Growing Gender Diversity

When Karen decided to start making rum, she knew the industry would be male dominated. Even with realistic expectations, some of what she found surprised and disheartened her. She had to fight to be taken seriously for her first decade in business. And women business owners continue to have difficulty accessing venture capital funds, bank financing, and other resources. Never one to back down, she set out to change that reality and create opportunity for women in distilling and the world of rum.

Creating gender diversity and a safe work enviroment.

The fact that female business owners receive less than 3% of venture capital in the US is stark enough on its own. But as Karen has observed, there are other forces at play that make the alcohol beverage industry a challenge for women.

For starters, they often have no generational mentorship, meaning their fathers and the generation before them rarely groomed them to be business owners.

Women in all positions also experience micro-aggressions in the workplace (often daily): being mistaken for someone with no clout, having to prove themselves before being taken seriously, and having to justify decisions more often than men.

At Montanya, Karen often receives emails addressed to “Dear Sir” (after more than 10 years in operation!).

It’s also not uncommon for someone to stop by the Tasting Room and dismiss her in search of the person in charge.

Women in the industry also deal with inappropriate conduct from patrons and sexual harassment.

According to Toast author Cailey Lindberg, employee turnover in the restaurant industry hit a five-year high of 75% in 2018. Many of those are women looking for safer, more supportive workplace cultures.

From the beginning, Karen has been determined to keep these factors from stalling her own progress or the growth of Montanya Distillers. And she’s been committed to creating safe workplaces for women and opportunity across the industry.

Evolving the industry

Women of the Vine & Spirits