Bacardi, the privately held family-owned spirits company, completed 157 successful years recently. To mark the occasion and as part of the ‘Back to Bar’ yearly event, 7000 staff members of Bacardi across 130 cities of the world, visited over a thousand bars on the same day, to meet bar staff as well as customers. The exercise aimed to ensure that the Bacardi staff got a feel of the pulse of the customers and thought like founders. The idea was to allow the employees to get first-hand experience of how the business works and the changes that it has undergone.
The initiative helped to drive home the fact that it is ultimately the customer’s enjoyment that is important. The ‘Back to the Bar’ programme provides insights into what consumers actually want and enjoy.
In the process the employees share the history, culture and entrepreneurial spirit of the brand with the customers.
This employee engagement initiative also gave a chance to the Company to express their gratitude to the bars, restaurants as well as bartenders for their support.
The ‘Back to the Bar’ initiative has been successfully cultivating a founder’s mentality in the Bacardi staff, instilling a sense of ownership, encouraging them to be progressive, curious, and focussed on trends to be able to do exactly what is right for the business. In the long run, this ensures an undying entrepreneurial and passionate spirit, which ensures positivity and motivation.
