Latest / Elevate The Hustle / Ep. 28: Shark Tank's Nelson Brooks on Building a Billion-Dollar Party Empire

Transcript

Ep. 28: Shark Tank's Nelson Brooks on Building a Billion-Dollar Party Empire · Elevate The Hustle

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: We want somebody who can come in, they can own the room, they can make our customer feel special and throw a damn good party.
• 0:08
  SPEAKER_00: If they look like Ryan Gosling, fantastic.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: That's great.
• 0:12
  SPEAKER_01: Elevate the hustle.
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_02: Welcome to Elevate the Hustle, where we break down what it actually means to build teams, scale companies, and lead with intensity.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_02: I'm your host, Dan Mayton.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm Don Picharillo.
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_01: And today we are fortunate to have a guest who was recently on Shark Tank and landed a deal with Kendra Scott.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome, Nelson.
• 0:42
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome to the show.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_02: Let's definitely go.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_02: Well, before we get into who Nelson is and what Nelson does and how he was able to secure a deal, let's ask my favorite question.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_02: What does hustle mean to you, Nelson?
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_00: Oh man.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: That's a great question.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_00: I to me, I'd say hustle is prioritizing growth.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and you know, there's other things in my life that are important, but if you want to grow, you got to be able to work hard.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_00: And uh I think hustle is a good name for that.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_02: Well, you know, work hard, right?
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_02: I I've heard people say, Oh, I'm a really hard worker, you know, I'm a hustler.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_02: And then you call them at like 445 and they're like, sorry, I'm gone for the day.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_02: Uh can't can't take your email right now.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, and I'll be back on Tuesday because Mondays is my off day.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_00: Is that what hustle means?
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, that's a good point.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: I'm I mean, I think it also depends on your life circumstances, right?
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: Wife, kids, uh, things like that.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_00: That can that can be uh a part of the equation.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_00: But yeah, I agree.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_00: You know, there's I've definitely had a lot of late nights, uh, so I think that's probably more the hustle side, and the nine to five is more the work hard side.
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_02: Love it.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_02: So you are the founder and CEO of Cabana Boys Events.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_02: Tell us about Cabana Boy Events, Nelson.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so I'm the founder, uh, CEO, and chief cabana boy, maybe the only chief cabana boy uh in the world, I don't know, uh, of Cabana Boys Events.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_00: We are a party hosting and private event bartending company.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_00: Started here in Scottsville, Arizona in 2020.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_00: We've since expanded to 10 different markets across the country.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: In those 10 markets, we operate under six different brands.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: Um, party hosting is what we kind of our main service.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: Cabana Boys is our flagship brand.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and that's bartending, but it's a bit more than that.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_00: It's helping with games and music and keeping a party area tidy.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_00: Um, oftentimes it's served with charisma and maybe a little bit of flirtation, but we're not the magic mic stuff.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: We're not doing dances or anything like that.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, but it's definitely a little flirty.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_00: A lot of our business is bachelorette parties, so they hire us to really elevate the party, show them a great time, uh, but in a safe way, you know, not the like covered in baby oil way.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so and then we have the other side of our business, which is more traditional event bartending for corporate events, holiday parties, um, could be bachelorettes too, but it's more commonly kind of that upscale event.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_00: And that's called the cocktail crew.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_02: And how did you come up with this amazing idea?
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_02: Where where did you get where did you get the genius from?
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so I've always uh been kind of the an entrepreneur type, always kind of looking for something unique to do.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: Uh and I was invited to a bachelorette party just like as a friend here in Scottsdale back in July of 2020.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: And uh at the time I was single and she was like, Hey, do you want to come hang out at our pool?
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: Because it was COVID was going on, right?
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_00: And most of the bars were closed or, you know, reduced capacity.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, Yes, I'll be over soon.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, brought one of my buddies with me, and there were two other guys there that were friends of the maid of honor that were just friends there to hang out and serve drinks.
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_00: That she had paid them like 50 bucks.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_00: And I was like, there's my light bulb moment.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_00: This is uh would be a fun way to make some money.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: I don't think anybody's really doing this right now.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not the first person to invent a male bartender.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, this bartending has been around for, you know, hundreds, if not thousands of years.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but you know, I wanted to bring some personality to it, right?
