August 4, 2025 • 21 mins
Cut The Tie Podcast with Karolyn Denson Landrieux
What if success wasn’t measured by money, status, or stuff—but by peace, presence, and purpose? In this episode of Cut The Tie, host Thomas Helfrich sits down with Karolyn Denson Landrieux, co-founder and CEO of Landrieux Wineries, to explore how she redefined success after moving to France and launched a fast-growing champagne import business without sacrificing joy.
Karolyn shares how living in a small French village rewired her thinking about wealth and priorities. She opens up about cutting the tie to financial pressure, resisting the hustle of overgrowth, and learning to say “no” in business as a strategy for building a premium brand.
About Karolyn Denson Landrieux
Karolyn is the CEO and co-founder of Landrieux Wineries, a family-run business that curates and imports craft, organic champagnes from the Champagne region of France to the U.S. Their mission: bring terroir-driven, small-batch bottles—often unavailable stateside—directly to discerning private clients, luxury venues, and intimate events. Karolyn brings a deep love of culture, travel, and quality relationships to everything she does, including how she leads and lives.
In this episode, Thomas and Karolyn discuss:
- The tie to cut: Financial pressure
Karolyn opens up about detaching her sense of worth from income goals and material accumulation. - Life in France and the power of “enough”
How moving abroad revealed that joy comes from simplicity, not stuff—and changed her definition of success. - Running a business without attachment to outcome
She explains how letting go of desperation helped her say “no” more often—and grow more strategically. - Creating experiences over selling products
Champagne isn’t just a drink; it’s nostalgia, celebration, and connection—and Landrieux Wineries delivers that with intention. - Sustainable growth as a form of self-respect
Karolyn reflects on how turning down opportunities can actually increase brand value, especially when clients reschedule events around her calendar.
Key Takeaways:
- Success evolves with you
What mattered in your 30s might not apply in your 50s—and that’s healthy. Reevaluate often. - The illusion of money
"Money isn’t real"—it’s a tool, not a truth. And it shouldn’t drive your self-worth. - Living in the present is the how
The future is unpredictable, the past unchangeable. Show up for the moment you’re in. - Saying “no” is a growth strategy
Exclusion builds brand. When you don’t say yes to everyone, your value rises. - Your business should reflect your life values
Lead with intention. Filter opportunities through joy, alignment, and sustainability—not just dollars.
Connect with Karolyn Denson Landrieux:
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karolyn-denson-landrieux-25b38465/
🌐 Website: https://www.landrieuxwineries.com
📧 Email: info@landrieuxwineries.com
Connect with Thomas Helfrich:
🐦 Twitter: @thelfrich
📘 Facebook: Cut the Tie Group
💼 LinkedIn: Thomas Helfrich
🌐 Website: https://www.cutthetie.com
📧 Email: t@instantlyrelevant.com
🚀 https://www.instantlyrelevant.com
Serious about LinkedIn Lead Generation? Stop Guessing what to do on LinkedIn and ignite revenue from relevance with Instantly Relevant Lead System
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to the Cut the Tie podcast.
Hi, I'm Thomas Helfrich, yourhost.
I think that's a term.
Get out there, go cut a tie isthe whole idea and the mission
behind what I'm trying to helppeople do is cut ties to things
holding them back big, little,small and you got to go to find
some success for yourself tofigure out which ties hold you
back from that.
Today, carolyn's joining me.
Carolyn, how are you?
Speaker 2 (00:20):
I'm good.
How are you?
Speaker 1 (00:22):
I'm doing well.
Thank you for jumping on herewith me.
Do this, introduce yourself andwhat it is you do.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Okay, I am Carolyn Denson Lingerieux.
I am the CEO and co-founder ofLingerieux Wineries and we label
and produce and bring deliciouscraft champagne from champagne
in France to the United States.
We work with independentgrowers and producers to bring
(00:53):
delicious, craft, organicchampagnes that you can't
normally find here to the US,and we have our own brand.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
You definitely can't find them because you guys make
them.
So the only place it's you haveyour own, your own, your own
secret sauce.
Speaker 2 (01:12):
No, no, we, we actually don't make it.
My husband's family makes it.
Speaker 1 (01:17):
I'm sure I had that wrong.
Family Right Right.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
We import it, we find it, pervade it, bring it to the
US.
Speaker 1 (01:28):
But you can't just grow this stuff and make it in
the US.
It has to come from that regionto get this kind of feel.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
You can't, you can't.
There are sparkling wines, ofcourse, in the United States,
but they're nothing likechampagne, because champagne is
the ancient vines and it's theterroir, is the clay, it's the
lime.
All of that stuff goes into thebottle.
