June 10, 2026 • 31 mins
On this episode of the STL Bucket List Show, we sit down with Michael Alter, owner and founder of Fitz’s, to discuss the story behind one of St. Louis’ most iconic brands and how a small soda startup grew into a regional institution recognized across generations.
Michael shares the history of Fitz’s, from its roots as a legendary St. Louis drive-in restaurant to relaunching the brand in 1992 with a vision of creating a craft soda microbrewery long before the craft beverage movement became mainstream.
The conversation explores the evolution of the Delmar Loop, the importance of building a strong company culture, and how Fitz’s has remained relevant for more than three decades while staying true to its identity. Michael also discusses the company’s commitment to real cane sugar, product innovation, and the launch of Fitz’s newest mixer line featuring club soda, tonic water, and zero-calorie tonic water.
They also dive into entrepreneurship, leadership, collaboration, and the challenges of navigating changing consumer trends while preserving the nostalgic experience that has made Fitz’s a St. Louis favorite.
From family businesses and community impact to product development and local partnerships, this episode highlights what it takes to build a lasting brand and why Fitz’s continues to be woven into the fabric of St. Louis.
They discuss:
• The history and relaunch of Fitz’s in 1992
• Building a craft soda company before craft beverages were mainstream
• The story behind the iconic Fitz’s Root Beer brand
• The growth and evolution of the Delmar Loop
• Leadership lessons from 33 years of entrepreneurship
• Building company culture and retaining great employees
• Why Fitz’s remains committed to real cane sugar
• Product innovation and launching the new mixer line
• Collaborations with local brands and organizations
• Working with 4 Hands Brewing Co. and the Gateway Arch
• Creating memorable family experiences through the restaurant
• The future of Fitz’s and evolving consumer trends
• Favorite St. Louis restaurants, parks, and local businesses
• Supporting local entrepreneurship and community growth
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📍 Recorded at Bucket List Podcast Studio, St. Louis, MO
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SPEAKER_01 (00:00):
Then for me personally, uh, I was dairy
bartending a long time ago whenuh when I was a younger guy, and
and that's where I met my wifeat when I was a dairy bartender.
So shout out to my wife, Dana,right?
I didn't know that.
That's a gem.
Yeah, that's awesome.
It's uh it's the power of aMississippi float, gets you
married for 34 years.
SPEAKER_00 (00:23):
If you wanna hear about Saint Louis, tune into the
bucket list show weekly, hearwhat Marissa and Luke say.
It drops every Wednesday, got adope new guest every single
week.
Buckle up for the ride.
Who's it gonna be?
Who's on the show today?
They rap Saint Louis.
What to do in the loo on a latenight, and maybe what to do on a
(00:46):
date night.
Yeah.
Bucket list as you covered, theyknow what's going on.
What's going on?
They'll give you.
Hey, eighteen different thingsto do on 19.
If you need one more to choose,yeah.
The city, city, city is a placewe call home.
A place we call home.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (01:01):
St.
Louis, welcome back to anotherepisode of the STL bucket list
show, highlighting the people,places, and events that make St.
Louis special.
We have one of those people inthe studio today that is a St.
Louis staple.
Um, but before we get into it, Iwant to shout out um Julia in
the back on the ones and twos,cutting up every episode every
single week.
Um we get to talk to localentrepreneurs, local creators,
and local people making St.
(01:22):
Louis move.
Um but without further ado, uh,we have owner, founder of
Fitz's, everybody on thepodcast, they've heard of you
guys, they've had your productsbefore, but we have Michael
Alter in the studio, owner,founder of Fitz's.
Thank you so much for cominginto the studio today.
SPEAKER_01 (01:36):
Luke, pleasure to be here.
Thank you.
SPEAKER_03 (01:38):
Um we've been working together for a little
bit.
I've been, you know, workingwith your team and getting to
kind of experience what you guyshave been doing.
We had the honor to do thebucket list menu, which was a
really fun collab.
Um, but we have some newproducts.
If you guys are watching onYouTube, um, we have the club
soda, we have the tonic water,um, and we have the zero calorie
tonic water as well.
So before we get into you know,the story of fences, I wanted to
(02:00):
kind of shout some of these newproducts.
So tell me kind of what wentinto this and what you're so
excited about about theseproducts.
SPEAKER_01 (02:04):
Well, super excited.
It was uh a long time indevelopment.
Um, getting everything right umtakes a lot of time and effort.
Uh things are a little differentin today's uh universe,
business-wise, uh everything hasmuch longer time frame, lead
times.
So complications that you knowwere always part of the game are
(02:27):
now just more complicated.
Uh so it took a little bit moretime than I would have wanted,
but the end results are notgreat.
So I'm thrilled that thatthey're finally out to market.
SPEAKER_03 (02:37):
Yeah, I'm drinking um the club soda right now,
crispy, um fresh glass bottle,which is awesome to have the
glass bottle.
It's a little bit of a smallerbottle than your other your
other sodas, so it's a 9.13ounce bottle.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (02:49):
Yeah.
So we have a great glasspartner, um, and they were
willing to design and produce acustom bottle for us.
So um that is a 9.3 ouncebottle, uh, with different than
our our normal 12-ounce bottle.
But uh yeah, we're super, superexcited about how the packaging
came out.
SPEAKER_03 (03:10):
So Fitz is has been and and became one of the most
iconic brands in St.
Louis.
Um, you know, when people thinkof our city, they think of you
guys.
And what was that story, youknow, and what what's your story
behind bringing Fitz's back andturning it into what it is
today?
SPEAKER_01 (03:24):
Well, that's probably you know, an hour right
there.
I mean, uh, you know, I think itreally you got you you got to go
back from uh start at thebeginning, I suppose, like any
business.
So uh, you know, Fitz's was acollaboration amongst three
people.
Um, Alan and Tom were myoriginal partners in Fitz's uh
(03:45):
when we restarted it in uh 1992.
Uh Fitz's history, you know,predated me.
Uh, you know, if you look in ourbottles, it says since 1947.
Although I might feel like I'mfrom 1947, I'm not.
And so all of this stuff uh, youknow, that predated me, you
(04:06):
know, as part of Fitz's legendlore.
I've heard so many differentstories from so different so
many different people.
It's kind of hard to knowexactly what happened.
But Fitz's was a drive-inrestaurant uh located at Clayton
and Brentwood.
And uh it was famous for a lotof things, root beer being one
of them.
And um so Fitz's is really awhat originally was a nod to the
(04:30):
Fitz's root beer that was servedat that restaurant.
SPEAKER_03 (04:34):
Yeah, that's interesting.
So when you guys, you know, tookthat brand over in 1992, you
know, now we're looking at whatI'm 30.
I was born in 1995.
So 33 years later that you'vebeen at this, um, the brand has
evolved in so many differentways.
It's become so much more thanjust a restaurant, just a root
beer, just a soda.
You guys really have community.
I mean, when I met your staffthat have been there for so
(04:56):
long, I mean, you guys haveyou've done so much.
So, like what when you'rebuilding that, you know, from
1992, looking ahead 33, three,33 years later, like what were
some of those, you know, majorwins that you guys had over the
years that really, that reallymade you say, like, oh man,
we're really building somethingspecial here.
SPEAKER_01 (05:13):
Well, I think it'll really starts with the people
who I've worked with.
I know, you know, when when I'min an environment like this
talking about FITSIS, I thinkit's misleading to say, like,
you know, hey, I did this and Idid that.
Uh fitzes is a team sport.
Um, I've been uh reallyfortunate to work with a core
group of people who are now myfriends, who've been my friends
(05:33):
for a long time, uh, whounderstood, you know, what we
were trying to accomplish.
You know, you know, we weren'tthat lofty in the beginning.
We weren't thinking about 30years, we weren't thinking about
brand building.
We were thinking that, you know,we have this really neat idea,
and that idea really was thecreation of a soda craft
(05:56):
microbrewery.
That was the genesis of ofFitz's, uh the restart of
Fitzes, and we spent a lot oftime and energy trying to, you
know, develop that concept.
And um, you know, I'm happy toshare more of what went down all
those years ago to reallybootstrap us to where we are
today.
SPEAKER_03 (06:15):
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We're proud to present SSMHealth as the official
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(06:37):
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Learn more at their website inthe link in the show notes.