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's not just about serving drinks, it's about making people feel special and then and throwing them a fun party.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, so we're kind of in that middle between that traditional bartender and the you know baby oil guy, like I was saying.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: So uh spun it up the next day while I was hurting in in bed uh after a few too many white claws and bought the domain name, got the Instagram handle, and uh worked on it, kind of you know, half-assed.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_00: Like not, I didn't like put everything in right away, but it started to snowball and we're getting more attention, more bookings, and I started to hire people.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and now, you know, yesterday was actually our sixth birthday.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: Um, we've done about 8,000 events and you know, countless memories, tens of thousands of people.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_00: It's been it's been quite the ride.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_01: How did you get into like entrepreneurship?
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_01: Was there like something in your childhood that kind of spoke to you?
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_01: Or, you know, like if you could go back, you know, to the early days, like kind of what spurred what kind of planted the seeds for you to eventually become an entrepreneur?
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_00: Uh you know, I'm I've always been the type that like I want, I'm I'm I would say I would consider myself more of a like a renaissance man, right?
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_00: I I am a I'm pretty good at a lot of things.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not like super specialized and excellent at really anything, uh, and entrepreneurship included.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, but I when I was a kid, you know, I wasn't the type that was doing a lemonade stand every weekend and, you know, trying to mow lawns and things like that.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_00: Uh it wasn't me, but I did, as I especially as I got later into, you know, my adolescence and early career, I like always wanted to try new things.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_00: And so, you know, I started my career selling wine and spirits, but I always kind of had one foot out the door.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_00: And then I switched to software sales and again, kind of had one foot out the door.
• 6:19
  SPEAKER_00: And the first company I started was an event planning company where I'd help uh my friends and other people plan like birthdays and charity events and holiday parties and things like that.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_00: So that's where like my first actual business came from.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but I've just always been the type that I got kind of bored with, you know, obviously sitting in an office, but um always kind of wanted to try new things.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_02: And and so were you a bartender at any point?
• 6:45
  SPEAKER_02: Or or did you go through like a bartending experience?
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_00: If you count making dirty shirleys behind the my fraternity bar, yes, I was a bartender, but okay, outside of that, no, I've never been out before cabana boys never been paid to serve drinks.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_02: And and and at what point did you decide to call to to brand yourself as the chief chief cabana boy?
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_01: I I think that's a very that's a pay extra to get you to come and like take your shirt off, or like how does that work?
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_00: No, I haven't I haven't done a party myself in a while.
• 7:19
  SPEAKER_00: It's been uh been quite some time.
• 7:21
  SPEAKER_00: I've got two kids and another one on the way now.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_00: So congrats.
• 7:25
  SPEAKER_00: Congrats, thank you.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_00: Uh life is a little bit different than it was six years ago, but um, but no, I I am still the type that loves to have a good time, loves to throw a good party.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I don't know if people want me to take my shirt off anymore, but uh once upon a time it was the case.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_02: So had it at what point did you know this was like a real business, right?
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_02: You you went to your friend's house, it's COVID, right?
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_02: And I feel like a lot of side hustles came out of COVID because you know, everybody was kind of home and it was slow, there was nothing else going on.
• 8:02
  SPEAKER_02: But at what point you're like, huh, I I think we got something here.
• 8:06
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so the the first year, 2020, we did six parties.
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_00: So from the first, you know, four or so months of the year.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_00: In 2021, we did almost 600 parties.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, and so I think there was you know, some time in that spring summer-ish where I was like, this is this is something, like, this is unique.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, and then the next spring, the New York Times called and said, Hey, we want to do a story that includes you, not just about me, but about like the whole Scot Sell Bacharette scene.
• 8:35
  SPEAKER_00: And and uh, we're a big part of that.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_00: So um I think at that point I was like, all right, this is this could be something legit and bigger than what it is right now.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_00: And um, I quit my job, my software sales job in in 2022 uh and just went all in and and uh it's been the best thing that I ever done for sure.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_00: So I think that's one of those moments where it's like you take that plunge and you gotta sink or swim.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_01: What were you thinking when you're taking that plunge?
• 9:05
  SPEAKER_01: Like, are you afraid?
• 9:06
  SPEAKER_01: Are you excited?
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_01: Are you scared?
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_01: Like a lot of people think about all kinds of business ideas and never actually have you know the wherewithal to see it through.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_01: Like, what made you actually decide, you know what, screw it, I'm gonna abandon this software thing and just go all in on cabana boys.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_00: So fortunately, you know, I studied business in in college and I started my career in sales.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_00: That's a pretty transferable skill.
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_00: So when I did take the plunge, I kind of always had that as a backstop.
