Meet Al Rahn: Founder & CEO

We had the good fortune of connecting with Al Rahn and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Al, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
In a word: flexibility. Since starting Spirit Guides, I’ve realized that the business has a ‘spirit’ of its own, and that ‘spirit’ has gone in dozens of different directions that I never could have anticipated. I learned quickly to not force the company in any particular direction that wasn’t generating attention & revenue naturally. Being flexible means keeping an open mind and letting the market and the public tell you what’s working and what isn’t working, and not being too terribly attached to one outcome or another. This has allowed us to pivot quickly from doing live events to almost exclusively virtual ones in 2020, and this unexpected niche has served us extremely well for the last 10 months.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Spirit Guides is a cocktail events company, started by myself and my partner Jeremy in 2017. We began by providing specialty cocktails & bar services for private events, designing the drinks to “tell the story” of the event, whether it be a wedding, birthday, corporate event, etc. We began teaming up with theatrical production companies and co-creating immersive experiences that focused on the cocktails as a major element of the experience or the story (such as the pharmacy bar in After Hours Theatre Company’s immersive “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” and Fever’s “Mad Hatter Gin & Tea Party”). With the big curve ball of 2020, we pivoted our business online, offering virtual mixology & cocktail history lessons with cocktail kits delivered to all the participants. This was a huge learning lesson for us, as we found ourselves suddenly taking on things we’d never imagined, from shipping to livestreaming to full-scale video production (my previous career as a television editor did prepare me in some ways). We also found new ways to work with our theatre friends in the virtual world, specifically with Halloween’s “Hocus Pocus” & December’s “A Christmas Carol” mixology experiences. Though we have slowly started getting back to in-person events, the Zoom cocktail classes continue to be a huge part of our business. We are excited to keep these virtual experiences going into the future.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
It starts with cold brew & breakfast at Coffee Commissary in Burbank (or perhaps a breakfast burrito from Corner Cottage)… then a hike in the Angeles National Forest, or up to the Wisdom Tree in the Hollywood Hills… A quick stop at the Iliad bookstore in the valley… then a long, slow drive on Mulholland from the valley to the coast to enjoy the beaches of Malibu… either a burger & oysters at Duke’s for lunch, or make our way down PCH to Bay Cities Italian Deli for Godmother sandwiches on the best bread of all time… another quick stop at Record Surplus music shop in West L.A. (and say hey to my friends at Laughing Frog yoga while we’re there)… maybe take in a movie at The Landmark… and end the night with the Tiki Tour – tropical drinks at Lono (Hollywood), Tiki-Ti (Silver Lake), and Tonga Hut (North Hollywood) … ask Syd for a Kraken the Dole Whip! Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d love to dedicate my Shoutout to my incredible, loving, patient and supportive fiancee, Francesca.

Website: www.spiritguidescocktails.com

Instagram: @spiritguidescocktails

Facebook: www.facebook.com/spiritguidescocktails

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/spirit-guides-los-angeles-2

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4m8ZIXVqSqNWneXNM8EyGw

Image Credits
Tory Stolper Photography