MixHer way

WITH her sights set on making MixHer a household name in the next five years, 23-year-old Danielle Brown is already making inroads with her company in what she describes as a traditionally male-dominated bartending industry.

MixHer, an ultra-exclusive bartending team that offers mixologists, waitresses and bottle service for events, is comprised of only women.

“I want when you think about events, when you think bartending, mixology, bottle service, and cocktails, that MixHer is the first thing that comes to your mind,” Brown told All Woman.

The idea for the all-woman bartending team was born after Brown and her best friend, who party a lot, grew bored of the drinks on offer at events.

“About two years ago, we were talking about how difficult it is to get a decent drink when we go out,” Brown said. “If we go to the bar, it’s usually a simple concoction like rum and an energy drink, or rum and soda. Why can’t we get an actual cocktail at a nice event?”

A few days later, what was just a conversation between best friends blossomed into a business idea.

“It was my best friend who said, ‘Girl, you know we can actually do this?’ She actually gave me the idea. But after a while, I guess she wasn’t really feeling the idea anymore, but I was in love with it, and I had a passion for it. I decided to develop it and just go with my gut,” the young entrepreneur said.

She said the business venture just seemed like the right fit, as it was something she identified with and really enjoyed.

“I chose to have a team of all women because bartending and mixology is a male-dominated space, and I strongly believe that if they can do it, we can do it better,” she said. “There are very talented, very exceptional female mixologists out there that don’t get the same amount of attention as the males do, because of their dominance in the space.”

Brown said since her team — which currently consists of four HEART Trust/NTA-trained and certified mixologists and a database of more than 30 waitresses — has entered the bartending scene, the response from patrons has been “very heart-warming”.

“People love it!” she exclaimed. “We thought, at first, that the men would be more fascinated to see us working in this area, but it’s mostly women. Women love the fact that it is a group of females who are working together and doing this.”

However, despite the support from the fairer sex, Brown said there are still some men who have hang-ups about women mixing their drinks.

“You will always have that one guy, or group of guys, who will have something snarky to say, or a funny comment about a female behind the bar. But we just prove to them that we know what we are doing,” a determined Brown said. “One of the biggest stereotypes that we’ve experienced is that some men really don’t believe that women are actually knowledgeable about alcohol, spirits and liquor.

“But we overcome this by killing them with kindness,” she continued. “Our clients pay for us to provide remarkable service and that is what we’re there to do.”

It is this service that has kept the clients steadily rolling in. The group of women at MixHer pride themselves on not just being pretty faces serving liquor, but a group of professionals providing a complete service.

“We really have to make our mark when we go out to do a job. Although we are attractive, we also want them to know that we are professionals and we know exactly what we are doing,” Brown said firmly.

While new clients have been snowballing, Brown said the all-woman bartending team has so far been booked for mainly small events such as office parties, bridal showers, weddings, and birthday parties.

MixHer’s founding chief executive officer is, however, hoping that her business will evolve to catering for hundreds or even thousands of patrons at large-scale events.