• 9:35
  SPEAKER_00: I'm like, okay, if this doesn't work out, I can just go get another sales job.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_00: Not certainly not what I want to do, but like I can, right?
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um, whether it's you know selling software again or selling used cars, like I I have that skill, fortunately.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_00: But, you know, this was the first time where I got a job, and it was a job I created myself, but I didn't have one foot out the door.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_00: Like I mentioned before, like I always kind of was trying to do something else.
• 10:02
  SPEAKER_00: This is the first time where I was like, I gotta go all in on this.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_00: I'm solely focused on this right now.
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I feel like that is something that focus is something, especially early on in entrepreneurship.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_00: You have to have that.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_00: Entrepreneurs are the type that they always think of new ideas, and yeah, like they uh like you said, ideas are a dime a dozen.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_00: The actual execution is what makes it work.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_00: Um but yeah, I I think it's just the that moment where it's like, all right, I know I got a kid on the way, I I gotta make this work right now.
• 10:36
  SPEAKER_02: Do you do you think that nature versus nurture question, you think people are like, you know, maybe everybody has, I don't want to call it, I don't want to say everybody's an entrepreneur, but everybody has, you know, there might be somebody that's sitting at their desk right now that's been working there for two years or 20 years and they're miserable, right?
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_02: But it's like if you put that person in the right setting, the right environment, and call it the right job or the right career, they're gonna absolutely flourish and they're gonna have the time of their lives.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_00: Um I think that everybody has the skill set and the intelligence to be an entrepreneur.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_00: With that said, I don't think everybody has the uh resolve and the resilience, the stomach stomach for it.
• 11:28
  unknown: Exactly.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_00: I think there's, you know, the the people the world needs people who are just employees, right?
• 11:35
  SPEAKER_00: Like the companies that we know, like they have to have employees to operate, right?
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and there's a lot of people that are great at what they do and they don't own a business, obviously.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_00: Um for an entrepreneur, you you have to not only have the like vision for it, but you have to have the, like you said, the stomach for it and be able to withstand ups and downs and long nights and stressful days and and all that kind of stuff.
• 12:02
  SPEAKER_00: Um and not everybody has that.
• 12:05
  SPEAKER_00: I've even questioned myself in those tough times, like, is this right for me?
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_00: You know?
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but when you have a vision and you have this North Star that you're going after, like you just have to kind of refocus and recenter yourself on that to make it through those tough times.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_01: What what would you say was like the biggest challenge or the most difficult time you faced early on?
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I running a business is really hard for a lot of reasons, but the financial side of things can be really challenging.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_00: Um, because as you grow, you it's very easy to spend money on things, you know, uh, and get away from like your core business model.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_00: It's very easy to test things, you know, from a marketing perspective that don't work.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and so that financial discipline is always been, and it still is a challenge for me.
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_00: It's not just early on, it still has been a challenge for me even today.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um, just making sure that I'm focused on growing the business and spending money in the right places.
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_01: It is always a shiny new object, exactly.
• 13:07
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, it's yeah, especially especially when you're a cabana boy, you're like, oh, I gotta get this cool blazer, I gotta get a cool new, cool golden vest.
• 13:14
  SPEAKER_02: I feel like there's a lot there.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_01: I thought you were gonna say gold chain.
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_02: Gold chain.
• 13:21
  SPEAKER_02: What let's talk about Shark Tank.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_02: How how did that come about?
• 13:25
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so I applied uh, I guess it was like October 2024, just applied online um and got a call back like three or four months later, and then filmed in June of uh last year, and then it finally aired in January of this year, 2026.
• 13:42
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and it was I mean, it's show business, right?
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's it is a TV show.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_00: There is like the business side of things, obviously, with the investment, but it is a TV show.
• 13:52
  SPEAKER_00: They're focused on entertainment and attracting viewers and those sorts of things.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_00: So it was kind of one of those things where there's like a lot of hurrying up and then waiting, you know, send us all this for information and you wait.
• 14:04
  SPEAKER_00: And that was kind of the process, but it was it was awesome.
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, it was uh I was lucky enough to be able to bring four or five of my employees with me to the filming.
• 14:13
  SPEAKER_00: Um, got a deal with Kendra Scott, which was great.
• 14:17
  SPEAKER_00: Um, it's one of those once-in-a-lifetime things, it's been on for I think 17, 18 seasons.