So, uh, and it's um, it'sillegal to call something
champagne that's not fromchampagne yes, they'll show up
and beat you with a bottle.
Speaker 1 (02:01):
Use it incorrectly, like it's really a serious.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
I'm not sure what they would do, but you know, I
mean it's France.
Speaker 1 (02:11):
I, I the first protest not work for a week.
Then uh tell me a little bitsomething.
So uh tell me how you'redefining success in this part of
your life defining success inthis part of your life.
Speaker 2 (02:29):
So for me, success is being able to have a
comfortable life without thaturgency of I have to make X
amount of dollars to be able tobuy X amount of things, to be
able to, you know, show up insome sort of way that is
important to society.
For me, it's about relaxing,being comfortable, being happy
where I am in life, doingsomething that I'm passionate
(02:51):
about, being with my family,friends.
So that to me is success.
So if you measure that way, Ifeel successful.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
I mean again, listen, success changes as seasons of
life evolve and I think that's avery healthy one.
In your own journey and maybesince we last time we talked to
this a few months ago, what'ssome of the ties or a tie you've
been working on to cut to helpto achieve that success?
Speaker 2 (03:19):
The necessity to be driven by finances.
The necessity to be driven byfinances, that's like a huge tie
that is kind of embedded.
You know in my psyche, andprobably a lot of other people's
, that you have to earn X amountof dollars or you have to show
this amount of whatever to bedeemed successful.
(03:44):
And for me I am learning that'snot true, like that's that
doesn't even matter.
My daughter has a saying thatmoney isn't real, like R-E-A-L
and, and she has a point.
You know it's, it's all.
You know it's it's all I don'tknow.
(04:05):
So for me, cutting that tie oflike what is necessary, what's
important, how much crap stuff,things I need, cutting that tie
is, is very important.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
It is and it's, it's, it's, it's a reevaluation of
something you want or you define.
I said it's usually aroundsuccess and it can be defined
however you choose and as longas you chose it.
It is important to continuallywork towards cutting something
and holding it back, and somethings are more difficult than
others.
I like the idea.
By the way, money isn't realBecause it isn't.
(04:42):
It's a tool to help you achieveor get something else.
Um, you know, in the old daysit might've been bartering
brains for something thatmight've been given some of the
case of of, uh, champagne for itLike it's, it's, it's, it's,
it's, it's, it's, it's, it's toofar off actually, because, uh,
(05:06):
you know the world changed andyou had to go get a bow and
arrow and shoot a rabbit.
There's no money involved inthat, you just right right,
you'll feed your family howeveryou can.
So, uh, there's some truth tothat, it's?
It's an illusionary piece thatwe've created to help facilitate
things, if you will, um, youknow, it's one thing that you
know have your success.
(05:26):
It's another to know thejourney and what you're doing to
cut at the tie, the one youjust mentioned.
Right, what was the moment whenyou said I'm going to really
start working on that?
Speaker 2 (05:36):
I think the moment for me is when I moved to France
, which was about 13 years ago.
That was like the starting ofthe awakening for me.
It's been a process, but when Imoved there I realized that
people were living such a richlife without all the stuff we
(05:56):
have so much stuff in the UnitedStates.
We truly do, and some of it Ibrought with me because I have
this idea that I can't livewithout this, that and the third
and whatever.
But for me, I think therealization started when I
started seeing people beinghappy with all the extra stuff,
(06:16):
Because the material thingsaren't what make you happy.
They are not the things thatbring you joy and a successful
life, and so I started realizinglike I can live on so much less
and have a much better lifethan trying to accumulate all
(06:38):
these things.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Yeah, trophies, you know, it's not the world that's
heavy, it's the things that yousave.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
Right, right.
And so I started.
You know living my life withmore experiences and traveling
and spending time with friendsand family.
I love to cook, so, like, goodfood is important and, of course
, good wine is champagne.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
You didn't send it out, we're gonna.
Of champagne, right, if youdidn't send it out, we're gonna.
You know, it's like I had thisdebate recently with my wife of
of you know in, you know, ofthis idea of what do we really
need?
What makes me happy I use aHome Depot bucket, the big paint
buckets is the analogy thatyour happiness is what pours in
and, you know, pours out.
So, like a nice home, yeah,it's beautiful, there's status,
(07:24):
it's comfortable, but the bottomis giant mortgage and, by the
way, that money takes away from,maybe, travel, which takes away
from something else, right, andand and and that was the
example I gave her.
I was like, why don't we, whydon't we sell that and go get a
nice house but pay cash for thedifference of what you sell it
for?
And we, and then now like wecould go spend that exact same
(07:46):
amount on travel every quarterand or go buy a rental property
that makes us money, or go dosomething else.
