In 2005 I started a company selling cases for iPods, as during the early days of Apple, there were no reasonably-priced cases to be had! Today that company has diversified somewhat into cases for many devices, barware and some other random accessories. This is the day job, and it typically doesn’t take much to push me down a road of a commercial adventure!

​

On to the present: In January 2016 I took my wife to dinner at the “Little Dudley House” in Dorking. This was a beautiful ye olde world pub with a bar downstairs where they sit you before they take you upstairs. The bar was sporting a new gin menu with 16 or so gins. Not being seasoned gin drinkers, we tried one, and picked Monkey 47 served with lavender. It was all about the theatre of making it perfect, as the barman took pride in every aspect of the delivery. It was all perfect: the glass, the ice, the tonic water, the garnish and of course the gin!

​

It was after the first sip it hit home what I had been missing all my adult life! My wife felt the same. They came down to invite us upstairs and we declined and told them we would come after a few more gins!

​

And so the passion was born. We spent time seeking out good gin bars around the city for the next six months or so, when it dawned on me how much I enjoy it, and why not let your hobby become your pastime! We loved the London Gin Club, and had one of their eight taster platters to share on our first night. I was so overwhelmed, I asked if I could purchase one and take it home? “No”. How about online? “No”. How about the glasses? “No”!

​

We held a few gin events in our own home bar, and invited groups of friends ten at a time, to come and have a cracking gin night! I can confidently say we have converted at least 75% of them onto gin. I’m sure the consumption of wine has diminished in the small village in Ashtead to the gain of gin.

​

Within three months I had a personal & premises licence to sell alcohol, and start the Ginsanity gin journey!

​

So a few months in and it’s been a great experience. We look forward to scaling the business up over the next 12 months.