Meet Kirk Neil Pinner, the owner of Island Coast Vodka, Tasmania
Meet Kirk Neil Pinner, the small business owner of Island Coast Spirits in Tasmania. Prior to starting his own business, Kirk was a teacher for several years; teaching business and hospitality to international students and worked as a manager for hospitality and tourist venues. Attributing to his diverse industry knowledge and love for spirits, Kirk decided to start his own business where he could sell high-quality Tasmanian Spirits; particularly, rum, vodka, gin and whisky.
“I take absolute pride in selling hand-crafted small batches of spirits distilled with pristine Tasmanian water and freshest air on the planet. I specialise in offering a double distilled wheat-based Vodka and a part molasses and part raw sugar cane juice Rum matured in gently toasted American Oak barrels.”
Read more about Kirk’s business journey so far:
Kirk’s Business
What is your business? How long has the business been operating?
My business, Island Coast Spirits is based in Hobart, Tasmania and it has been operating since October, 2021. I specialise in offering Tasmanian spirits; vodka, rum, gin and whisky. I take absolute pride in offering the highest quality of spirits which are handcrafted and distilled in small batches while using pristine Tasmanian water, and the finest premium ingredients.
I have been around in the hospitality, spirits and tourism industry for so long that I wanted to take advantage of my knowledge to start my own business. I always had a real significant interest in this industry because I knew how much potential it has in terms of growth. I always knew that Tasmanian spirits have a great reputation not only in Australia but also worldwide due to their high quality of freshness and taste.
Prior to starting my business, I was a teacher for several years. I taught business and hospitality to international students and worked as a manager for hospitality and tourist venues. I have also worked inter-state in Victoria and NSW and in the US for a few years in the hospitality industry.
My business model is based on direct sales as I sell my products directly to the customers. I travel quite a lot to attend spirit exhibitions, events and markets within Tasmania and inter-state as well. By attending these events, I get the opportunity to showcase and sell my products directly to customers who appreciate the taste of Tasmanian spirits. I also want to highlight that I am considered an independent distiller in the spirits industry as I don’t own a distillery. I know distillers in Hobart who customise the spirit to my specifications. 
I recently attended the Tasmanian Whisky Week to showcase and sell my products to a larger audience. To add to this, another exciting news for the month of August is that Island Coast Whisky 200 ml bottles are now available at the Tasmanian gift shop at the Hobart Airport. I also attended the Whisky Live Sydney which was a great opportunity for me to sell my products, capture a new customer base and create new connections in the industry. I am looking forward to attending another exciting spirits event at Darling Harbour in Sydney very soon where I will be able to attract an even larger audience to taste and purchase my speciality spirits.
Working with Many Rivers
I have received a variety of services from Many Rivers since starting my business in October 2021 and I am truly grateful for their support throughout my business journey.
Anthony, my business coach from Many Rivers has always been there to mentor me such as reviewing my business plan and sharing suggestions to improvise my plan. He is always proactive with respect to giving me business ideas and tips to grow my business.
On Anthony’s suggestion, I attended a big whisky event in Sydney where I utilised the loan that I received from Many Rivers. It was a great opportunity for my business as it allowed me to showcase and sell my products by setting up a stall. I was able to meet my budget and sales targets by attending this event and this allowed me to increase my stock levels alongside purchasing caps and labels for my spirit bottles.
Yes, I received a loan of $6000 from Many Rivers which played a significant role in attending a big whisky event in Sydney.
Do you have any current employees?
Since my business is still in the early phase, I have not hired any employees as of now. I am dedicating full-time hours to my business, and I feel more focused since I am managing everything on my own from managing my sales, cashflow, attending events and markets, managing my website and social media marketing as well. I plan to hire 1-2 two employees next year to suit my business growth and expansion needs.
Biggest Challenge
The biggest challenge for me is the high cost of goods due to the rising inflation nowadays. I feel that there has been a sudden increase in the cost of freight, packaging and delivery which has been affecting my cashflow. But at the same time, I feel glad that I am an independent distiller which allows me to avoid all kinds of overhead costs associated with operating your own distillery such as water and electricity bills, high rent, the risk of equipment breakdown and so on. I am hopeful that in the future with the help of inter-state expansion and by entering export markets, my business will reap greater sales and profits to meet the high cost of goods.
Biggest Success
The biggest success for me is the positive feedback that I receive from my customers and the local and international recognition that my business receives. My business is very much customer-focused so my success lies behind my customer’s satisfaction and delight.
My Island Coast Vodka was recently awarded a Silver Medal at the Tokyo Spirits Awards in Japan for its premium quality and taste. This was followed by a Gold Medal at the World Vodka Awards in March 2023. I feel honoured that my business is being recognised internationally as well by such prestigious awards.
Biggest Change
The contentment and fulfilment that I feel after starting this business is the biggest change for me. I did not experience this kind of work-life balance and happiness during my previous work life.
To be honest, it feels awesome to be able to start my own business and to be able to do what I love to do and it feels even better when I see my customers are happy as well. In simple terms, my business is phenomenal for me because it does not feel like work to me rather feels like enjoyment most of the time.
Future Goals
I hope to achieve business expansion in the future since my business has the potential to grow above and beyond Australia as well. It is incredible that my business has garnered both World and Australian Awards for its exceptional spirits within such a short span of time. The awards, the customer satisfaction, and the recognition of Tasmanian spirits around the world has motivated me to think around the lines of expansion.
As a short-term expansion goal, I plan to expand within different states in Australia as right now I am only operating in Tasmania. I plan to do so by attending important events in New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria where I can market my products and capture a larger customer base. In the long-term, my plan is to expand into Japan and Singaporean markets where Tasmanian spirits have a lot of demand and recognition.
In a nutshell, my future goal is to make high-quality Tasmanian spirits available to a larger market space within Australia and globally while not losing sight of my customer’s satisfaction.
Thank you, Kirk, for sharing your business journey with us. We wish you the best of luck with your future endeavours and business success.
If you would like to stay updated with Kirk and his small business, follow Island Coast Vodka on social media:
Website: https://islandcoastvodka.com.au/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ISLANDCOASTSPIRITS/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirk-pinner-041ab063/
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