And you know her response waslike, well, just let's go make
more.
I'm like, but even if we did,we wouldn't be liquid in, you
know, in a summer.
And I was just kind of likethis whole evaluation of life,
of what really matters.
And for me it was like I want tokind of like, fill as many
(08:07):
holes in the bucket of happinessso I don't have to put a whole
lot in to retain happiness, andin times of abundance it'll
overflow, and then, well, maybeI get another bucket that can
have some holes in it.
Then, anyway, I can keep goingfor that.
I probably should do it, but Ilove that you've done that and I
think along the way of that,you know, it's one thing to
(08:31):
define it, it's another thing toknow the moment a little bit,
but it's the how.
You know.
It's one thing to know yourjourney and the success and the
moment, and it's another to getit done.
So talk about the how.
How are you making this happen?
Speaker 2 (08:44):
Oh, so the first part of that was living in the
moment, like living in thereality of this is what's
important right now, as opposedto what happened yesterday or
before.
That cannot be changed, thatpart, and worrying about what
already happened, you can'treally change that.
You can just learn from it.
(09:05):
What's going to happen tomorrow, we don't know.
Every day when we wake up it'ssomething different, something
new, it changes, it's fluid.
So you can't control thateither.
But what you can do is live inthe moment what is important
right now.
And then for me the other partwas how do you do that?
You view like what your life isright at that moment.
(09:33):
Just how important is thatthing?
Because in a day or two thatthing that's causing you so much
angst may not be important.
So kind of like step back, lookat it, figure it out and then
come back to it isn't it funnyhow some distance can make
(09:55):
everything feel small.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
That was true.
It's also yeah, it's true, likeyou know, it's like it is.
Like you know, the further youget away from something, you
truly get smaller, like from a,from a perception wise, but from
time and it does matter, andsome things don't, something
stick with you health and otherthings and bad decisions can
chase you around a bunch, butnot everything has that weight
for sure, right?
Speaker 2 (10:22):
right, right and what's like earth shattering and
so important now, in a day ortwo may not be that important,
and I mean it's the same if youthink about it in terms of life.
You know, when you're 18 or 19,.
That thing, that heartbreakthat you have that you will
never, ever get over.
When you look back, it's like,whew, thank, heartbreak that you
have that you will never, everget over.
When you look back, it's likewhew, thank goodness that didn't
(10:44):
happen.
So Right.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
Well, you know, my, my 15 year old's like when I'm
18, I'm getting a tattoo.
And I was like you told me youwanted a tattoo three years ago
Mickey Mouse, like you're 12 or11 years old.
I was like do you want that,matt?
Would you want that?
Now she's like no.
I'm like do you think a tattooof 18, you're going to want 21
or 25?
I go, because you're going tohave that much change, if not
more, in that amount of time.
(11:06):
She's like whatever I'm goingto do what I want, I was like
just get a henna one and havefun with it, for I like that one
.
I'm going to go redo it.
I'll do it again, but I assureyou that little butterfly is
going to look like a giantturkey when you're 50.
Don't put that little butterflyin some areas that are going to
get looser.
Speaker 2 (11:26):
Don't be a pterodactyl.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
I think a phrase that you can do is I'm going to get
a bowl of yogurt on my leg andit's going to look like cottage
cheese when I'm old.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
You of yogurt on my leg and it's going to look like
cottage cheese when I'm old.
No, but it's true.
It's true, you know.
I mean, my daughter is an adultnow.
When she was 18, she had tohave her navel pierced.
I said, ok, you can do that,because that's something that
you can reverse later on in life.
If you get a tattoo, you'restuck with that forever, like
you're saying, unless you'vedone through a lot of hateful
(12:05):
removal.
So you know, now, at this pointin her life, I'm like what
about that uh belly buttonthingy you did when you were 18?
Speaker 1 (12:15):
and she's like I haven't seen that in years could
say that, but it's only becausethere'd be fat that's gone all
over the top of it, and thenit's like it's in there.
I know it's there, I just can'tget to it.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
I doubt that.
I doubt that I don't think so Ihighly doubt that I could get
it out.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
I could get it out now.
I actually made the commentthis morning that I have not
seen my belly button, justwithout, really, anyway, that's
nothing to do with ourconversation.
Um, what, uh, what are kind ofyou most grateful for at this
point in your, in your journey?
Speaker 2 (12:47):
Oh, my gosh, um, my family and my friends and the
people that are in my life, justthe people around me.
I I realize, and I'm sograteful and thankful, that I
have great people.
Uh, I come across great peoplelike yourself, you know, just by
happenstance.