Yeah, so we gotta we gotta talkabout the Del Mar loop a little
bit.
I mean, you guys have been amajor anchor in the loop, uh,
you, Joe Edwards, the vintagevinyl team.
There's there's a few of youguys that have really kind of
turned that neighborhood around.
And what is that what has thatmeant for you to be able to see
(06:58):
that neighborhood evolve so manydifferent times to become one of
the premier streets in in St.
Louis?
SPEAKER_01 (07:02):
Yeah, uh well, the loop has always been an
attraction for me.
I mean, uh uh the sameattraction for me as for a lot
of other folks who live in St.
Louis.
It is a diverse walking street.
Yeah, you get to meet folks fromall over the place, all
different backgrounds, alldifferent cultures, all
different economic stories, andit creates a blend of energy
(07:28):
that has always propelled theloop forward.
And uh, you know, um, I've beeninvolved in a loop since the
beginning.
I mean, I'm on the loop board,I've been on the loop board, I'm
trying to get people to takeover my spot on the loop board.
But uh, you know, uh the thestreet is is part of our
history.
Uh it is unique, still unique inSt.
(07:50):
Louis.
And in many ways, as St.
Louis, you know, tries to findits footing, I think the the
stability of what the loopoffers is still super important
for St.
Louis.
SPEAKER_03 (08:02):
So I want to kind of talk about product a little bit
more because I know that you'resuper passionate about product.
So, you know, over the years,there's been growth in craft
beer, there's been growth incanned cocktails, specialty
soda, specialty drinks.
How has Fitz's remained relevantin keeping that nostalgic
identity?
Because you guys are so true towhat you guys do and continue to
put out a very consistentproduct, even though the trends
(08:24):
have changed over the years.
SPEAKER_01 (08:27):
It is a great question.
I think the identity piece forFitz is really hasn't changed
all that much.
Um when it has changed, it hasbeen really mostly driven by
collaborations, which are uh isreally enjoyable for me.
But I think, you know, uh we'vealways wanted to be a classic
(08:47):
traditional soda company.
You know, and uh uh no punintended, but we stay true to
our roots over the years.
Uh, you know, outside the thenew mixer line, most of our
development has been, you know,on the on the craft soda side.
Uh, you know, we use, you know,uh cane sugar, that's our claim
(09:08):
to fame, at least one of ourclaims to fame, you know, as we
develop our sodas.
And I think we stay true tothat.
I I just kind of feel like, youknow, that there's still space
in the market for traditionalproducts.
They gotta be good.
And we've always tried, youknow, really hard to make sure
that we're consistent in that uhso we don't waver from our from
(09:29):
our from our our ourformulations.
You know, uh the the runningjoke at Fitz's is that you know
uh um you know we use cane sugarand uh I would always uh I would
always say like you know, myaccountant suggests that we
switch over to something elsebecause cane sugar is so
expensive.
Yeah and you know, my responseis oh, it's like we'll never do
(09:49):
that, right?
Because that's not who we are.
Yeah.
You know, it would it wouldchange, it would change not only
the flavor of what we do,because cane sugar is an
important part of what we do,but it's it's an identity piece
for me.
It's an identity piece for us,you know.
So we don't, you know, you canreally taste the difference too.
SPEAKER_03 (10:07):
I mean my favorite's the orange soda.
Um Hadley brought me some today,which is very nice.
I'll probably drink all four ofthose this week.
And yeah, but the cane sugar,it's that refresh when you want
a soda, you want a soda.
And we we had all talked aboutthat before, is like they have
all these different drinks andthese different things that are
going on.
But at the end of the day,there's something about you
know, sitting on the loop patio,drinking a soda, having a
burger, having fries, and thatnostalgia that you guys have
(10:29):
created really in that in thatneighborhood is has been
special.
But you mentioned thecollaboration piece.
Over the years, was there anyspecific collaborations that
stood out to you of like, wow,like I can't believe we're
collaborating with them or them?
And I'm sure that happens allthe time.
unknown (10:43):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (10:43):
Yeah.
Well, the collaboration, like Isaid, is is is an important
piece of the puzzle for ussimply because for me, it's
always enjoyable to be aroundentrepreneurial folks who, you
know, who want to sit at a tableand and you know, really
discuss, you know, uhopportunities, changes,
(11:04):
improvements, uh, andcollaboration is really a driver
of that.
So off the top of my head,things that have really helped
me uh, you know, uh in terms ofnot only developing new
products, but just you know,getting um uh a closer
relationship with people who aremaking big, big, big changes,
(11:25):
improvements in the St.
Louis scene.
You know, Caldies comes to mind.
Um I'm friends uh with theownership team there.
Great people, uh really driven.
Uh a lot of the things thatmakes Fitzes go, makes Caldies
go.
Um Fallon Brewery, we did agreat collaboration with them on
hard root beer.
Uh that was a fun project.
(11:46):
You know, hard root beer had ithad its moment in time.
Uh, you know, the world in thebeverage industry is so
different now.
Just on and really hard rootbeer, I kind of look back at it,
was kind of at the cutting edgeedge of what was changing in in
a marketplace.
And then, of course, probablyyou know, one of the things that
really was an eye catcher forme, which was our collaboration
with the Arch.
(12:07):
Yeah.
You know, we produce a uh uhroot beer that is branded with
the Arch on it.
And uh yeah, I mean that'scertainly a highlight for me.
Yeah.
So and again, I got to to uhinteract with with with with
them.
The arch is super, superimportant to you know, St.
Louis, it's it's an identitypiece for our city or our area.
(12:29):
And so for Fitzis to connectdown there was uh was was really
great.
SPEAKER_03 (12:33):
And you guys are in that same category with the
Gateway Arts.
Like when people think of St.
Louis, they think of Fitz's,they think of the Broadway
oyster bars, they think of theplaces that have been here and
have that nostalgic.
Like if you go to all thetourism websites, you guys are
all over, you know, and it'sgotta be a special thing for
you.
But then one of the things thatdraws me to your guys' brand is
the family-friendly element, isyou can go into the restaurant
with four generations of yourfamily and everybody can have a
(12:56):
good time.
You know, there's not a lot ofplaces that you can that you can
do that in St.
Louis.
And I saw you interacting whenwe were there with kids.
It seems like you enjoy likegetting kids free floats and um
and stuff like that.
But what if I was gonna ask youif you if you had to work one
position at the restaurant, whatwhat would that be?
If you just if you had to make adecision tomorrow and you're
like, I have to only work thisone position, do you have a good
(13:17):
answer for that?
It seems like front house to me.
SPEAKER_01 (13:19):
Yeah, I I I do.
I think I I think uh that wouldbe um the dairy bar at Delmar,
uh dairy bar South County aswell, because it is kind of like
ground zero in the Fitzgesuniverse in the restaurant side.
Yeah, you know, people come andand mingle there.
And of course, you know, that'swhere we're pouring uh, you
(13:40):
know, the bottomless mugs ofroot beer and making all the the
the floats and you know, we gotyou to make one.
Yes.
Uh yeah, yeah, yeah.
With a little work, you'll bethere.
SPEAKER_03 (13:50):
But uh my ice cream scoops are a little small.
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (13:52):
You gotta really get in there and scoop those things.
We we really go for the wowfactor on those things.
But you know, uh the dairy baris is just uh it's just so full
of energy.
And it's a delightful placebecause you know, you can um you
know you can see uh the smileson people's faces where it is.
And for me personally, uh I wasdairy bartending a long time ago
(14:15):
when uh when I was a youngerguy, and and that's where I met
my wife at when I was a dairybartender.
So shout out to my wife, Dana,right?
I didn't know that story, yeah.
That's a gym.
Yeah, that's awesome.
So it's the power of aMississippi float, gets you
married for 34 years.
SPEAKER_03 (14:31):
Wow.
That's so you guys, what wasthat 1991, 1992?
SPEAKER_01 (14:35):
I met we met in '93.
Oh, wow.
SPEAKER_03 (14:38):
That's incredible.
So for those that are lookingfor a job and a wife, they can
work the dairy bar.
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (14:45):
There's something going on there.
SPEAKER_03 (14:47):
Yeah.
No, it is cool, but there'ssomething special about giving
somebody something that goodtoo.
Is like, hey, like, look howfirst of all it's the wow
factor, but then it's the glassthat it's in, the heavy jar, the
three, four scoops of ice creamon top, the caramel chocolate,
everything that really goes intomaking it.