• 14:22
  SPEAKER_00: So we're talking maybe a thousand, twelve hundred people who have been on it in total, and to be a part of that small group is is really cool.
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_00: So um definitely like something I'm very proud of.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_00: Um it was not a huge transformation for me, to be honest, like after the episode aired.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_00: And I think a big reason for that was we're a service, not a product.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and so like you need a date and time to purchase what we're selling, uh, versus you know, a water bottle or some gadget, you know, you can just go online and buy it and it shows up at your door a week later.
• 14:58
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, but for us, it's you know, it's a little bit different.
• 15:00
  SPEAKER_00: So still riding that wave and working with Kendra to uh to grow the business, but uh definitely something I'll remember forever.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_01: What's it been like working with Kendra?
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so she the the unique thing about Kendra is that she is she just got announced as a full-time shark, but when I was working with her, she was a guest shark.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_00: And so when you think about like Mr.
• 15:24
  SPEAKER_00: Wonderful or Lori or Robert Hirschebeck, they're full-time sharks, and so they have a team that is with them, you know, taking care of their portfolio companies for Kendra.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_00: She has her own business that she's still involved in the day-to-day plus Shark Tank.
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_00: And so we're we're actually I'm helping them kind of build out a team to handle some of our portfolio companies uh now.
• 15:45
  SPEAKER_00: So um, but her team is great.
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_00: I love the passion that they bring to what they do every day.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I really it's still early days, but I I feel like it'll be really helpful for my business.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_02: So have you like what was your goal walking in there?
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_02: Were you you I I always wonder I I watched the show, I haven't watched the show in a few years, but I used to watch it religiously.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_02: And I always wonder, you know, I always wondered like like you could tell some people are just coming in there, right, just to get the exposure, right?
• 16:14
  SPEAKER_02: Like, what was your mindset?
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_02: Were you looking to get a deal?
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_02: Were you looking to get a deal with specific sharks?
• 16:20
  SPEAKER_02: You know, did you not know it was gonna happen?
• 16:23
  SPEAKER_00: So I definitely wanted to leave with a deal.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_00: That was my goal.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um she she was sharky, if you will.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_00: She I went in uh asking for 225 for 10, and I ended up leaving with 225 or 32.
• 16:41
  SPEAKER_00: So she went up quite a bit.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_00: She did start at 40, was her first counter, and we I worked her down to 32.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_00: So obviously a bit more than I wanted to give away.
• 16:51
  SPEAKER_00: But I mean, Mark Cuban always used to say, like, would you rather have 100% of a grape or 90% of a watermelon?
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_00: You know, like the goal is to partner with somebody who has experience building a large brand and blow it up to much bigger than it is right now.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I wanted a deal primarily because I needed help.
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_00: Like, I I we experienced a ton of growth in 21, 22, 23, kind of plateaued a little bit in 24 and then shrank a bit in 25.
• 17:22
  SPEAKER_00: So I was like, okay, this is a good time for me to come in and get some like expert advice and also funding uh to kind of write the ship.
• 17:30
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and so I that was that was the goal uh for sure.
• 17:36
  SPEAKER_02: So talk to me about, you know, you're you're in the people business, we're in the people business.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_02: What do you look for when you're hiring, you know, cabana boys or or other type of bartenders?
• 17:48
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, is it is the personality, is it experience, is it looks, is it all of the above?
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_00: It's there's a lot of boxes to check for us.
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um are what we call marketability.
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, the the presence that somebody has is important, but I would much rather have a seven with a 10 personality than a 10 with a six personality, right?
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_00: We want somebody who can come in, they can own the room, they can make our customer feel special and throw a damn good party.
• 18:21
  SPEAKER_00: If they look like Ryan Gosling, fantastic, that's great, but it that's not like the the only qualification.
• 18:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um, availability is also a really important thing.
• 18:31
  SPEAKER_00: Uh we're a we're a part-time job for everybody.
• 18:34
  SPEAKER_00: And so if somebody's really great, they check all the boxes, but they're already a bartender all day, Friday, Saturday night, that's not a good fit for us, and so that's when most of our events are.
• 18:43
  SPEAKER_00: And then also just like if they're a good person, you know, we are fortunate enough to be invited into people's private homes and their celebrations.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_00: And so we have to bring could good people there, right?
• 18:54
  SPEAKER_00: If somebody's in there just to get paid to hang out with girls, that's not the right fit for us, right?
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_00: Because that's that's gonna create a really poor customer experience for our customers.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_00: So um, there's a lot of boxes to check.