Sometimes, sometimes it'sintentional, you know, sometimes
(13:09):
I reach out, sometimes theyreach out, but the people that I
meet are just quality people.
It's awesome, it's wonderful.
And then I have the people whohave been there all of my life.
I have a fantastic family.
I love them, I love all of them.
You know we bicker sometimes,but that's families, but, yeah,
(13:30):
the people, the people arewhat's the most important thing
to me in my life.
Okay, so you're on this journeyand you know we could totally
(13:55):
catch up, which is great becauseI love to hear how you're
progressing and doing things.
What's been the impact since?
You know, this is a businesspodcast that has the extension
of life started the businesslike how we started the business
.
It's a very social.
I mean, wine is social, right,food is social.
Speaker 1 (14:13):
You're not supposed to drink it alone on the couch
every night.
Speaker 2 (14:17):
That could be problematic.
I mean, it's not a bad thing.
Speaker 1 (14:27):
Not good for a friend .
Problem problem it's better toshare.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
Oh, then I would need two bottles.
That's not fun.
I think realizing that I'm notattached to the outcome of what
we do in the business has helpeddrive it and grow it, because
I'm not grasping at every singleopportunity and I think if I
was like super hungry andthirsty that I would, but I
don't because I don't have to.
So I get to choose and pick andwe do together as a family
because it's a family businesswhat's quality and like, what
(15:10):
supports our brand, what makesus happy, what brings us joy,
what reflects who we are aspeople.
So all of that is reallyimportant and being able to
reflect and see that is great.
Like that's where we're seeingthe success, because it's
happening organically and it'sgrowing super fast.
(15:34):
But we don't want it to growtoo fast because then you start
running into problems.
So it's going according to planand it's good.
Things are good.
Speaker 1 (15:48):
You described to me how someone discovered FOMO and
exclusion.
Someone's like I'm just tiredof chasing every opportunity.
And then somebody came to themand said, hey, I want to go do
this.
And they're like I just don'twant to do that, we're already
working with your competitor.
And they're like no, no, no, Iwill pay you triple.
And they're like the bell wentoff.
They said no to somebody thatwanted something, and so when
(16:11):
you do that, your brand can goup because you're like I just
don't do this for everybody.
I don't know if you qualify,and it meaning like does it
qualify to some other level ofstandard, but the truth is
that's how you build a brand ofexclusivity and higher ticket,
if you will, is when you don'tsay yes to everybody.
When you say we're not going tobe in Walmart, we're only going
to be in these places, we'reonly going to be in these high,
(16:31):
you know you need a Michelinstar or whatever.
It is that changes the dynamics, and I think there's a lesson
to be learned just from lifethat it's more enjoyable, you'll
actually get more revenue fromit and you'll drive a better
brand for yourself, no matterwhat you're doing, if you don't
say yes to everybody.
Speaker 2 (16:44):
So I love that, absolutely, absolutely.
I how could it be?
(17:10):
How?
I know you guys havesubscription models from us, so
we have a small group ofregulars clientele, so we like
to take care of them, we'rehands-on with them, we keep in
touch with them and then we'rebusiness to business.
So you know, right now we'reworking on getting into hotels
and, because of what we are inour price point, it has to be
(17:34):
something that's a little higherend.
Restaurants we're working witha lot of venues that are doing
like private events andactivations I just learned that
word not that long ago A lot ofthat kind of branding.
People are reaching out to uswho are like not necessarily
(18:00):
stars, but more in the limelightof life, that want the
champagne for their you knowdinner or for their party that
they're having, or their weddingor their and and so that's.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
That's really nice because we get to build a uh
relationship with them yeah, Ilove that, and they get
nostalgia with it too, or, oh, Ihave that at the wedding or as
part of.
I mean, I could work against.
If they get divorced, they maynever drink your stuff again.
As well, get back by it.
You're 50 for sure.
The people who are irate forthat are never drinking it again
after that wedding.
There's two of them, so thenwe're not doing that.
(18:36):
That brings me back.
Thank you, by the way, forcoming on today.
I love catching up with you,and this won't be the last time,
and now you're all accountable,so next time we get together,
you're going to tell me aboutwhat you did and what the new
thing was.
You worked on.
Speaker 2 (18:52):
We have so much stuff going on right now.
I think we're scheduled all theway out to October.
At this point of like, eventsand parties Some of them are
back to back on weekends andwhat's really cool about where
we are right now is someone willreach out and say, oh, I'm
going to do this event on the28th.
And I'm like, well, we'rebooked, we're not going to be
(19:13):
there.
And they're like what weekendsdo you have available that you
can be there for us?
Then I'm like I pull out mycalendar so they're rearranging
their schedules to meet with ouravailability.
