Charlie Bailes is this week’s Getting Real entrepreneur where he chats with Bill about his entrepreneurial life. He is a fourth-generation wine business owner and the Founder of CB Supplements. Get to know his journey, some of the challenges he faced with filling the past generations’ shoes, and so much more!

Because of the pandemic, Charlie has seen a lot of supply chain issues in his wine business. He buys products from all over the world, so it affects him on a larger scale than one might think. If France is shut down, well, it means he’s going to have a hard time acquiring French wine. He found himself having to ration his liquor supply to help keep things stable.

Also, because of what’s happening between Russia and Ukraine, Charlie has taken all the Russian-made brands off of his shelf to support Ukraine's fight. Though, it’s interesting to note that because we live in such a global world, what really classifies as a “Russian” brand anymore? So many products get sourced all over to create a particular product. If you were to ban a Russian product, chances are you are also banning the non-Russian suppliers, too.

What was it like for Charlie to get grandfathered into a fourth-generation business? Charlie has been actively working in it for 13 years. There are a lot of family members who decided this business wasn’t for them, but Charlie is incredibly happy with the decision to be part of the family business. Charlie oversees a lot of the back-end operations to make sure the business is running smoothly. This includes IT, finance and accounting, HR, and so much more.

Charlie believes the luckiest break the business has had is it’s still a privately-held company. You are given the opportunity to look way beyond the next quarter, which means you can plan for longevity and the next-generation takeover. Charlie’s family has probably rebuilt the business five to six times because of this. This strategy is how they were able to rise above the uncertainties of COVID-19.

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304: Getting Real with Charlie Bailes — ABC Fine Wines

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