• 19:07
  SPEAKER_00: You know, hiring in any industry is challenging, but I think for us especially, it's like it's been one of our biggest challenges.
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_00: Are you hiring from Arizona State?
• 19:17
  SPEAKER_00: A little bit, yeah.
• 19:18
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, right.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, Stan said that you went to ASU.
• 19:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um yeah, so yes, we are a little bit.
• 19:27
  SPEAKER_00: I hesitate on college recruits.
• 19:30
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know, because when I was in college, like when I was 22, I didn't really want to wake up on a Saturday morning and like go serve people.
• 19:38
  SPEAKER_00: Like I'd rather just like hang out with my friends and and things like that.
• 19:42
  SPEAKER_00: So reliability is really important, you know, especially since we have if somebody you know books a party at 11 a.m.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_00: on a Saturday, we've got to be there at 11 a.m.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_00: on a Saturday.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_00: We we can't be there at 11:45.
• 19:53
  SPEAKER_00: Like punctuality is important.
• 19:55
  SPEAKER_00: So um there've been some great people that have been college age, but for the most part, our our best employees are you know a little bit out of that phase.
• 20:04
  SPEAKER_02: How how many people you guys currently have on your roster?
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_02: About 125 right now.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_02: And is that like you're you're balancing between always finding new people?
• 20:15
  SPEAKER_02: Like right there.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_02: I'm assuming three parts of the job, right?
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_02: One is finding new clients, two is finding new talent, and then obviously logistics to make sure everybody shows up.
• 20:24
  SPEAKER_00: Pretty much, yeah.
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_00: So I part of the um way I use the Shartech Investment was hiring a director of customer experience.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_00: And that's kind of a weird title for what their job is, but they are his name's Chase, they're responsible for recruitment, onboarding, and training.
• 20:40
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, we've never had anybody before him that was focused on recruitment.
• 20:44
  SPEAKER_00: So we've always said, hey, we're hiring and let people come to us, but now we're like going out into the marketplace and trying to find people for the job too.
• 20:52
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, but that he's his title is director of customer experience because our customers' experience is almost solely as a result of what our staff does and how they act and the service that they provide.
• 21:04
  SPEAKER_00: So um we're always looking for new people.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_00: We're always looking for great people.
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_00: I used to be of the mindset where it's like, okay, I gotta reduce my costs and not hire too many people, but now my costs on a per employee basis are super, super low.
• 21:20
  SPEAKER_00: And so like I might as well just like build up a big roster of excellent people and and that way we can kind of you know hire more, market more, hire more, market more, and kind of step up like that.
• 21:32
  SPEAKER_01: And how are you determining like which people get assigned to which cases?
• 21:36
  SPEAKER_01: Like, is there some kind of secret sauce behind that?
• 21:40
  SPEAKER_00: Um, availability is a big part of it, right?
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, somebody who is available all weekend is gonna book more parties than somebody who's only available for a few hours each weekend.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_00: Um, we do take customer requests as well.
• 21:53
  SPEAKER_00: So we put our staff on our website, and so they can go on and say, Hey, I want, you know, Chase and Cole.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_00: For this party.
• 22:01
  SPEAKER_00: And we do our best to accommodate that.
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_00: We're not always able to, but we do our best to.
• 22:06
  SPEAKER_00: But beyond that, it's it's we have a team lead in each city, and they're one of their jobs is to get to know their team and like understand what personalities work well together, and then be able to staff that appropriately.
• 22:22
  SPEAKER_02: What's next?
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_02: What's next?
• 22:24
  SPEAKER_02: What what what are your goals for the business?
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_02: I know you have a couple different, couple different companies, right, that are do a couple different things, but what's the long-term goal?
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_00: So long-term goal is to be a billion-dollar hospitality brand.
• 22:37
  SPEAKER_00: Um, the my big hairy audacious goal is is that.
• 22:40
  SPEAKER_00: And and that starts with where we're at right now, which is private event bartending.
• 22:44
  SPEAKER_00: I'm really starting to position the business for to be a franchise.
• 22:48
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so I can sell franchises to you know any city um potentially.
• 22:54
  SPEAKER_00: Um we have the cabana boys, which is the bachelorette service, but we also have that cocktail crew, which is more traditional event bartending.
• 23:01
  SPEAKER_00: Cabana Boys probably wouldn't work in, you know, Detroit, Michigan, uh, but the cocktail crew certainly would.