So that's like a huge steppingstone, I think I don't know.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
When you're ready to come to Atlanta.
You got to let me know so I canfigure it out.
We'll bring you up here atAlpharetta where it smells like
401k.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
Okay, okay.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
You make this joke.
He's like I'm from GainesvilleNorth and he's like it smells
like misdemeanors and marijuanaup there and he's like down here
.
Anyway, we'll get together,We'll get you into Atlanta and
you tell me what kind of eventsyou do and I'll find a
connection or two if you don'talready have it.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
Yeah, oh, definitely, definitely yeah.
You know, I'm an ex-flightattendant, so I know people
pretty much everywhere.
Speaker 1 (20:07):
You definitely do know Atlanta, because on your
way to heaven or hell you willgo through Atlanta.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
Oh yes, I know Atlanta far too well, spent way
too much time there.
Speaker 1 (20:17):
Way too much time there.
Thank you, carolyn's coming on.
I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
Oh, thank you.
Thank you, apologize for theinterruptions.
Speaker 1 (20:27):
No worries, we won't even make the cut.
People are like whatinterruption Do you see you?
No worries, we won't even makethe cut.
People are like whatinterruption Do you see?
(20:48):
You guys want to see the fullshow, and I do hope it's the
first of many and if you've beenhere before, I really
appreciate you coming back.
I hope you're cutting ties thatthings hold you back.
But you got to start withdefining your own success first
to be able to figure out what itis that is holding you back
from that.
Have a great day.
Welcome to the Cut the Tie podcast.
Hi, I'm Thomas Helfrich, yourhost.
I think that's a term.
Get out there, go cut a tie isthe whole idea and the mission
behind what I'm trying to helppeople do is cut ties to things
holding them back big, little,small and you got to go to find
some success for yourself tofigure out which ties hold you
back from that.
Today, carolyn's joining me.
Carolyn, how are you?
Speaker 2 (00:20):
I'm good.
How are you?
Speaker 1 (00:22):
I'm doing well.
Thank you for jumping on herewith me.
Do this, introduce yourself andwhat it is you do.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Okay, I am Carolyn Denson Lingerieux.
I am the CEO and co-founder ofLingerieux Wineries and we label
and produce and bring deliciouscraft champagne from champagne
in France to the United States.
We work with independentgrowers and producers to bring
(00:53):
delicious, craft, organicchampagnes that you can't
normally find here to the US,and we have our own brand.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
You definitely can't find them because you guys make
them.
So the only place it's you haveyour own, your own, your own
secret sauce.
Speaker 2 (01:12):
No, no, we, we actually don't make it.
My husband's family makes it.
Speaker 1 (01:17):
I'm sure I had that wrong.
Family Right Right.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
We import it, we find it, pervade it, bring it to the
US.
Speaker 1 (01:28):
But you can't just grow this stuff and make it in
the US.
It has to come from that regionto get this kind of feel.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
You can't, you can't.
There are sparkling wines, ofcourse, in the United States,
but they're nothing likechampagne, because champagne is
the ancient vines and it's theterroir, is the clay, it's the
lime.
All of that stuff goes into thebottle.
So, uh, and it's um, it'sillegal to call something
champagne that's not fromchampagne yes, they'll show up
and beat you with a bottle.
Speaker 1 (02:01):
Use it incorrectly, like it's really a serious.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
I'm not sure what they would do, but you know, I
mean it's France.
Speaker 1 (02:11):
I, I the first protest not work for a week.
Then uh tell me a little bitsomething.
So uh tell me how you'redefining success in this part of
your life defining success inthis part of your life.
Speaker 2 (02:29):
So for me, success is being able to have a
comfortable life without thaturgency of I have to make X
amount of dollars to be able tobuy X amount of things, to be
able to, you know, show up insome sort of way that is
important to society.
For me, it's about relaxing,being comfortable, being happy
where I am in life, doingsomething that I'm passionate
(02:51):
about, being with my family,friends.
So that to me is success.
So if you measure that way, Ifeel successful.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
I mean again, listen, success changes as seasons of
life evolve and I think that's avery healthy one.
In your own journey and maybesince we last time we talked to
this a few months ago, what'ssome of the ties or a tie you've
been working on to cut to helpto achieve that success?
Speaker 2 (03:19):
The necessity to be driven by finances.
The necessity to be driven byfinances, that's like a huge tie
that is kind of embedded.
You know in my psyche, andprobably a lot of other people's
, that you have to earn X amountof dollars or you have to show
this amount of whatever to bedeemed successful.
(03:44):
And for me I am learning that'snot true, like that's that
doesn't even matter.
