Meet Alexis Wade | Wine Bar Owner

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

Hi Alexis, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Everyone in my family owns their own business so, growing up, that was a fact of life; my dad was an Accountant, my mom a Speech Therapist, and my older sister went on to eventually open up her own restaurant in the bay area, Homeroom. While this doesn’t speak to what made me want to open a wine bar, it does explain why having my own business never felt outside the realm of possibilities. I jumped around career wise, working in kitchens, then fashion and ultimately falling into a career in the film industry as a Prop Master. I always thought I would eventually own my own *thing* but it wasn’t until pandemic hit that I really sat down and considered what that would be. Starting the wine bar was a cumulation of all my skills and knowledge and interests into something greater than the sum of its parts.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?

I always envied folks who knew what career trajectory they wanted from an early age, that was absolutely never me!

I worked minimum wage food jobs in kitchens, as a waitress and pastry cook throughout my teens, college years and directly afterwards. It was an interest but always just a way to make ends meet.

I always had an affinity for textures, colors and making things with my hands so when I was considering how to professionally grow, I assumed I would have to leave the kitchen. Those skills transferred to sewing and knitwear so I went back to school and got an AA in fashion design and was working and living in New York in that industry for a hot minute. When I eventually moved back to LA and was trying to break into the fashion scene out here, I started taking freelance work either fabricating props or doing custom sewing work for friends who were working in the film industry and needed things done for set.

It was entirely accidental that I wound up working full time in film but that work kept coming until suddenly that was my full time job. I became a member of the union as a Prop Master which really combined all my skill sets and that was my world for nearly a decade until the Pandemic hit. It was a full reset for a lot of folks, including myself. Working in the film world was an incredible way to see just what I was capable of, but it left me no time for friends, family and any control over my schedule. I knew I needed to leave and reevaluate my priorities: community and the people in my life. I wasn’t able to be a part of that when I was working in film, I felt like I truly disappeared from my personal life.

While I can’t say that opening up a business is a great way to have a glut of free time to be with loved ones, creating a space for people to congregate and socialize and learn about wine and the wine community has absolutely felt like I’m building towards and creating something that supports the backbone of what I consider the most important thing in life: the people in it.

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?
I love playing host! For starters, you can’t come up to Ventura and not get in the water. First things first, choose your water activity: surfing at mondos, kayaking the channel islands, or taking out a swan shaped paddle boat in the marina to name a few. After you’ve built up an appetite from being out in the water, grab a coffee at Singing Sun, check out books at Timbre bookstore one door over and maybe do some vintage shopping at Poppies. With food, you can’t go wrong with dinner at Rory’s place or Pinyon in Ojai and Paddy’s bar back in Ventura promises a great night of dancing in their fully mirrored dance hall, or play a round of pool at any one of their pool tables.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would not be able to do what I do without the incredible support of my community, family and also the other small businesses around me. Some notables are Alice Goldsmith and Annie Woods; incredible and supportive friends who have talked me through some of the hardest moments, their kind words, support and grace have been unwavering, they’re incredible people that I’m grateful for  to have in my life. Restaurateur and family friend, Jeremy Adler, who has always picked up my calls to guide me through work scenarios. The folks at Pinyon, a restaurant in Ojai, who recognized that I was doing something wild on my own and knew I’d need community support. My sister, Erin Wade, a true food business genius. And, of course, my parents for pretty much everything.

Website: https://www.buddyswinebar.com/

Instagram: buddys_wine_ventura

Yelp: Buddys Wine Bar

Image Credits
Kyle MacLennan for all color photos