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There has been a sea of change in the wholesale industry over the last few years. Women now have a seat at the table, their voices are being heard and their input is being acted on. I am proud to be part of this change and continue to champion for future female leaders.

I made the move from automotive to the wine and spirits industry thanks to a referral from a colleague. The accounting/finance side is the same in this industry, but the operational rules and regulations are vastly different from the automotive industry. I have been with Great Lakes Wine & Spirits for 6 years and I am still learning new things all the time. Women are not limited in this industry, no matter your skill set or ability if you are willing to work hard and take the time to learn, the opportunities are endless.

I joined Great Lakes Wine & Spirits as a District Manager in their On-Premise Division. After six months I was approached by senior management to form a new “Outstate Division”. With this being a flagship role, and the importance it had on the future growth of the company, it came with a tremendous responsibility along with a fear of potential failure. The team started with nine employees our first year and now 17 years later, not without challenges and hard work, we are over 100 team members strong.

This industry has taught me that success is staying focused against your strengths and be authentic to who you are, instead of trying to replicate others in the room. No matter what the position is, you have been put there for a reason, so show them what you've got.

I stumbled into this industry due to a love for wine. But I quickly found out that this is a huge industry, partially insulated from economic fluctuations and populated by all sorts of dynamic and interesting people, plus there are endless paths one can take within the industry. And I still get to be around wine!

My career path was very accidental. I started off as a temp employee answering phones during the Holiday push. After a few weeks I fell in love with not only the industry, but the company. It was something different every day. From there, I took over the Sam’s Club and Costco appointments and delivery schedules while working in Customer Service. Then, there was the move to Operations. From there, I never looked back.