My daughter has a saying thatmoney isn't real, like R-E-A-L
and, and she has a point.
You know it's, it's all.
You know it's it's all I don'tknow.
(04:05):
So for me, cutting that tie oflike what is necessary, what's
important, how much crap stuff,things I need, cutting that tie
is, is very important.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
It is and it's, it's, it's, it's a reevaluation of
something you want or you define.
I said it's usually aroundsuccess and it can be defined
however you choose and as longas you chose it.
It is important to continuallywork towards cutting something
and holding it back, and somethings are more difficult than
others.
I like the idea.
By the way, money isn't realBecause it isn't.
(04:42):
It's a tool to help you achieveor get something else.
Um, you know, in the old daysit might've been bartering
brains for something thatmight've been given some of the
case of of, uh, champagne for itLike it's, it's, it's, it's,
it's, it's, it's, it's, it's toofar off actually, because, uh,
(05:06):
you know the world changed andyou had to go get a bow and
arrow and shoot a rabbit.
There's no money involved inthat, you just right right,
you'll feed your family howeveryou can.
So, uh, there's some truth tothat, it's?
It's an illusionary piece thatwe've created to help facilitate
things, if you will, um, youknow, it's one thing that you
know have your success.
(05:26):
It's another to know thejourney and what you're doing to
cut at the tie, the one youjust mentioned.
Right, what was the moment whenyou said I'm going to really
start working on that?
Speaker 2 (05:36):
I think the moment for me is when I moved to France
, which was about 13 years ago.
That was like the starting ofthe awakening for me.
It's been a process, but when Imoved there I realized that
people were living such a richlife without all the stuff we
(05:56):
have so much stuff in the UnitedStates.
We truly do, and some of it Ibrought with me because I have
this idea that I can't livewithout this, that and the third
and whatever.
But for me, I think therealization started when I
started seeing people beinghappy with all the extra stuff,
(06:16):
Because the material thingsaren't what make you happy.
They are not the things thatbring you joy and a successful
life, and so I started realizinglike I can live on so much less
and have a much better lifethan trying to accumulate all
(06:38):
these things.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Yeah, trophies, you know, it's not the world that's
heavy, it's the things that yousave.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
Right, right.
And so I started.
You know living my life withmore experiences and traveling
and spending time with friendsand family.
I love to cook, so, like, goodfood is important and, of course
, good wine is champagne.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
You didn't send it out, we're gonna.
Of champagne, right, if youdidn't send it out, we're gonna.
You know, it's like I had thisdebate recently with my wife of
of you know in, you know, ofthis idea of what do we really
need?
What makes me happy I use aHome Depot bucket, the big paint
buckets is the analogy thatyour happiness is what pours in
and, you know, pours out.
So, like a nice home, yeah,it's beautiful, there's status,
(07:24):
it's comfortable, but the bottomis giant mortgage and, by the
way, that money takes away from,maybe, travel, which takes away
from something else, right, andand and and that was the
example I gave her.
I was like, why don't we, whydon't we sell that and go get a
nice house but pay cash for thedifference of what you sell it
for?
And we, and then now like wecould go spend that exact same
(07:46):
amount on travel every quarterand or go buy a rental property
that makes us money, or go dosomething else.
And you know her response waslike, well, just let's go make
more.
I'm like, but even if we did,we wouldn't be liquid in, you
know, in a summer.
And I was just kind of likethis whole evaluation of life,
of what really matters.
And for me it was like I want tokind of like, fill as many
(08:07):
holes in the bucket of happinessso I don't have to put a whole
lot in to retain happiness, andin times of abundance it'll
overflow, and then, well, maybeI get another bucket that can
have some holes in it.
Then, anyway, I can keep goingfor that.
I probably should do it, but Ilove that you've done that and I
think along the way of that,you know, it's one thing to
(08:31):
define it, it's another thing toknow the moment a little bit,
but it's the how.
You know.
It's one thing to know yourjourney and the success and the
moment, and it's another to getit done.
So talk about the how.
How are you making this happen?
Speaker 2 (08:44):
Oh, so the first part of that was living in the
moment, like living in thereality of this is what's
important right now, as opposedto what happened yesterday or
before.
That cannot be changed, thatpart, and worrying about what
already happened, you can'treally change that.
You can just learn from it.
(09:05):
What's going to happen tomorrow, we don't know.
Every day when we wake up it'ssomething different, something
new, it changes, it's fluid.
So you can't control thateither.
But what you can do is live inthe moment what is important
right now.
And then for me the other partwas how do you do that?
You view like what your life isright at that moment.
(09:33):
Just how important is thatthing?
Because in a day or two thatthing that's causing you so much
angst may not be important.
