Meet Ian Winterbotham | Retail Venue Owner

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

Hi Ian, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I have always been an entrepreneur with my main focus being retail. I watched E-commerce change the way people shopped and how it changed the brick and mortar side of retail. Knowing the costs associated with running an independent store and the competitive pricing found online, I started multi-vendor marketplaces where everyone can collectively work together. I’m very passionate about helping small businesses launch and grow through our different venues and channels of exposure.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My art is the curation and setup of my venues. I am extremely excited to launch our newest location called The Drop at Glendale. This location is at the Glendale Galleria and represents over 50 local brands, artists, and designers. Each brand has a “mini store” here which creates a mall within the mall. It also has event spaces for temporary pop-ups, installations, product launches, and other retail related events.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would first stop at The Drop at Glendale to show them this amazing place. Then down to Beverly Hills for a little sight seeing, then finally drive down to Malibu for dinner and drinks at Maestros.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to shout out to the 200+ small businesses that I represent at my different venues.

Website: www.LocalSourceCoOp.com

Instagram: @thedropatglendale