34 word on the street It all started with a date. “When we first got together we used to go to cocktail bars – and we set up a blog about that. It was an opportunity for us to work together.” Sandrae was working in magazines and lifestyle publications, and Gary was a creative director. “At the time, I was doing lots of interviews with chefs who didn’t really like talking, whereas bartenders were very engaged – they wanted to share their knowledge and passion and enthusiasm,” she says. “I loved talking to them, and started gradually bringing more cocktails into the magazine I was working on at that time.” They started a blog to talk about their cocktail experiences, which quickly amassed followers. “People asked us, ‘Why don’t you do a magazine?’ and I have to say, we do listen to people.” They released the first issue (which Sandrae describes as “absolutely awful”) during London Cocktail Week, to target the audience they wanted. “London Cocktail Week was really good to us – they gave us a platform to launch a publication, and then we grew from there,” she says. Their first four issues were digital, but they decided to try print for their fifth issue, which came out during London Cocktail Week the following year. “We knew that we had a good platform, because there was nothing like what we were doing – it was a dedicated cocktail magazine, but written in a very different way to most magazines about drinks,” she says. “It was very much a magazine for consumers; Gary and I wanted to focus on lifestyle and writing for people like us, who loved their drinks, but wanted to know more about the people, the places, the products behind them. We carved out a niche for ourselves.” Working together They had no money when they started out, but decided to fund the magazine through advertising. “Doing it as a paid-for was too complicated – we wanted to have it available in bars, but then didn’t know how we would collect that revenue. Making it entirely advertising-funded meant we could have the magazine in places where people who liked cocktails could pick it up, like airport lounges, five-star bars or high-net-worth-offices – and in turn, having a presence in these places worked well for advertising.” At first they dropped off the magazines themselves – “it was just ridiculous!” – but they soon acknowledged that certain things are worth spending money on: like a distribution company. “When we first published the print magazine, we had 20,000 copies delivered to our flat, which we’d never do again. Some things you have to learn the hard way!” Most of their distribution is within the UK, but the magazine now goes out around the world. “We also send them to certain drinks influencers in the US, key writers, the best PRs, the bartenders on the world’s 50 Best Bars list.” While having a magazine based on something you love sounds like living the dream, there have been tough times for them both – not least because it’s a joint enterprise. “Working together is wonderful – we’re really supportive of each other, we share ideas, and we often travel together. But if you’re going through difficulties, say, with getting in advertisers in – which has happened over the past couple of years – it means both of us are going through it.” Sandrae says the toughest part of the set-up is that they’re both reliant on the magazine’s success. “It’s not like one of you has a steady salary coming in.” And, believe it or not, sampling cocktails for a living can be hard work. “You’re out all the time, but sometimes all you want to do is stay at home,” she says. “But that’s part of the gig, isn’t it? No one’s going to get out their teeny tiny violin for us!” Like many writers who have launched magazines, they have had to learn other aspects of publishing on the job. “We’re creative people, not salespeople; but this is something we’ve had to learn,” she says. “We don’t have the income to hire someone to do it… plus one of our advertisers said, ‘No one can sell your product like you – you’ve got the engagement, people like you, you’ve got that passion.” Balancing the sales with the editorial has been an interesting experience, she says, and they’ve had to become tougher. “Sometimes I won’t write about people because they’re not being very supportive of us. We need to survive.” This attitude extends to marketing, though like many people, they both struggle with self-promotion. “We’re both rubbish at pushing ourselves forward as much as we could do, but we need to get better at it,” she says. And social media? “It has to be done, though it’s changing all the time, and you can’t bloody keep up!” It is a crucial extension of their brand, however. “We don’t mind delegating, but I think that Instagram very much Make your own magazine themed cocktail! The Journalist 45ml gin 15ml dry vermouth 15ml sweet vermouth 7.5ml orange curaçao liqueur 7.5ml lemon juice 1 dash Angostura aromatic bitters 2.5ml sugar syrup (optional) Garnish with Maraschino cherry Shake all ingredients over ice and fine strain into a chilled glass. Enjoy! ILLUSTRATION BY RYAN GILLETT
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