Um, is uh and then seeing what Ithought was really cool was
seeing them walk upstairs withlike 10 of them.
Yeah, I was like, no way I wouldI ever do that.
(15:08):
That's crazy.
SPEAKER_01 (15:10):
Yeah, to this very day, it's a show stealer.
Yeah.
I mean, whatever you're doing ina restaurant, when you when you
see a server, you know, walkingaround with 10 floats on a tray,
those super floats, uh, yeah,people will turn and take a look
at that and marvel at thefloats.
And I think marvel at the skillthat a server can actually walk
around a crowded restaurant anduh get those floats to a table.
(15:31):
Yeah, and upsteps too.
Sometimes too, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (15:34):
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So I want to talk aboutleadership a little bit because
you've you've obviously, youknow, you've evolved this brand
for 33 years.
(16:15):
And I think a lot of people thatlisten to our show are also
entrepreneurs as well.
And it's like, you know, theymight be in year five, six, you
know, we're in your, we're goinginto year seven with our
business.
And it's like we dream of beinga brand that lasts for 30, 40
years because, you know, you'redoing something right, but
you're also taking punches,rolling with everything that
comes up the ups and downs.
You guys have been through a lotof world-changing things over
(16:36):
the last 33 years.
But like, is there any specificleadership lessons that that
you've learned that would helpother younger entrepreneurs that
to be able to be able to stay inthe game for 33 years?
SPEAKER_01 (16:46):
Yeah, uh, uh, uh, yeah.
You know, when I met you uh andwe talked about your business,
you know, there's a commonalitythat a lot of entrepreneurs
share, which is a really itstarts with a passion of uh for
what they what they're doing, abelief that what they're doing
has value, not only value to aconsumer or wherever their
(17:10):
target audience is, targetmarket is, but it has value to
the person that's doing it.
It has value to me.
So for over over the years I'vedone Fitz's, I mean I I I
appreciate what I do.
I feel really fortunate uh to beable to have done something for
so long uh because I've enjoyedit so much.
(17:33):
Um and that doesn't mean everyday's been a good day.
Uh, you know, uh you know thatyou know running a business has
a lot of challenge, challengesto it.
Uh each business has, you know,some challenges that we can
share, meeting with otherentrepreneurs.
But the startup phase is, youknow, I mean, it's you know,
passion is the fire really thatgets it going.
SPEAKER_02 (17:54):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (17:54):
And, you know, you gotta continue, you know, uh,
you gotta continue to have thatpassion, although your passion,
you know, does evolve.
It does change, you know,because the mission of what
you're doing is changing.
For Fitz is, you know, themarketplace is changing.
And now, uh, you know, in thenew modern world, it's changing
really rapidly.
You know, so you know, how doyou so the question as an
(18:18):
entrepreneur is, you know, howdo you how do you stay relevant?
You know, what is special aboutwhat you do?
And then of course the otherelement of it is we don't do it
by ourselves.
Right.
You know, if you don't have theright team of people that share
the same vision, the culture,uh, goals that you have, I mean,
it can't work.
You know, uh it won't work.
(18:39):
And and to me, you know, you'recheating yourself uh about the
success of your business ifyou're not really able to sit
down and share your beliefs withother people, cultivate their
interests in in what you'retrying to do, and know that uh
know that you can't get there,whatever there is, you can't get
(19:00):
there unless you have acommitted team of people that
share your vision and and helpyou shape your vision.
You know, things change, thingsare constantly changing.
So we evolve, we talk all thetime, and it's been easier for
me because I've been luckybecause the the people I work
with have I've had, you know,I've been honored that I've been
working with them for a long,long time and I learned from
(19:21):
them.
SPEAKER_03 (19:21):
Yeah.
Yeah, that's awesome.
And especially in a restaurantscene, because it's you guys
have a lot of people, you know.
So it's from the leadership teamall the way down to the
part-time high school studentthat works there.
It's like that culture has to beable to go through that building
because those those high schoolstudents and those young kids
are the the first impression ofguests sometimes.
For sure.
You know, and that's thebeautiful thing about what you
guys are doing, is you know, youit's a lot of people's first
(19:42):
jobs.
I'm sure you have a lot of coolstories about that.
SPEAKER_01 (19:44):
Yeah.
Uh, you know, so we're justabout to enter summer season,
which is our busiest time ofyear uh at South County and uh
in the loop.
And so every year I you know wehave a team meeting, it's our
only team meeting whereeverybody is is is there and uh
we go over the basics of uh ofuh you know uh how you run fitz
(20:09):
during a very, very busy time.
And uh same story that I tellfor all these years is that
number one is that um you know Iget to see people and meet
people who have worked at Fitzisfor, you know, a long time.
Some have gone to be lawyers,doctors, entrepreneurs
(20:31):
themselves, and I get tointeract with them years later,
and that's always a thrill forme, you know, to catch up with
them.
And over the years there havebeen a lot of folks that did
that.
And then on the other side, toyour point, was I, you know, I I
get to interact with with youngpeople.
Some of them, this is theirfirst job.
You know, and and again, theworld is very different.
Everybody's on their phones,everybody wants to, you know,
(20:55):
check out, you know, what'sgoing on right now.
So uh, you know, trying to comecultivate an interest with them
and explain, you know, kind ofwhat what's going on uh and
interacting with them is is isreally enjoyable.
Yeah.
Uh many of them will come up andyou know, ask for, you know, how
does this work?
What do we do?
(21:16):
And you know, uh some of that uhyeah, that interaction is always
always fun for me, and because Inever know who the next great
person is gonna be because thereare so many great people that
started as, hey, I'm a server.
SPEAKER_03 (21:30):
And then they come back years later with their
family, and and now you get tosee their kids, and it's like
this this cycle, and you guysget to work with your family.
Like there's something likereally special about building a
family business, and it's likewhen it's fitzes and you have
such a recognizable name.
Like if you asked ever like Idon't even know if we took a
poll of a hundred thousandpeople in St.
Louis, like I'm pretty sureninety-nine thousand of them
(21:51):
would know who you guys are, andthat's pretty cool to have
something like that.
SPEAKER_01 (21:54):
Uh yeah, I I I don't think of it in terms of that
way, but yeah, I do I doappreciate.
It every day.
Yeah.
You know, I mean, when I seesomebody drinking a root beer or
buying a soda, you know, it'sreally a great experience for
me.
You know, in the old days, youknow, I would I would be in the
supermarket and I would seesomebody, you know, having a
(22:17):
four-pack of Fitz's root beer inher cart.
And I would go over there andintroduce myself and and say,
like, you know, uh, reallyappreciate you supporting our
local business and and and tryto interact with them because I
enjoy that.
SPEAKER_02 (22:32):
Yes.
SPEAKER_01 (22:33):
And I did that up until the point that somebody
thought I was a creep and Ishouldn't be coming over and
talking to them in asupermarket.
So I stopped doing that.
SPEAKER_03 (22:40):
No, I would do the same thing.
I mean, that's that's likeyou're just kind of walking the
aisle, you're spinning the cansto make sure they're all
straight on the aisle and beinglike, you know, but since I've
been working with you guys, I'venoticed like now I I see it and
I'm like, oh, it's there, it'soh, it's there, it's there.
It's like you kind of just seeit randomly all throughout these
little these places, and it'slike how your brand expands even
outside of St.
Louis and The STL bucket listshow is proudly sponsored by
(23:02):
Suede Dispensary with 11Missouri area locations.
Suede does so much for the St.
Louis community.
We've been working with thisteam for a couple of years back
since Medical was here, andwe're excited to support their
new product launches, events,and community initiatives.
We couldn't be happier to workwith this premier cannabis
brand, and we're excited forthem to sponsor the show.
Enjoy the rest of the podcast.
(23:23):
So I know we're kind of wetalked about the future a little
bit with these new products.
So, like, where was themotivation there to kind of
evolve into a new product?
Like, obviously, you guys havedone, you know, your sodas for a
long time.
This was something new.
Like, how walk us through theprocess of that?
Like, how long do thoseconversations start before
anything like this even getsinto a shelf?
SPEAKER_01 (23:41):
Well, the the mixer project really had been on my
mind for a long time.
