Conversations with the Inspiring Whitney Johndro

Today we’d like to introduce you to Whitney Johndro.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Whitney. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I have always had a love for craft. Growing up in Santa Barbara surrounded by so many artists and creatives and also in a family dedicated to healthy living, cooking great meals, and sharing stories around the dinner table, I knew at a young age my dedication to Gastronomy would only continue to grow. I have so many memories attached to food and drink both as a kid and as an adult traveling the world. The Anthropologist in me has always been intrigued by the cultural significances of food and beverages in society as well as the health benefits, ritual and religious connections, and how food and drink bring people together from all walks of life.

Attending UCSB and then Boston University, I began to dive deeper into this through my education and it fueled in me an ever growing passion in health, nutrition, changing our American food system, bridging the gap between farmers and consumers, and making craft items more accessible to all. It’s all about knowing what you are buying and supporting the little guy. It was during my time at Boston that I really began to find my way in this industry. I began working at a local wine store during Graduate school, educating people on local wine and craft beer during weekly tastings. Outside of this, I was also volunteering for some of the smaller breweries in town, helping with many of their offsite events. During this, I was also enrolled in and studying viniculture to further my knowledge in the trade. Though my graduate program focused more on the anthropological side of food and drinks, public policy, and health, I found myself being continually drawn to the production of these items.

When I moved back to California, I began a sales and marketing position for CORE Foods in Los Angeles, a company dedicated to creating a healthier planet through nutritious foods and transparency in their sourcing. It was empowering to be able to educate people about the items they were putting in their bodies and feel like I was helping to move the needle towards better choices in the grocery store. It wasn’t easy finding a job in one of the two fields I loved and I remember a few rejections and bad interviews before landing in the perfect place.

It wasn’t long after that, that I fell in love with Encinitas and moved to San Diego, the craft capital. It was here that I took a job in the brewery industry to originally just pay my bills while I searched for jobs in the non-profit and grassroots food industry. Though farmers markets are incredible in this area and Encinitians are health-minded individuals, the growth in organizations focused on shaking up our food system in San Diego at large was pretty small seven years ago. (There is much more going on in that realm here today!)

As I continued to search for something more in line with my Master’s degree, I was also falling back in love with the wine and craft beer industry, which is still where I am today. I began my career working for Stone Brewing Company in Escondido, then moved onto Mike Hess Brewing Co before landing myself at my current home, Culture Brewing Co. Additionally, my parents moved to town five years ago and started an organic hop farm, San Diego Golden Hop Farm, named for our lovely golden retriever, Rocky. It has been awesome to share this industry with them and help them to grow their presence through social media marketing. More importantly, I loved being a part of all their picking parties and helping breweries around San Diego source local, organic hops for their yearly wet hop beers. Though it has always been a dream to start my own grassroots project in the food industry, I have absolutely loved being a part of the growing craft beer scene in San Diego and so happy that a passion and hobby became my forever career. The craft brewery industry as a whole is extremely fun to be a part of and watching more and more woman become a part of it is really exciting. I have been an active member of the Pink Boots Society, which is a great organization dedicated to supporting a woman in the craft brewing profession. If anyone is looking to get into the beer industry or new to it, I highly suggest getting in touch with their local chapter and begin attending their educational and networking events.

In May I had my five year anniversary at Culture Brewing Co and it has been great to really grow along side them. I started originally as a server in our Solana Beach taproom, quickly moving on to the position as our Manager and then eventually taking on behind the scenes tasks as we continued to expand. I am officially now our Director of Operations managing all of our HR, Accounting, Operations, and Marketing and Tasting Room departments. When I started, we had one location and I am currently working on the opening of our 4th, which will be our first one outside of San Diego County. I only hope to continue to learn and grow with them and educate people about craft beer and its dedication to sustainability, quality, and creation of brands that people can relate to through their stories.

When I am not at Culture Brewing Co, I also teach vinyasa and Ashtanga-inspired yoga classes locally here in Encinitas at Evolve Yoga and work on my mini side hustle, Pluma and Sage, an earring company I started last year. Both of these allow me to tap into my artistic side and get more involved with my local community.

Has it been a smooth road?
Hasn’t been the smoothest but definitely not bad either. I think you need to keep sticking up for yourself and your worth and don’t let anyone tell you your vision can’t happen. I remember being frustrated by job applications. It seemed that I had the education for the position and lacked the experience or felt like I was too experienced and would be unchallenged/underpaid. My first job here in San Diego only lasted a year before I knew I had to move on. I definitely applied for several jobs internally that I thought more aligned with my skills and vision but when things didn’t pan out, I found a job elsewhere. At the time, I felt discouraged by a bigger company where I wasn’t sure I could grow and the job market at large. I may have been a bit young with high expectations but it encouraged me to try harder. Sometimes, it isn’t until you have made all your choices and looked back a few years later to realize it was all part of the process and you had to go through each experience to get where you are today. I got to where I am today for speaking out about what I wanted to do in my career and how I thought that would align with Culture. Over the past few years, we have continued to tweak my position and they have fostered my growth through both internal and external education. I knew what I wanted to do for them and together we made it happen and with a little magic I had just ended up in the right place at the right time.

My best advice for other ladies out there is don’t settle for something that you aren’t passionate about and doesn’t make you happy. Especially as a woman in a male-dominated industry, keep pushing on. Don’t be afraid to put in the long hours to get where you want and then also don’t be afraid to ask for a little work-life balance. And keep on learning! Whether that be in your own industry or another, never stop growing and diversifying your skill set as you never know what opportunity might come your way next. I had no idea this is where I would have ended up seven years ago but hard work, dedication, and showing people what I have to offer landed me exactly where I wanted to be.

Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
My day to day job is always evolving as working for a growing start-up means wearing many hats. Most days, you may find me in the office working on managing people and culture, tasting room operations, ordering all of our merchandise and back of house orders, accounting, and creating SOPs, just to name a bit. I also focus a lot on our expansion projects, sourcing new locations and all permits, and hiring. When I am not behind the scenes, you may find me pouring a beer or two in one of our tasting rooms or attending a local craft brewery event. But I feel like even that description doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface. I am definitely proud of our organization for remaining unique in a an extremely fast growing industry and market. The team I have helped to create over the years have great customer service and spirit and really live the Culture Brewing Co “culture.”  Additionally, I am honored to help foster their growth over the years and our employees individual growth as well as working on all the new and exciting projects we take on.

Contact Info:

• Email: whitney@culturebrewingco.com

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