Meet Laura Huston | Founder of Belle & Bottle and Chairwoman of Belle & Bottle Foundation

We had the good fortune of connecting with Laura Huston and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Laura, how do you think about risk?
I think that in every entrepreneur there is an innate sense of a higher risk tolerance, or you wouldn’t be here. You’d have carved out a safer space for your success. As I reflect back on the many choices I have made over my career that pull me back to being an entrepreneur, the dominant factor is the conditions of a current workplace. It started when I had my first son, and realized that the demands of that career would not leave room for me to be a primary role in my son’s life. I choose to leave and started a photography company to combine one of my hobbies with a job that had flexibility in hours and location. As I have weaved in and out of different jobs over the past 20 years, seeing environments that are toxic to women has been a big driver in wanting to create opportunities for women that allow for an opportunity to thrive, utilization of skills learned from parenting as well as a safe and flexible space to grow and be successful. This goal is what drives my risk… what the reward looks like for women on the other side.

What should our readers know about your business?
Belle & Bottle is at its basic level a wine club, but what we have created is a community and what we aspire to create is a movement. I got into the wine industry as a transplant into the Seattle area, surrounded by hundreds of small wineries. I grew to see the magic of this community as a place where people can connect over a love of food & wine. The hospitality business is most of the time not glamorous, but coming from corporate America, I could not help but be drawn to the beauty that is wine. It is a connection to the earth, a connection to each other over a shared bottle or meal. Learning the culture through stories of passions and a ha moments, and listening to others tell of leaving an empty career behind.

We are embarking on a new project, specifically for women called Belle & Bottle Social. This community is being formed at a time when we have been so disconnected from one another from the pandemic and spending too much time scrolling our devices. Our space is dedicated to women and connecting them to the boutique side of the wine community. We want you to join our group, meet new friends or find new reasons to connect with old ones, and inspire you to get back out in real life more. Travel to a wine region, join a wine tasting group in your local city, connect with women business owners or listen to a class by a female winemaker. The community is two-fold in its purpose: provide a place for women to connect and grow with each other and create opportunities for female and family run businesses that work in wine and hospitality to reach an organic audience to share their stories with, bypassing the need for large distribution or large marketing budgets that dampen many small businesses. Wine is the conduit, but the connections and creating community are the goal. Imagine a space that supports women, cheers them on and stops to have a glass to celebrate the victories.

All of this said, 7 years in feels like the beginning of the journey. The road up until now was laying the groundwork. The fun (with a lot more hard work) is just starting!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
One of the great things about Nashville is that it continues to evolve and grow. Some people here seem to be unhappy about this, but having lived all over the country I find that every city does this no matter how hard you fight it, so I am going to enjoy the positives that come from it. Having lived here for college and only being back for less than two years, I constantly watch groups and places that post concerts and events that are happening. When we have friends visit I like to give them a great variety. Nashville’s Broadway is a must see, but can be quite overwhelming so that is usually a one day stop. Franklin and some of the surrounding small town squares or Main Streets show off the hospitality and Southern charm that drew me back to the area. Some bourbon tasting, live music and continuing to try new restaurants are always on the list. I still haven’t found a favorite wine spot yet so that is always something on the radar.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
This shoutout goes to the cheerleaders! I don’t have one person or group that could corner this award. This is for each person, along the journey, that told me to keep going, wrote a note of encouragement, expressed support by showing up to an event, or buying a product to say that they were behind me. I have a wonderful network of family and friends that support my work and desire to impact the community and industry that I work.

Website: https://belleandbottle.com

Instagram: https://instagram.com/belleandbottle

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-huston-7687167/

Facebook: https://facebook.com/belleandbottle