I would say predated COVID, youknow, uh the COVID experience
for Fitz's and a lot of otherbusinesses, you know, I mean,
had derailed a lot of plans andand you know, we had a pivot and
make sure that we were justconcentrating on the things to,
you know, to to pivot us and getthrough, you know, a challenging
(24:04):
environment.
And then of course now we're ina post-car post-COVID
challenging environment.
Um, but so that that, like Isaid earlier, that that kind of
delayed the process.
But you know, as Fitzis hasevolved on the soda side, you
know, there, you know, we youknow it was never my intention
to have, you know, 21 flavors ofFITSIS.
(24:25):
You know, um uh so thathappened, you know, organically.
You know, a lot of our retailcustomers, you know, uh
requested you know that wedevelop that way.
We had a lot of people insideour building that requested us
to to to to develop that way.
And quite frankly, it's it's alot of fun to do it.
(24:45):
And we have the ability to do itand we did it.
And so just over a long periodof time, we ended up with a lot
of different flavors.
Uh and you know, in St.
Louis, you know, it's not, youknow, it's Fitz's root beer,
right?
That's what um people will callus at and know that the root
beer is, you know, an identitypiece for us.
(25:06):
But, you know, outside GreaterSt.
Louis, uh, where the Fitz's rootbeer tradition isn't that
established, you said itearlier, you know, you like
Fitz's Orange.
So people have gravitated totheir own personal favorites,
and uh, we moved on that way.
The tonics really were were werewere were developed, or the
(25:26):
mixers really were developed asa way to kind of reach you know
our our traditional consumer whomaybe be a little bit on you
know older, who wanted a um, youknow, have an alcoholic
beverage, you know, with withour products.
Uh but the the the the curiousthing is that over the years is
now people are drinking tonicswithout without any alcohol.
(25:48):
They're drinking the club sodaswithout any alcohol.
So uh I think we're I think thetiming turned out to be pretty
good.
SPEAKER_03 (25:55):
Yeah.
Yeah, no, absolutely.
I can't wait to uh bring one ofthese back, you know, with some
gin, throw a little lime inthere and have a nice little
GNT.
I mean, we were just at the poolyesterday, we had a nice weather
day yesterday for for theholiday.
But like you mentioned, likethere's so many different ways.
Like we're sipping one rightnow, just a club soda, and it's
just a nice zero calorie tree, alittle carbonation in it, and
you know, it's really, really,really good.
And love the bottles.
(26:16):
I I love that you went withglass, you know, and I love that
you know how they're gonna lookon a shelf.
So you're selling these at afour-pack.
So, you know, they'll be able tograb a four-pack and then you
can pop one, keep the others andstuff like that.
SPEAKER_01 (26:27):
Another, another exciting piece to this and a
real driver, an exciting partfor for me and Hadley who put
this all together was ourcollaboration with four hands.
You know, uh, they got a greatteam of people.
Uh, it's been fun for us tointeract with them.
We've done a lot of cool thingswith them already.
We've done Citywide Soda.
Yes, I was.
You know, which was which wasreally the start of the
(26:47):
collaboration, and that was sofun.
It kind of just flowed intolike, hey, you know, uh uh
Origin June is out there.
It's uh a favorite of mine.
And so it just became a naturalfit for us to to work with them.
And and it's it it's exciting.
SPEAKER_03 (27:04):
Yeah, no, it's really cool.
So I want to kind of talk aboutSt.
Louis a little bit.
It is the STL bucket list show.
We talk about our favorites ofSt.
Louis.
So I know you've been in thescene and you've you've
experienced all these things.
What are you some of your bucketlist spots in St.
Louis?
Outside of Fitz's.
We we already know Fitz's is onyour bucket list.
SPEAKER_02 (27:21):
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (27:21):
Um, but when you're out enjoying it, is there any
other specific restaurants thatyou love to enjoy?
Hidden gems, events, parks,anything like that that really
make you love St.
Louis?
SPEAKER_01 (27:29):
Well, yeah.
I'll go uh I'll go to therestaurant side first.
Uh Sasha's is a great place.
Uh I love hanging out there.
My family loves hanging outthere, just a great environment.
Uh, we share a lot of thecultural values together.
They do an awesome job.
Uh having a glass of wine onSasha's deck is, you know, hard
(27:51):
to beat, you know, overlooking,overlooking the park there and
uh the vibe there is is awesome.
So uh we're there a lot.
My family, like I said, is therea lot.
So that's a if you haven'tchecked that place out, you
should that's that's terrific.
And then um big fans of uhLouis.
Uh Matt McGuire uh is somebodywho I've grown to know uh and
(28:14):
appreciate for a number ofyears.
I always tell Matt that uh umyou know part of Fitz's success
story, you know, started withhim.
You know, Matt was down at KingLouis, is a you know, and uh was
a great restaurant.
And uh he put Fitz's RupierFloat on his menu.
And that was in the early days.
And I think that in those days Iwas actually not only making
(28:36):
Fitz's soda, you know, bottlingit, but I then would I would
bottle it and then put it in atruck and then I would deliver
it.
And delivering it to Matt wasone of my jobs.
And of course, you know,interacting with him.
We were obviously, you know, indifferent parts of our life,
we're both starting up, but he'suh yeah, he's he's a great guy,
and his uh Louis's is is just aterrific place to go.
SPEAKER_03 (28:59):
Yeah, his restaurants are great.
I was uh his his grocery storeis really cool too.
Boxhill.
Oh yeah, boxhill, yeah.
I just went to Wrights for mybirthday a little bit ago in
like unbelievable service.
And it's just this differentexperience.
You feel like you're justgetting transported, you know.
But yeah, Matt, Matt's awesome.
So you're so you're you're atSasha's for wine and then you
you sneak down and go sit atLouie.
Yeah, Louis.
SPEAKER_01 (29:19):
I like I like to go to Wrights.
I mean, you know, uh Matt hashas put Fitz is in Box Hill, so
you know that's a real treat forus to see it there.
SPEAKER_02 (29:27):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (29:27):
But uh yeah, I I like all yeah, those are and
those are those are some of myfavorites.
Of course, Forest Park iseverything.
Yes, it's it's an incrediblejewel in of St.
Louis, and I'm in the park asuh, you know, uh as much as time
allows.
SPEAKER_03 (29:42):
Yeah, no, that's awesome.
Well, no, I appreciate you, youknow, for sharing your story and
and really coming onto thepodcast to you know highlight
what you guys are doing.
Obviously, Fitz is, you know, abrand that when you think of STL
bucket list, you think of brandslike what you guys are doing.
And it's been awesome to do thecollab menu.
Super awesome to get you on apodcast.
First time since Google.
So, you know, we're up therewith with with uh Google and Jim
(30:03):
and I.
Uh, we're not gonna air this onthe Super Bowl, but it'll be on
YouTube, you know, and stufflike that.
So it'll be it'll be special.
But no, I appreciate your timeand and appreciate you coming
on.
And um, we'll drop the websitelinks and everything like that
and and hopefully, you know,tell people where they can get
these products because this isgonna come out I think that
second week of June.
So um, you know, we'll be ableto really highlight.
I uh I forgot what that exactdate is.
(30:23):
I think June 8th, June 9th, orsomething like that.
SPEAKER_01 (30:25):
Yeah, we should be in a storage uh actually June
1st.
June 1st, yeah.
So we're excited and decided todo that.
You know, I really enjoyed theGoogle thing.
This was fun, but the Googlepeople uh let me keep the
microphone.
Is that is that doable?
Oh, these ones, no.
SPEAKER_03 (30:37):
These are I can give you something.
I but they let you keep the Iknow I saw that.
You you you told me about that.
Yeah, the microphone.
Yeah, that's pretty unique thatthey let you keep the
microphone.
SPEAKER_01 (30:45):
Yeah, I think it's just in the Google space.
It's a little different thanthan than uh you know your small
local uh small local business.
Your small local business, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (30:52):
Yeah, no, absolutely.
Well, no, I appreciate it,Michael.
Thank you for coming on, and uhSt.
Louis will see you guys nextweek.
St.
Louis, thanks for listening.
Everything we do here is abouttelling the story of this city,
and that doesn't stop with thisshow.
On the Bucketlist PodcastNetwork, we're diving even
deeper into the people, places,and moments that make this city
what it is.
Meet Me in Music with NeilSalsick captures the sound of
(31:13):
the city, past and present,ending each episode with a live
performance.