So kind of like step back, lookat it, figure it out and then
come back to it isn't it funnyhow some distance can make
(09:55):
everything feel small.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
That was true.
It's also yeah, it's true, likeyou know, it's like it is.
Like you know, the further youget away from something, you
truly get smaller, like from a,from a perception wise, but from
time and it does matter, andsome things don't, something
stick with you health and otherthings and bad decisions can
chase you around a bunch, butnot everything has that weight
for sure, right?
Speaker 2 (10:22):
right, right and what's like earth shattering and
so important now, in a day ortwo may not be that important,
and I mean it's the same if youthink about it in terms of life.
You know, when you're 18 or 19,.
That thing, that heartbreakthat you have that you will
never, ever get over.
When you look back, it's like,whew, thank, heartbreak that you
have that you will never, everget over.
When you look back, it's likewhew, thank goodness that didn't
(10:44):
happen.
So Right.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
Well, you know, my, my 15 year old's like when I'm
18, I'm getting a tattoo.
And I was like you told me youwanted a tattoo three years ago
Mickey Mouse, like you're 12 or11 years old.
I was like do you want that,matt?
Would you want that?
Now she's like no.
I'm like do you think a tattooof 18, you're going to want 21
or 25?
I go, because you're going tohave that much change, if not
more, in that amount of time.
(11:06):
She's like whatever I'm goingto do what I want, I was like
just get a henna one and havefun with it, for I like that one
.
I'm going to go redo it.
I'll do it again, but I assureyou that little butterfly is
going to look like a giantturkey when you're 50.
Don't put that little butterflyin some areas that are going to
get looser.
Speaker 2 (11:26):
Don't be a pterodactyl.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
I think a phrase that you can do is I'm going to get
a bowl of yogurt on my leg andit's going to look like cottage
cheese when I'm old.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
You of yogurt on my leg and it's going to look like
cottage cheese when I'm old.
No, but it's true.
It's true, you know.
I mean, my daughter is an adultnow.
When she was 18, she had tohave her navel pierced.
I said, ok, you can do that,because that's something that
you can reverse later on in life.
If you get a tattoo, you'restuck with that forever, like
you're saying, unless you'vedone through a lot of hateful
(12:05):
removal.
So you know, now, at this pointin her life, I'm like what
about that uh belly buttonthingy you did when you were 18?
Speaker 1 (12:15):
and she's like I haven't seen that in years could
say that, but it's only becausethere'd be fat that's gone all
over the top of it, and thenit's like it's in there.
I know it's there, I just can'tget to it.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
I doubt that.
I doubt that I don't think so Ihighly doubt that I could get
it out.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
I could get it out now.
I actually made the commentthis morning that I have not
seen my belly button, justwithout, really, anyway, that's
nothing to do with ourconversation.
Um, what, uh, what are kind ofyou most grateful for at this
point in your, in your journey?
Speaker 2 (12:47):
Oh, my gosh, um, my family and my friends and the
people that are in my life, justthe people around me.
I I realize, and I'm sograteful and thankful, that I
have great people.
Uh, I come across great peoplelike yourself, you know, just by
happenstance.
Sometimes, sometimes it'sintentional, you know, sometimes
(13:09):
I reach out, sometimes theyreach out, but the people that I
meet are just quality people.
It's awesome, it's wonderful.
And then I have the people whohave been there all of my life.
I have a fantastic family.
I love them, I love all of them.
You know we bicker sometimes,but that's families, but, yeah,
(13:30):
the people, the people arewhat's the most important thing
to me in my life.
Okay, so you're on this journeyand you know we could totally
(13:55):
catch up, which is great becauseI love to hear how you're
progressing and doing things.
What's been the impact since?
You know, this is a businesspodcast that has the extension
of life started the businesslike how we started the business
.
It's a very social.
I mean, wine is social, right,food is social.
Speaker 1 (14:13):
You're not supposed to drink it alone on the couch
every night.
Speaker 2 (14:17):
That could be problematic.
I mean, it's not a bad thing.
Speaker 1 (14:27):
Not good for a friend .
Problem problem it's better toshare.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
Oh, then I would need two bottles.
That's not fun.
I think realizing that I'm notattached to the outcome of what
we do in the business has helpeddrive it and grow it, because
I'm not grasping at every singleopportunity and I think if I
was like super hungry andthirsty that I would, but I
don't because I don't have to.
So I get to choose and pick andwe do together as a family
because it's a family businesswhat's quality and like, what
(15:10):
supports our brand, what makesus happy, what brings us joy,
what reflects who we are aspeople.
So all of that is reallyimportant and being able to
reflect and see that is great.
