking significant salary premiums (10–20%+ above advertised) even for standard roles.