For my foodie lovers, the saucewith Lauren Healy brings you
inside the restaurants thatdefine our culture every
Tuesday.
Gateway to Growth with JamalCornelius highlights the stories
behind the people that make St.
Louis work.
And every Thursday, Bryce breaksdown your weekend with This Week
in St.
Louis.
More stories, more voices.
Explore the full bucketlesspodcast network wherever you
(31:35):
listen.
Then for me personally, uh, I was dairy
bartending a long time ago whenuh when I was a younger guy, and
and that's where I met my wifeat when I was a dairy bartender.
So shout out to my wife, Dana,right?
I didn't know that.
That's a gem.
Yeah, that's awesome.
It's uh it's the power of aMississippi float, gets you
married for 34 years.
SPEAKER_00 (00:23):
If you wanna hear about Saint Louis, tune into the
bucket list show weekly, hearwhat Marissa and Luke say.
It drops every Wednesday, got adope new guest every single
week.
Buckle up for the ride.
Who's it gonna be?
Who's on the show today?
They rap Saint Louis.
What to do in the loo on a latenight, and maybe what to do on a
(00:46):
date night.
Yeah.
Bucket list as you covered, theyknow what's going on.
What's going on?
They'll give you.
Hey, eighteen different thingsto do on 19.
If you need one more to choose,yeah.
The city, city, city is a placewe call home.
A place we call home.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (01:01):
St.
Louis, welcome back to anotherepisode of the STL bucket list
show, highlighting the people,places, and events that make St.
Louis special.
We have one of those people inthe studio today that is a St.
Louis staple.
Um, but before we get into it, Iwant to shout out um Julia in
the back on the ones and twos,cutting up every episode every
single week.
Um we get to talk to localentrepreneurs, local creators,
and local people making St.
(01:22):
Louis move.
Um but without further ado, uh,we have owner, founder of
Fitz's, everybody on thepodcast, they've heard of you
guys, they've had your productsbefore, but we have Michael
Alter in the studio, owner,founder of Fitz's.
Thank you so much for cominginto the studio today.
SPEAKER_01 (01:36):
Luke, pleasure to be here.
Thank you.
SPEAKER_03 (01:38):
Um we've been working together for a little
bit.
I've been, you know, workingwith your team and getting to
kind of experience what you guyshave been doing.
We had the honor to do thebucket list menu, which was a
really fun collab.
Um, but we have some newproducts.
If you guys are watching onYouTube, um, we have the club
soda, we have the tonic water,um, and we have the zero calorie
tonic water as well.
So before we get into you know,the story of fences, I wanted to
(02:00):
kind of shout some of these newproducts.
So tell me kind of what wentinto this and what you're so
excited about about theseproducts.
SPEAKER_01 (02:04):
Well, super excited.
It was uh a long time indevelopment.
Um, getting everything right umtakes a lot of time and effort.
Uh things are a little differentin today's uh universe,
business-wise, uh everything hasmuch longer time frame, lead
times.
So complications that you knowwere always part of the game are
(02:27):
now just more complicated.
Uh so it took a little bit moretime than I would have wanted,
but the end results are notgreat.
So I'm thrilled that thatthey're finally out to market.
SPEAKER_03 (02:37):
Yeah, I'm drinking um the club soda right now,
crispy, um fresh glass bottle,which is awesome to have the
glass bottle.
It's a little bit of a smallerbottle than your other your
other sodas, so it's a 9.13ounce bottle.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (02:49):
Yeah.
So we have a great glasspartner, um, and they were
willing to design and produce acustom bottle for us.
So um that is a 9.3 ouncebottle, uh, with different than
our our normal 12-ounce bottle.
But uh yeah, we're super, superexcited about how the packaging
came out.
SPEAKER_03 (03:10):
So Fitz is has been and and became one of the most
iconic brands in St.
Louis.
Um, you know, when people thinkof our city, they think of you
guys.
And what was that story, youknow, and what what's your story
behind bringing Fitz's back andturning it into what it is
today?
SPEAKER_01 (03:24):
Well, that's probably you know, an hour right
there.
I mean, uh, you know, I think itreally you got you you got to go
back from uh start at thebeginning, I suppose, like any
business.
So uh, you know, Fitz's was acollaboration amongst three
people.
Um, Alan and Tom were myoriginal partners in Fitz's uh
(03:45):
when we restarted it in uh 1992.
Uh Fitz's history, you know,predated me.
Uh, you know, if you look in ourbottles, it says since 1947.
Although I might feel like I'mfrom 1947, I'm not.
And so all of this stuff uh, youknow, that predated me, you
(04:06):
know, as part of Fitz's legendlore.
I've heard so many differentstories from so different so
many different people.
It's kind of hard to knowexactly what happened.
But Fitz's was a drive-inrestaurant uh located at Clayton
and Brentwood.
And uh it was famous for a lotof things, root beer being one
of them.
And um so Fitz's is really awhat originally was a nod to the
(04:30):
Fitz's root beer that was servedat that restaurant.
SPEAKER_03 (04:34):
Yeah, that's interesting.
So when you guys, you know, tookthat brand over in 1992, you
know, now we're looking at whatI'm 30.
I was born in 1995.
So 33 years later that you'vebeen at this, um, the brand has
evolved in so many differentways.
It's become so much more thanjust a restaurant, just a root
beer, just a soda.
You guys really have community.
I mean, when I met your staffthat have been there for so
(04:56):
long, I mean, you guys haveyou've done so much.
So, like what when you'rebuilding that, you know, from
1992, looking ahead 33, three,33 years later, like what were
some of those, you know, majorwins that you guys had over the
years that really, that reallymade you say, like, oh man,
we're really building somethingspecial here.
SPEAKER_01 (05:13):
Well, I think it'll really starts with the people
who I've worked with.
I know, you know, when when I'min an environment like this
talking about FITSIS, I thinkit's misleading to say, like,
you know, hey, I did this and Idid that.
Uh fitzes is a team sport.
Um, I've been uh reallyfortunate to work with a core
group of people who are now myfriends, who've been my friends
(05:33):
for a long time, uh, whounderstood, you know, what we
were trying to accomplish.
You know, you know, we weren'tthat lofty in the beginning.
We weren't thinking about 30years, we weren't thinking about
brand building.
We were thinking that, you know,we have this really neat idea,
and that idea really was thecreation of a soda craft
(05:56):
microbrewery.
That was the genesis of ofFitz's, uh the restart of
Fitzes, and we spent a lot oftime and energy trying to, you
know, develop that concept.
And um, you know, I'm happy toshare more of what went down all
those years ago to reallybootstrap us to where we are
today.
SPEAKER_03 (06:15):
For over 150 years, SSM Health has been providing
hope, healing, and opportunitiesto the St.
Louis community.
With over 40,000 employeesacross four states, they're not
only delivering exceptionalcare, they're one of the
region's largest employers,shaping the future of
healthcare.
We're proud to present SSMHealth as the official
healthcare partner of the STLbucket list show.
If you've dreamed of a careerwhere you're truly making a
(06:37):
difference every day, SSM Healthcan help you take that to the
next step.
Learn more at their website inthe link in the show notes.
Yeah, so we gotta we gotta talkabout the Del Mar loop a little
bit.
I mean, you guys have been amajor anchor in the loop, uh,
you, Joe Edwards, the vintagevinyl team.
There's there's a few of youguys that have really kind of
turned that neighborhood around.
And what is that what has thatmeant for you to be able to see
(06:58):
that neighborhood evolve so manydifferent times to become one of
the premier streets in in St.
Louis?
SPEAKER_01 (07:02):
Yeah, uh well, the loop has always been an
attraction for me.
I mean, uh uh the sameattraction for me as for a lot
of other folks who live in St.
Louis.
It is a diverse walking street.
Yeah, you get to meet folks fromall over the place, all
different backgrounds, alldifferent cultures, all
different economic stories, andit creates a blend of energy
(07:28):
that has always propelled theloop forward.
And uh, you know, um, I've beeninvolved in a loop since the
beginning.
I mean, I'm on the loop board,I've been on the loop board, I'm
trying to get people to takeover my spot on the loop board.
But uh, you know, uh the thestreet is is part of our
history.
Uh it is unique, still unique inSt.
(07:50):
Louis.