Like that's where we're seeingthe success, because it's
happening organically and it'sgrowing super fast.
(15:34):
But we don't want it to growtoo fast because then you start
running into problems.
So it's going according to planand it's good.
Things are good.
Speaker 1 (15:48):
You described to me how someone discovered FOMO and
exclusion.
Someone's like I'm just tiredof chasing every opportunity.
And then somebody came to themand said, hey, I want to go do
this.
And they're like I just don'twant to do that, we're already
working with your competitor.
And they're like no, no, no, Iwill pay you triple.
And they're like the bell wentoff.
They said no to somebody thatwanted something, and so when
(16:11):
you do that, your brand can goup because you're like I just
don't do this for everybody.
I don't know if you qualify,and it meaning like does it
qualify to some other level ofstandard, but the truth is
that's how you build a brand ofexclusivity and higher ticket,
if you will, is when you don'tsay yes to everybody.
When you say we're not going tobe in Walmart, we're only going
to be in these places, we'reonly going to be in these high,
(16:31):
you know you need a Michelinstar or whatever.
It is that changes the dynamics, and I think there's a lesson
to be learned just from lifethat it's more enjoyable, you'll
actually get more revenue fromit and you'll drive a better
brand for yourself, no matterwhat you're doing, if you don't
say yes to everybody.
Speaker 2 (16:44):
So I love that, absolutely, absolutely.
I how could it be?
(17:10):
How?
I know you guys havesubscription models from us, so
we have a small group ofregulars clientele, so we like
to take care of them, we'rehands-on with them, we keep in
touch with them and then we'rebusiness to business.
So you know, right now we'reworking on getting into hotels
and, because of what we are inour price point, it has to be
(17:34):
something that's a little higherend.
Restaurants we're working witha lot of venues that are doing
like private events andactivations I just learned that
word not that long ago A lot ofthat kind of branding.
People are reaching out to uswho are like not necessarily
(18:00):
stars, but more in the limelightof life, that want the
champagne for their you knowdinner or for their party that
they're having, or their weddingor their and and so that's.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
That's really nice because we get to build a uh
relationship with them yeah, Ilove that, and they get
nostalgia with it too, or, oh, Ihave that at the wedding or as
part of.
I mean, I could work against.
If they get divorced, they maynever drink your stuff again.
As well, get back by it.
You're 50 for sure.
The people who are irate forthat are never drinking it again
after that wedding.
There's two of them, so thenwe're not doing that.
(18:36):
That brings me back.
Thank you, by the way, forcoming on today.
I love catching up with you,and this won't be the last time,
and now you're all accountable,so next time we get together,
you're going to tell me aboutwhat you did and what the new
thing was.
You worked on.
Speaker 2 (18:52):
We have so much stuff going on right now.
I think we're scheduled all theway out to October.
At this point of like, eventsand parties Some of them are
back to back on weekends andwhat's really cool about where
we are right now is someone willreach out and say, oh, I'm
going to do this event on the28th.
And I'm like, well, we'rebooked, we're not going to be
(19:13):
there.
And they're like what weekendsdo you have available that you
can be there for us?
Then I'm like I pull out mycalendar so they're rearranging
their schedules to meet with ouravailability.
So that's like a huge steppingstone, I think I don't know.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
When you're ready to come to Atlanta.
You got to let me know so I canfigure it out.
We'll bring you up here atAlpharetta where it smells like
401k.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
Okay, okay.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
You make this joke.
He's like I'm from GainesvilleNorth and he's like it smells
like misdemeanors and marijuanaup there and he's like down here
.
Anyway, we'll get together,We'll get you into Atlanta and
you tell me what kind of eventsyou do and I'll find a
connection or two if you don'talready have it.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
Yeah, oh, definitely, definitely yeah.
You know, I'm an ex-flightattendant, so I know people
pretty much everywhere.
Speaker 1 (20:07):
You definitely do know Atlanta, because on your
way to heaven or hell you willgo through Atlanta.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
Oh yes, I know Atlanta far too well, spent way
too much time there.
Speaker 1 (20:17):
Way too much time there.
Thank you, carolyn's coming on.
I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
Oh, thank you.
Thank you, apologize for theinterruptions.
Speaker 1 (20:27):
No worries, we won't even make the cut.
People are like whatinterruption Do you see you?
No worries, we won't even makethe cut.
People are like whatinterruption Do you see?
(20:48):
You guys want to see the fullshow, and I do hope it's the
first of many and if you've beenhere before, I really
appreciate you coming back.
I hope you're cutting ties thatthings hold you back.
But you got to start withdefining your own success first
to be able to figure out what itis that is holding you back
from that.
Have a great day.
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