Career Path Of A Proprietor And General Manager At Crux Winery
Brian's career path was "not very linear," starting with a business-oriented college education that transitioned into a history major, followed by 30 years in healthcare consulting. This experience, however, provided "basic skills that you can apply to any vocation," ultimately leading to a decade-long home winemaking hobby that blossomed into launching Crux Winery in 2012, a venture that overlapped with their consulting career for several years before becoming their sole focus.
Career Exploration, Entrepreneurship, Non-linear Career Path, Side Hustle, Work-Life Integration
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Brian Callahan
Proprietor and General Manager
Crux Winery
Cal Poly - San Luis Obispo
N/A
History, Art History
Food, Beverages & Alcohol
Sales and Client Management
Worked 20+ Hours in School, Greek Life Member, Student Athlete
Video Highlights
1. Brian's career path was not linear, showcasing that diverse experiences can lead to fulfilling careers.
2. He transitioned from a history major and healthcare consulting to owning a winery, highlighting the value of transferable skills.
3. He balanced his consulting career with a decade-long side hustle of home winemaking before launching his winery brand, demonstrating perseverance and passion.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path? Please start with your experiences in college and any internships or jobs you had before your current role as owner of a winery.
I will certainly start by saying I have not had a very linear career path. Going into college, I was probably more business-oriented but also thought I'd possibly become an attorney.
Going to Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, the business school was very impacted, and I wasn't really smart enough to take that route. So I ended up with a history major and a minor in communications, again, thinking that my route would take me to be an attorney.
Over the course of time, I realized that wasn't the case, nor did I think that my education would limit my opportunities after school. So I did my best to enjoy college, both for the scholastic and social aspects.
When I graduated, I ended up working for a fairly new consulting firm that specialized in business management consulting in the healthcare space. So clearly, nothing related to my history major.
I think the best part of education is teaching you to be analytical, a self-starter, and all the basic skills that you can apply to any vocation that you choose. So I actually spent 30 years doing healthcare consulting.
In the midst of that, I was living in wine country and decided I would have a little side hustle, which is where Crux Winery began. I made wine as a home winemaker for about 10 years before launching the brand in 2012. I didn't retire from my day job until about four years ago. So my winery career and my consulting career overlapped for a number of years.