And in many ways, as St.
Louis, you know, tries to findits footing, I think the the
stability of what the loopoffers is still super important
for St.
Louis.
SPEAKER_03 (08:02):
So I want to kind of talk about product a little bit
more because I know that you'resuper passionate about product.
So, you know, over the years,there's been growth in craft
beer, there's been growth incanned cocktails, specialty
soda, specialty drinks.
How has Fitz's remained relevantin keeping that nostalgic
identity?
Because you guys are so true towhat you guys do and continue to
put out a very consistentproduct, even though the trends
(08:24):
have changed over the years.
SPEAKER_01 (08:27):
It is a great question.
I think the identity piece forFitz is really hasn't changed
all that much.
Um when it has changed, it hasbeen really mostly driven by
collaborations, which are uh isreally enjoyable for me.
But I think, you know, uh we'vealways wanted to be a classic
(08:47):
traditional soda company.
You know, and uh uh no punintended, but we stay true to
our roots over the years.
Uh, you know, outside the thenew mixer line, most of our
development has been, you know,on the on the craft soda side.
Uh, you know, we use, you know,uh cane sugar, that's our claim
(09:08):
to fame, at least one of ourclaims to fame, you know, as we
develop our sodas.
And I think we stay true tothat.
I I just kind of feel like, youknow, that there's still space
in the market for traditionalproducts.
They gotta be good.
And we've always tried, youknow, really hard to make sure
that we're consistent in that uhso we don't waver from our from
(09:29):
our from our our ourformulations.
You know, uh the the runningjoke at Fitz's is that you know
uh um you know we use cane sugarand uh I would always uh I would
always say like you know, myaccountant suggests that we
switch over to something elsebecause cane sugar is so
expensive.
Yeah and you know, my responseis oh, it's like we'll never do
(09:49):
that, right?
Because that's not who we are.
Yeah.
You know, it would it wouldchange, it would change not only
the flavor of what we do,because cane sugar is an
important part of what we do,but it's it's an identity piece
for me.
It's an identity piece for us,you know.
So we don't, you know, you canreally taste the difference too.
SPEAKER_03 (10:07):
I mean my favorite's the orange soda.
Um Hadley brought me some today,which is very nice.
I'll probably drink all four ofthose this week.
And yeah, but the cane sugar,it's that refresh when you want
a soda, you want a soda.
And we we had all talked aboutthat before, is like they have
all these different drinks andthese different things that are
going on.
But at the end of the day,there's something about you
know, sitting on the loop patio,drinking a soda, having a
burger, having fries, and thatnostalgia that you guys have
(10:29):
created really in that in thatneighborhood is has been
special.
But you mentioned thecollaboration piece.
Over the years, was there anyspecific collaborations that
stood out to you of like, wow,like I can't believe we're
collaborating with them or them?
And I'm sure that happens allthe time.
unknown (10:43):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (10:43):
Yeah.
Well, the collaboration, like Isaid, is is is an important
piece of the puzzle for ussimply because for me, it's
always enjoyable to be aroundentrepreneurial folks who, you
know, who want to sit at a tableand and you know, really
discuss, you know, uhopportunities, changes,
(11:04):
improvements, uh, andcollaboration is really a driver
of that.
So off the top of my head,things that have really helped
me uh, you know, uh in terms ofnot only developing new
products, but just you know,getting um uh a closer
relationship with people who aremaking big, big, big changes,
(11:25):
improvements in the St.
Louis scene.
You know, Caldies comes to mind.
Um I'm friends uh with theownership team there.
Great people, uh really driven.
Uh a lot of the things thatmakes Fitzes go, makes Caldies
go.
Um Fallon Brewery, we did agreat collaboration with them on
hard root beer.
Uh that was a fun project.
(11:46):
You know, hard root beer had ithad its moment in time.
Uh, you know, the world in thebeverage industry is so
different now.
Just on and really hard rootbeer, I kind of look back at it,
was kind of at the cutting edgeedge of what was changing in in
a marketplace.
And then, of course, probablyyou know, one of the things that
really was an eye catcher forme, which was our collaboration
with the Arch.
(12:07):
Yeah.
You know, we produce a uh uhroot beer that is branded with
the Arch on it.
And uh yeah, I mean that'scertainly a highlight for me.
Yeah.
So and again, I got to to uhinteract with with with with
them.
The arch is super, superimportant to you know, St.
Louis, it's it's an identitypiece for our city or our area.
(12:29):
And so for Fitzis to connectdown there was uh was was really
great.
SPEAKER_03 (12:33):
And you guys are in that same category with the
Gateway Arts.
Like when people think of St.
Louis, they think of Fitz's,they think of the Broadway
oyster bars, they think of theplaces that have been here and
have that nostalgic.
Like if you go to all thetourism websites, you guys are
all over, you know, and it'sgotta be a special thing for
you.
But then one of the things thatdraws me to your guys' brand is
the family-friendly element, isyou can go into the restaurant
with four generations of yourfamily and everybody can have a
(12:56):
good time.
You know, there's not a lot ofplaces that you can that you can
do that in St.
Louis.
And I saw you interacting whenwe were there with kids.
It seems like you enjoy likegetting kids free floats and um
and stuff like that.
But what if I was gonna ask youif you if you had to work one
position at the restaurant, whatwhat would that be?
If you just if you had to make adecision tomorrow and you're
like, I have to only work thisone position, do you have a good
(13:17):
answer for that?
It seems like front house to me.
SPEAKER_01 (13:19):
Yeah, I I I do.
I think I I think uh that wouldbe um the dairy bar at Delmar,
uh dairy bar South County aswell, because it is kind of like
ground zero in the Fitzgesuniverse in the restaurant side.
Yeah, you know, people come andand mingle there.
And of course, you know, that'swhere we're pouring uh, you
(13:40):
know, the bottomless mugs ofroot beer and making all the the
the floats and you know, we gotyou to make one.
Yes.
Uh yeah, yeah, yeah.
With a little work, you'll bethere.
SPEAKER_03 (13:50):
But uh my ice cream scoops are a little small.
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (13:52):
You gotta really get in there and scoop those things.
We we really go for the wowfactor on those things.
But you know, uh the dairy baris is just uh it's just so full
of energy.
And it's a delightful placebecause you know, you can um you
know you can see uh the smileson people's faces where it is.
And for me personally, uh I wasdairy bartending a long time ago
(14:15):
when uh when I was a youngerguy, and and that's where I met
my wife at when I was a dairybartender.
So shout out to my wife, Dana,right?
I didn't know that story, yeah.
That's a gym.
Yeah, that's awesome.
So it's the power of aMississippi float, gets you
married for 34 years.
SPEAKER_03 (14:31):
Wow.
That's so you guys, what wasthat 1991, 1992?
SPEAKER_01 (14:35):
I met we met in '93.
Oh, wow.
SPEAKER_03 (14:38):
That's incredible.
So for those that are lookingfor a job and a wife, they can
work the dairy bar.
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (14:45):
There's something going on there.
SPEAKER_03 (14:47):
Yeah.
No, it is cool, but there'ssomething special about giving
somebody something that goodtoo.
Is like, hey, like, look howfirst of all it's the wow
factor, but then it's the glassthat it's in, the heavy jar, the
three, four scoops of ice creamon top, the caramel chocolate,
everything that really goes intomaking it.
Um, is uh and then seeing what Ithought was really cool was
seeing them walk upstairs withlike 10 of them.
Yeah, I was like, no way I wouldI ever do that.
(15:08):
That's crazy.
SPEAKER_01 (15:10):
Yeah, to this very day, it's a show stealer.
Yeah.
I mean, whatever you're doing ina restaurant, when you when you
see a server, you know, walkingaround with 10 floats on a tray,
those super floats, uh, yeah,people will turn and take a look
at that and marvel at thefloats.
And I think marvel at the skillthat a server can actually walk
around a crowded restaurant anduh get those floats to a table.
(15:31):
Yeah, and upsteps too.
Sometimes too, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (15:34):
The STL bucket list show is fueled by Upshot Coffee.
My friends at Upshot Coffee havesome of the best beans in town.
I got some of their newpackaging here.
Look at this bag.
Look how big this is.
Um, they have four St.
Louis locations, their flagshipin Coddleville, the break shop
over by Lindenwood in St.