• 23:08
  SPEAKER_00: Uh and so the goal is to get to a point where we can, you know, franchise across the country.
• 23:14
  SPEAKER_00: From there, I'm looking at other, you know, additional complementary ventures um and kind of trying to vertically integrate the bachelorette experience.
• 23:22
  SPEAKER_00: So, for example, short-term rentals or beverages or bars and restaurants or apparel, like, you know, so Cabana Boys can be a part of every part of that Bachelorette weekend.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but like I was telling you, Stan, before we started recording, like it all comes down to charisma and like how our team makes our client feel and the experience they provide.
• 23:46
  SPEAKER_00: So if we can come into your house and throw a damn good party, awesome.
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_00: Like that's that's what we do really well right now.
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_00: But if you want to go to a bar or restaurant and have a similar experience, I want to be a part of that as well.
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_00: Or we can maybe bottle it up into a beverage of some type, uh, that would be another you know avenue.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_00: So that's you know, that's the big goal.
• 24:07
  SPEAKER_00: That's a that's a long ways out, but uh that's what I'm working towards.
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_02: It's good to have big goals.
• 24:13
  SPEAKER_02: I like it.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_02: What what do you think is the biggest lesson you learned in in you know six years of running this business?
• 24:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I think I mean how do you choose this one?
• 24:26
  SPEAKER_00: Um I think one is patience, right?
• 24:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um you do need to hustle, and hustle is important, but uh it's very rare that something explodes overnight, right?
• 24:42
  SPEAKER_00: If you see some viral video, that's just kind of luck, right?
• 24:46
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's pretty rare that somebody can do that on like a repeating basis, you know, day in or day out.
• 24:53
  SPEAKER_00: Uh so for me, it's like building a business takes time.
• 24:56
  SPEAKER_00: You know, the the cliche statement is, you know, Rome wasn't building a day.
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_00: And that and that's certainly true.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um I sometimes get frustrated.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_00: I'm like, all right, like we're doing all these things to grow the business and the results are not happening immediately.
• 25:10
  SPEAKER_00: And I just have to remind myself, like, it takes time, you know, especially with something like SEO, for example.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_00: Like, if I change some words on my website, it's not gonna make an impact tomorrow.
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_00: It may make an impact three to six months down the road, but um, it's really about like being patient and laying down the foundation for for growth.
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_02: If you have one piece of advice to somebody watching, you know, this this show on YouTube or listening to this podcast that is, you know, maybe stuck at a job somewhere that they're not happy with, what do you what do you tell them?
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_00: Uh my advice is to, and this sounds super cliche, but just do it.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_00: Like if you are afraid to take that first step, you're you're not gonna be the most successful entrepreneur that you could.
• 26:01
  SPEAKER_00: The first step is often the hardest, but you don't need a business plan.
• 26:06
  SPEAKER_00: You don't need to have everything figured out before you start.
• 26:10
  SPEAKER_00: I I don't really even have a business plan written down right right now, six years later.
• 26:16
  SPEAKER_00: Um, it's it's not the type of thing where you have to have it all figured out on day one.
• 26:21
  SPEAKER_00: So if you feel like you have a good idea and there's product market fit for it, if there is demand for it, you you gotta go for it.
• 26:30
  SPEAKER_00: Like the I like we've talked about already, ideas are a dime a dozen.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_00: It's the execution that's the difference maker.
• 26:36
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so really just take that plunge and you don't have to quit your job, right?
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_00: You can just do nights and weekends a few hours a week uh just to test it out, start talking to partners, start feeling out if there's competitors in the space, and just go for it.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, my first business um before I launched it, I was like putting together all these things, and um a friend of mine was I was talking to him and he was like, Why haven't you launched it?
• 27:03
  SPEAKER_01: And I was like, Well, I'm waiting for the right time for this, that, or the other thing.
• 27:07
  SPEAKER_01: He's like, There is no right time.
• 27:09
  SPEAKER_01: He's like, the right time is now.
• 27:10
  SPEAKER_01: He's like, Yeah, you keep waiting for the right time, he's like, You're never gonna start it.
• 27:14
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, Yeah, I mean, it's the same thing with build, you know, starting a family too.
• 27:20
  SPEAKER_00: Like raising kids is hard.
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's the same thing, you know, there's never gonna be a perfect time to do those big scary things in life.
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, so you might as well do it now.
