If I told myself a year ago that when I grow up I would be working for a beer company, I probably would have just laughed it off. But behold, I began last Monday with Anheuser-Busch InBev! I am so lucky to have landed what seems to be an incredible upcoming career. My first week on the job included a crash course on the history of beer, a 40-cup sampling of different kinds of beer (Lagers, Ales, Bocks, Saison, Hefeweizens, Dubbels, IPA, you name it!), an interactive demonstration which included the proper way to pour a Stella Artois, a 5-course gourmet food and beer pairing, great catered lunches from Pappy's BBQ (the talk of STL), and a week full of bonding with my fellow Sales Management Trainees (SMTs).
"But Ryan, what's so cool about ABI? It's just work"
Well so far, the company culture has been incredible. Everyone is so laid back and cool, yet definitely ready to get the job done (of course). Dress code is jeans and a polo and when I asked if I should wear something nicer since I'm new, I received the simple answer "No, this is beer". I'm also stoked to learn that we receive two cases of beer for free every month!
Of course, these are just little things that make ABI a lot of fun to work for so far, but I am really excited to actually begin my role as a District Manager as soon as my 17-week training program is over here in Saint Louis. I don't quite know yet where I will be after this, which is definitely a scary thought, but I am taking it in full stride ready to explore a little.
But what an opportunity I have ahead of me. The SMTs will be pairing up in a few weeks to ship off to our wholesalers to see how they operate. The coolest part? I might be going to NEW YORK for a month!! The other options are Louisville, Denver, and San Diego....not bad! We will also be going to Dallas around the end of September so I should get lots of experience going through airports by myself now ha ha.
But I plan on posting as many pictures as I can here and updating as much as possible so that I can look back on my training and appreciate the open-mindedness I have right now--not knowing what's ahead in the least bit. I'm sure I'm going to be somewhere, caught up in work, laughing at just how little I know right now (and have right now.....where my money at!?). But I'm learning a little bit more everyday in this great industry they call beer.
Well that's all I have for my first week but will leave with a great quote I heard from our VP, Evan Athanas, when he came to visit us on Tuesday. Simple, yet very powerful.
"Never be afraid to be great!"
--Ryan
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