Charles, their Clayton locationcalled Hi-Fi, um, and then Flyby
(15:55):
over in Tower Grove, theirnewest location.
Um, and they also sell theircoffee online everywhere.
If you guys haven't added UpshotCoffee to your STL bucket list,
it's time to try it.
Some of the my favorite peoplein the industry and some of the
best coffee in the game.
So I want to talk aboutleadership a little bit because
you've you've obviously, youknow, you've evolved this brand
for 33 years.
(16:15):
And I think a lot of people thatlisten to our show are also
entrepreneurs as well.
And it's like, you know, theymight be in year five, six, you
know, we're in your, we're goinginto year seven with our
business.
And it's like we dream of beinga brand that lasts for 30, 40
years because, you know, you'redoing something right, but
you're also taking punches,rolling with everything that
comes up the ups and downs.
You guys have been through a lotof world-changing things over
(16:36):
the last 33 years.
But like, is there any specificleadership lessons that that
you've learned that would helpother younger entrepreneurs that
to be able to be able to stay inthe game for 33 years?
SPEAKER_01 (16:46):
Yeah, uh, uh, uh, yeah.
You know, when I met you uh andwe talked about your business,
you know, there's a commonalitythat a lot of entrepreneurs
share, which is a really itstarts with a passion of uh for
what they what they're doing, abelief that what they're doing
has value, not only value to aconsumer or wherever their
(17:10):
target audience is, targetmarket is, but it has value to
the person that's doing it.
It has value to me.
So for over over the years I'vedone Fitz's, I mean I I I
appreciate what I do.
I feel really fortunate uh to beable to have done something for
so long uh because I've enjoyedit so much.
(17:33):
Um and that doesn't mean everyday's been a good day.
Uh, you know, uh you know thatyou know running a business has
a lot of challenge, challengesto it.
Uh each business has, you know,some challenges that we can
share, meeting with otherentrepreneurs.
But the startup phase is, youknow, I mean, it's you know,
passion is the fire really thatgets it going.
SPEAKER_02 (17:54):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (17:54):
And, you know, you gotta continue, you know, uh,
you gotta continue to have thatpassion, although your passion,
you know, does evolve.
It does change, you know,because the mission of what
you're doing is changing.
For Fitz is, you know, themarketplace is changing.
And now, uh, you know, in thenew modern world, it's changing
really rapidly.
You know, so you know, how doyou so the question as an
(18:18):
entrepreneur is, you know, howdo you how do you stay relevant?
You know, what is special aboutwhat you do?
And then of course the otherelement of it is we don't do it
by ourselves.
Right.
You know, if you don't have theright team of people that share
the same vision, the culture,uh, goals that you have, I mean,
it can't work.
You know, uh it won't work.
(18:39):
And and to me, you know, you'recheating yourself uh about the
success of your business ifyou're not really able to sit
down and share your beliefs withother people, cultivate their
interests in in what you'retrying to do, and know that uh
know that you can't get there,whatever there is, you can't get
(19:00):
there unless you have acommitted team of people that
share your vision and and helpyou shape your vision.
You know, things change, thingsare constantly changing.
So we evolve, we talk all thetime, and it's been easier for
me because I've been luckybecause the the people I work
with have I've had, you know,I've been honored that I've been
working with them for a long,long time and I learned from
(19:21):
them.
SPEAKER_03 (19:21):
Yeah.
Yeah, that's awesome.
And especially in a restaurantscene, because it's you guys
have a lot of people, you know.
So it's from the leadership teamall the way down to the
part-time high school studentthat works there.
It's like that culture has to beable to go through that building
because those those high schoolstudents and those young kids
are the the first impression ofguests sometimes.
For sure.
You know, and that's thebeautiful thing about what you
guys are doing, is you know, youit's a lot of people's first
(19:42):
jobs.
I'm sure you have a lot of coolstories about that.
SPEAKER_01 (19:44):
Yeah.
Uh, you know, so we're justabout to enter summer season,
which is our busiest time ofyear uh at South County and uh
in the loop.
And so every year I you know wehave a team meeting, it's our
only team meeting whereeverybody is is is there and uh
we go over the basics of uh ofuh you know uh how you run fitz
(20:09):
during a very, very busy time.
And uh same story that I tellfor all these years is that
number one is that um you know Iget to see people and meet
people who have worked at Fitzisfor, you know, a long time.
Some have gone to be lawyers,doctors, entrepreneurs
(20:31):
themselves, and I get tointeract with them years later,
and that's always a thrill forme, you know, to catch up with
them.
And over the years there havebeen a lot of folks that did
that.
And then on the other side, toyour point, was I, you know, I I
get to interact with with youngpeople.
Some of them, this is theirfirst job.
You know, and and again, theworld is very different.
Everybody's on their phones,everybody wants to, you know,
(20:55):
check out, you know, what'sgoing on right now.
So uh, you know, trying to comecultivate an interest with them
and explain, you know, kind ofwhat what's going on uh and
interacting with them is is isreally enjoyable.
Yeah.
Uh many of them will come up andyou know, ask for, you know, how
does this work?
What do we do?
(21:16):
And you know, uh some of that uhyeah, that interaction is always
always fun for me, and because Inever know who the next great
person is gonna be because thereare so many great people that
started as, hey, I'm a server.
SPEAKER_03 (21:30):
And then they come back years later with their
family, and and now you get tosee their kids, and it's like
this this cycle, and you guysget to work with your family.
Like there's something likereally special about building a
family business, and it's likewhen it's fitzes and you have
such a recognizable name.
Like if you asked ever like Idon't even know if we took a
poll of a hundred thousandpeople in St.
Louis, like I'm pretty sureninety-nine thousand of them
(21:51):
would know who you guys are, andthat's pretty cool to have
something like that.
SPEAKER_01 (21:54):
Uh yeah, I I I don't think of it in terms of that
way, but yeah, I do I doappreciate.
It every day.
Yeah.
You know, I mean, when I seesomebody drinking a root beer or
buying a soda, you know, it'sreally a great experience for
me.
You know, in the old days, youknow, I would I would be in the
supermarket and I would seesomebody, you know, having a
(22:17):
four-pack of Fitz's root beer inher cart.
And I would go over there andintroduce myself and and say,
like, you know, uh, reallyappreciate you supporting our
local business and and and tryto interact with them because I
enjoy that.
SPEAKER_02 (22:32):
Yes.
SPEAKER_01 (22:33):
And I did that up until the point that somebody
thought I was a creep and Ishouldn't be coming over and
talking to them in asupermarket.
So I stopped doing that.
SPEAKER_03 (22:40):
No, I would do the same thing.
I mean, that's that's likeyou're just kind of walking the
aisle, you're spinning the cansto make sure they're all
straight on the aisle and beinglike, you know, but since I've
been working with you guys, I'venoticed like now I I see it and
I'm like, oh, it's there, it'soh, it's there, it's there.
It's like you kind of just seeit randomly all throughout these
little these places, and it'slike how your brand expands even
outside of St.
Louis and The STL bucket listshow is proudly sponsored by
(23:02):
Suede Dispensary with 11Missouri area locations.
Suede does so much for the St.
Louis community.
We've been working with thisteam for a couple of years back
since Medical was here, andwe're excited to support their
new product launches, events,and community initiatives.
We couldn't be happier to workwith this premier cannabis
brand, and we're excited forthem to sponsor the show.
Enjoy the rest of the podcast.
(23:23):
So I know we're kind of wetalked about the future a little
bit with these new products.
So, like, where was themotivation there to kind of
evolve into a new product?
Like, obviously, you guys havedone, you know, your sodas for a
long time.
This was something new.
Like, how walk us through theprocess of that?
Like, how long do thoseconversations start before
anything like this even getsinto a shelf?
SPEAKER_01 (23:41):
Well, the the mixer project really had been on my
mind for a long time.
I would say predated COVID, youknow, uh the COVID experience
for Fitz's and a lot of otherbusinesses, you know, I mean,
had derailed a lot of plans andand you know, we had a pivot and
make sure that we were justconcentrating on the things to,
you know, to to pivot us and getthrough, you know, a challenging
(24:04):
environment.
And then of course now we're ina post-car post-COVID
challenging environment.
Um, but so that that, like Isaid earlier, that that kind of
delayed the process.