• 27:30
  SPEAKER_02: You only get one life, you better do it now.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_02: Or you can be sitting in that nursing home being like, Yeah, I should have started that business.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_02: I should have been a cabana boy, I should have been a cabana boy.
• 27:44
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, which is, you know, for those of you that are watching this and want to, you know, reach out to Nelson and his team, maybe being a cabana boy is something to put on your resume.
• 27:55
  SPEAKER_02: I I don't hate that.
• 27:56
  SPEAKER_02: I I I absolutely don't hate that.
• 27:58
  SPEAKER_00: You know what one of the things that I'm honestly most proud of about this business, and aside from like our customers and you know, the experience that we provide are the connections that would have been made internally and the people that have become super good friends and the opportunities that have arisen from those connections.
• 28:16
  SPEAKER_00: Like we've got you know, plenty of people that have you know been in each other's weddings and they traveled together and they didn't know each other when they started, but now they're like super good friends.
• 28:26
  SPEAKER_00: And so it's just that network that um that we built that's been really rewarding.
• 28:33
  SPEAKER_02: It's probably they probably do a good job.
• 28:34
  SPEAKER_02: They're traveling together and they're like, oh, we're both cabana boys, just in case you were wondering.
• 28:39
  SPEAKER_02: It's like it's a it's a good it's a good start starter conversation.
• 28:43
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 28:44
  SPEAKER_02: Let's get into my favorite part of this show.
• 28:47
  SPEAKER_02: Rapid fire.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_01: Rapid fire.
• 28:51
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 28:56
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, where we ask you some personal questions.
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_02: Uh Dom, kick us off with some rapid fire questions for Nelson.
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_01: What is your favorite Scottsdale, Arizona bachelor bachelor at bar?
• 29:12
  SPEAKER_01: Oh gosh.
• 29:13
  SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna have to go riot house.
• 29:17
  SPEAKER_00: I don't I don't know why, it's just always a vibe.
• 29:19
  SPEAKER_00: Not coach house.
• 29:21
  SPEAKER_00: Coach house is fun.
• 29:22
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, there's so many good ones.
• 29:24
  SPEAKER_00: I I'm I don't go out a lot um anymore, but yeah, there's there's a lot of good ones.
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_00: They also rotate.
• 29:29
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, there's ones that last time I was down there, I was like, wait, that bar's not there anymore.
• 29:33
  SPEAKER_00: What's going on?
• 29:35
  SPEAKER_02: Fun fact, Dom and I have been to Coach House together.
• 29:38
  SPEAKER_00: We have.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_00: Nice, good one.
• 29:42
  SPEAKER_02: Uh drink of choice.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I love a good margarita.
• 29:49
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but I would probably say um it's sweet tea vodka and lemonade, a John Daly, as some people know it.
• 30:03
  SPEAKER_01: Delicious.
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 30:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um, what's one trade-off you've had to accept to grow the business?
• 30:11
  SPEAKER_00: Um I think that there's like somebody said already, there's always that shiny object, right?
• 30:20
  SPEAKER_00: And when you are like I am, when you're so focused on growth, you can't pursue every shiny object.
• 30:29
  SPEAKER_00: And the trade-off is sacrificing maybe a little bit of potential growth to keeping the lights on, right?
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_00: So for example, like HR, not something I really enjoy doing, right?
• 30:40
  SPEAKER_00: Or you know, payroll, things like that.
• 30:42
  SPEAKER_00: If I was only focused on growth, we would probably be a bigger business than we are today, but there's other parts of the business that need attention too.
• 30:51
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so that that would be a trade-off.
• 30:53
  SPEAKER_02: Favorite sport to play and favorite sport to watch.
• 30:58
  SPEAKER_00: Oh man.
• 31:00
  SPEAKER_00: Uh sport to play is tennis.
• 31:03
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, I love playing tennis.
• 31:05
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not very good, but I'm getting there.
• 31:08
  SPEAKER_00: Sport to watch.
• 31:10
  SPEAKER_00: It's probably college football.
• 31:12
  SPEAKER_00: I'm a big USC, USC guy.
• 31:14
  SPEAKER_00: Fight on it.
• 31:18
  SPEAKER_01: Um, what's the best party you've ever staffed?
• 31:23
  SPEAKER_01: Oh man.
• 31:24
  SPEAKER_00: That you could that you could talk about on the that I've ever personally been at, or just that I've heard about.
• 31:32
  SPEAKER_00: Dealer's choice.
• 31:33
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 31:33
  SPEAKER_00: Um, there's one that there was uh the group were all Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders.