But you know, as Fitzis hasevolved on the soda side, you
know, there, you know, we youknow it was never my intention
to have, you know, 21 flavors ofFITSIS.
(24:25):
You know, um uh so thathappened, you know, organically.
You know, a lot of our retailcustomers, you know, uh
requested you know that wedevelop that way.
We had a lot of people insideour building that requested us
to to to to develop that way.
And quite frankly, it's it's alot of fun to do it.
(24:45):
And we have the ability to do itand we did it.
And so just over a long periodof time, we ended up with a lot
of different flavors.
Uh and you know, in St.
Louis, you know, it's not, youknow, it's Fitz's root beer,
right?
That's what um people will callus at and know that the root
beer is, you know, an identitypiece for us.
(25:06):
But, you know, outside GreaterSt.
Louis, uh, where the Fitz's rootbeer tradition isn't that
established, you said itearlier, you know, you like
Fitz's Orange.
So people have gravitated totheir own personal favorites,
and uh, we moved on that way.
The tonics really were were werewere were developed, or the
(25:26):
mixers really were developed asa way to kind of reach you know
our our traditional consumer whomaybe be a little bit on you
know older, who wanted a um, youknow, have an alcoholic
beverage, you know, with withour products.
Uh but the the the the curiousthing is that over the years is
now people are drinking tonicswithout without any alcohol.
(25:48):
They're drinking the club sodaswithout any alcohol.
So uh I think we're I think thetiming turned out to be pretty
good.
SPEAKER_03 (25:55):
Yeah.
Yeah, no, absolutely.
I can't wait to uh bring one ofthese back, you know, with some
gin, throw a little lime inthere and have a nice little
GNT.
I mean, we were just at the poolyesterday, we had a nice weather
day yesterday for for theholiday.
But like you mentioned, likethere's so many different ways.
Like we're sipping one rightnow, just a club soda, and it's
just a nice zero calorie tree, alittle carbonation in it, and
you know, it's really, really,really good.
And love the bottles.
(26:16):
I I love that you went withglass, you know, and I love that
you know how they're gonna lookon a shelf.
So you're selling these at afour-pack.
So, you know, they'll be able tograb a four-pack and then you
can pop one, keep the others andstuff like that.
SPEAKER_01 (26:27):
Another, another exciting piece to this and a
real driver, an exciting partfor for me and Hadley who put
this all together was ourcollaboration with four hands.
You know, uh, they got a greatteam of people.
Uh, it's been fun for us tointeract with them.
We've done a lot of cool thingswith them already.
We've done Citywide Soda.
Yes, I was.
You know, which was which wasreally the start of the
(26:47):
collaboration, and that was sofun.
It kind of just flowed intolike, hey, you know, uh uh
Origin June is out there.
It's uh a favorite of mine.
And so it just became a naturalfit for us to to work with them.
And and it's it it's exciting.
SPEAKER_03 (27:04):
Yeah, no, it's really cool.
So I want to kind of talk aboutSt.
Louis a little bit.
It is the STL bucket list show.
We talk about our favorites ofSt.
Louis.
So I know you've been in thescene and you've you've
experienced all these things.
What are you some of your bucketlist spots in St.
Louis?
Outside of Fitz's.
We we already know Fitz's is onyour bucket list.
SPEAKER_02 (27:21):
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (27:21):
Um, but when you're out enjoying it, is there any
other specific restaurants thatyou love to enjoy?
Hidden gems, events, parks,anything like that that really
make you love St.
Louis?
SPEAKER_01 (27:29):
Well, yeah.
I'll go uh I'll go to therestaurant side first.
Uh Sasha's is a great place.
Uh I love hanging out there.
My family loves hanging outthere, just a great environment.
Uh, we share a lot of thecultural values together.
They do an awesome job.
Uh having a glass of wine onSasha's deck is, you know, hard
(27:51):
to beat, you know, overlooking,overlooking the park there and
uh the vibe there is is awesome.
So uh we're there a lot.
My family, like I said, is therea lot.
So that's a if you haven'tchecked that place out, you
should that's that's terrific.
And then um big fans of uhLouis.
Uh Matt McGuire uh is somebodywho I've grown to know uh and
(28:14):
appreciate for a number ofyears.
I always tell Matt that uh umyou know part of Fitz's success
story, you know, started withhim.
You know, Matt was down at KingLouis, is a you know, and uh was
a great restaurant.
And uh he put Fitz's RupierFloat on his menu.
And that was in the early days.
And I think that in those days Iwas actually not only making
(28:36):
Fitz's soda, you know, bottlingit, but I then would I would
bottle it and then put it in atruck and then I would deliver
it.
And delivering it to Matt wasone of my jobs.
And of course, you know,interacting with him.
We were obviously, you know, indifferent parts of our life,
we're both starting up, but he'suh yeah, he's he's a great guy,
and his uh Louis's is is just aterrific place to go.
SPEAKER_03 (28:59):
Yeah, his restaurants are great.
I was uh his his grocery storeis really cool too.
Boxhill.
Oh yeah, boxhill, yeah.
I just went to Wrights for mybirthday a little bit ago in
like unbelievable service.
And it's just this differentexperience.
You feel like you're justgetting transported, you know.
But yeah, Matt, Matt's awesome.
So you're so you're you're atSasha's for wine and then you
you sneak down and go sit atLouie.
Yeah, Louis.
SPEAKER_01 (29:19):
I like I like to go to Wrights.
I mean, you know, uh Matt hashas put Fitz is in Box Hill, so
you know that's a real treat forus to see it there.
SPEAKER_02 (29:27):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (29:27):
But uh yeah, I I like all yeah, those are and
those are those are some of myfavorites.
Of course, Forest Park iseverything.
Yes, it's it's an incrediblejewel in of St.
Louis, and I'm in the park asuh, you know, uh as much as time
allows.
SPEAKER_03 (29:42):
Yeah, no, that's awesome.
Well, no, I appreciate you, youknow, for sharing your story and
and really coming onto thepodcast to you know highlight
what you guys are doing.
Obviously, Fitz is, you know, abrand that when you think of STL
bucket list, you think of brandslike what you guys are doing.
And it's been awesome to do thecollab menu.
Super awesome to get you on apodcast.
First time since Google.
So, you know, we're up therewith with with uh Google and Jim
(30:03):
and I.
Uh, we're not gonna air this onthe Super Bowl, but it'll be on
YouTube, you know, and stufflike that.
So it'll be it'll be special.
But no, I appreciate your timeand and appreciate you coming
on.
And um, we'll drop the websitelinks and everything like that
and and hopefully, you know,tell people where they can get
these products because this isgonna come out I think that
second week of June.
So um, you know, we'll be ableto really highlight.
I uh I forgot what that exactdate is.
(30:23):
I think June 8th, June 9th, orsomething like that.
SPEAKER_01 (30:25):
Yeah, we should be in a storage uh actually June
1st.
June 1st, yeah.
So we're excited and decided todo that.
You know, I really enjoyed theGoogle thing.
This was fun, but the Googlepeople uh let me keep the
microphone.
Is that is that doable?
Oh, these ones, no.
SPEAKER_03 (30:37):
These are I can give you something.
I but they let you keep the Iknow I saw that.
You you you told me about that.
Yeah, the microphone.
Yeah, that's pretty unique thatthey let you keep the
microphone.
SPEAKER_01 (30:45):
Yeah, I think it's just in the Google space.
It's a little different thanthan than uh you know your small
local uh small local business.
Your small local business, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (30:52):
Yeah, no, absolutely.
Well, no, I appreciate it,Michael.
Thank you for coming on, and uhSt.
Louis will see you guys nextweek.
St.
Louis, thanks for listening.
Everything we do here is abouttelling the story of this city,
and that doesn't stop with thisshow.
On the Bucketlist PodcastNetwork, we're diving even
deeper into the people, places,and moments that make this city
what it is.
Meet Me in Music with NeilSalsick captures the sound of
(31:13):
the city, past and present,ending each episode with a live
performance.
For my foodie lovers, the saucewith Lauren Healy brings you
inside the restaurants thatdefine our culture every
Tuesday.
Gateway to Growth with JamalCornelius highlights the stories
behind the people that make St.
Louis work.
And every Thursday, Bryce breaksdown your weekend with This Week
in St.
Louis.
More stories, more voices.
Explore the full bucketlesspodcast network wherever you
(31:35):
listen.
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