• 31:41
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, I was not personally there, but I heard about it, and there's some videos of our guys like dancing, like choreographed dancing with the girls.
• 31:49
  SPEAKER_00: So that was pretty epic.
• 31:51
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, there was another one where I was there, all the girls were uh adult entertainers.
• 31:58
  SPEAKER_00: Uh that was pretty rowdy.
• 32:02
  SPEAKER_00: You made sure you were at that one.
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 32:07
  SPEAKER_02: Excuse from the wife.
• 32:08
  SPEAKER_02: I gotta go home.
• 32:09
  SPEAKER_02: I gotta go to the street.
• 32:10
  SPEAKER_02: It's work, it's work, it's work, work, pays the mortgage.
• 32:14
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, exactly.
• 32:15
  SPEAKER_00: No, I mean, we there's like I said, we've done like almost 8,000 parties, so it's hard, hard to choose one, but those are a couple that come to mind.
• 32:21
  SPEAKER_02: One thing you do now that your younger self wouldn't understand.
• 32:26
  SPEAKER_00: I take a cold plunge every day.
• 32:30
  SPEAKER_00: I don't think much.
• 32:32
  SPEAKER_00: I do not like the cold at all.
• 32:34
  SPEAKER_00: Like, I don't really like going to the mountains or you know, things like that.
• 32:38
  SPEAKER_00: I'm just more of like a warm weather beach guy.
• 32:40
  SPEAKER_00: So I think my younger self would be like, What are you doing, dude?
• 32:43
  SPEAKER_00: Like, you're intentionally submitting yourself to that.
• 32:48
  SPEAKER_00: How many degrees and how many minutes?
• 32:50
  SPEAKER_02: How many minutes?
• 32:51
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 32:51
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I I was, I'm just getting back into the habit now.
• 32:56
  SPEAKER_00: I took like a few days off, a couple weeks off.
• 32:59
  SPEAKER_00: Uh 48 degrees three minutes currently.
• 33:03
  SPEAKER_00: I was doing like four minutes at 45 degrees for a while.
• 33:08
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but that was uh maybe I'll get back to that point.
• 33:12
  SPEAKER_01: But you hit the sauna too, or are you just straight cold plunge?
• 33:15
  SPEAKER_00: I just got a sauna like a week ago.
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_00: So uh trying, I haven't gotten a routine with that one yet, but yeah, that's the goal.
• 33:23
  SPEAKER_02: You gotta step up your game, Nelson.
• 33:25
  SPEAKER_02: We gotta get you to the six-minute mark.
• 33:27
  unknown: Right.
• 33:28
  SPEAKER_01: 195 degree sauna, 15 minutes.
• 33:32
  SPEAKER_00: I have an infrared sauna, so it doesn't get quite as quite as hot, but uh yeah, we'll we'll get there.
• 33:39
  SPEAKER_02: Well, you heard it all here and elevate the hustle.
• 33:42
  SPEAKER_02: Nelson, where can people find you if they want to, you know, book an event or if they want to get a job, right?
• 33:50
  SPEAKER_02: I'm I'm assuming you're looking for both.
• 33:52
  SPEAKER_00: Always looking for great people.
• 33:54
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so you can find us at uh partyhostboys.com.
• 33:58
  SPEAKER_00: That's like our bachelorette birthday girls' weekend service uh in 10 different markets across the country.
• 34:04
  SPEAKER_00: Or if you're hosting or want to have a great bartender at a wedding or holiday party, a little bit more of an upscale event, you can find us at cocktail-crew.com.
• 34:13
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then on socials, partyhostboys or cocktail crew bartending.
• 34:18
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and yeah, there's a jobs page on both of those websites.
• 34:22
  SPEAKER_00: So we always looking for great people and obviously clients too.
• 34:25
  SPEAKER_00: We'd love to help you celebrate.
• 34:28
  SPEAKER_02: That's awesome.
• 34:29
  SPEAKER_02: Well, congratulations to you on building a great business, on securing some funding from sharks.
• 34:36
  SPEAKER_02: We look forward to following your career and see see you become that billionaire billion, billion dollar hospitality brand.
• 34:45
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, we hope you guys enjoyed Elevate the Hustle.
• 34:48
  SPEAKER_02: And awesome thanks again.
• 34:49
  SPEAKER_02: And we'll see you guys again next week.
• 34:51
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks, everybody.
• 34:52
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks, guys.