Beverage & Brand Advisory · San Diego · San Francisco Bay Area
by
Build it right. Run it well.
20+ years across spirits, hospitality, and fitness — as an operator, instructor, brand ambassador, and consultant. Building programs that are designed to outlast the build.
See the work
What I do
I work with restaurant groups, fitness brands, and boutique hotels across California and beyond — San Diego, Orange County, Palm Springs, Sacramento, the Bay Area, and nationally — on both sides of the equation: the beverage programs their guests remember, and the business strategy that makes growth sustainable.
The work behind what works.
I've held the roles I now advise on — West Division Sales, Marketing Director, Innovation Project Manager, National Brand Ambassador — inside major spirits companies, across distributor networks and markets nationwide. That operator background is what I bring to spirits brands, CPG beverage companies, boutique hotels, and growing hospitality concepts that need someone who can build the strategy, run the process, and make sure the work actually sticks. Not a deck. A result.
From concept to cocktails.
I build bar programs from the ground up — the menus, the costing, the prep systems, the training guides, and the reference materials that make the whole thing run. Every menu includes NA cocktails built to the same standard as the rest of the list. For concepts that want to go further, full non-alcoholic programs are available. Every decision is tied to your margins, your staff's actual capabilities, and your concept's identity. Whether it's a first opening or a multi-location standardization, the program is built to be handed off and executed without me in the room.
Built for your community.
I've been inside boutique fitness for 15 years — as a devotee, a barre and Pilates instructor, and a VP of Operations inside a growing multi-state concept. That full arc — member to teacher to operator — means I understand fitness brands from every angle that matters: the member experience, the studio floor, and the business infrastructure. For wellness-focused concepts, every menu includes NA cocktails built to the same standard as the full-proof list — and full non-alcoholic programs are available for concepts where that's the focus. For clients, that translates to multi-studio expansion, revenue stream development, and operational systems that scale without losing what made the original work.
Where good concepts become great businesses.
Opening a new location or scaling from two to five is where most concepts break — not because the idea is wrong, but because the operational infrastructure wasn't built to travel. I build the playbooks, training systems, beverage standards, and brand documentation that let a growing concept replicate what works without losing what made the original great. This is the work I'm most known for, and where I do my sharpest thinking.
How it works
We start with your concept, your guests, and your goals. I get into the numbers, walk the space, and understand what success looks like for your business — not a generic client.
You get a clear strategic direction — the story, the philosophy, and the approach that makes your program coherent and ownable. This is the foundation everything else builds on.
Whether it's a cocktail menu, a brand strategy, a retail program, or an operational playbook — every deliverable is documented, actionable, and built for your team to execute without me in the room.
Training guides, staff modules, and ongoing support to make sure your program runs the way it was designed. The goal is always a team that can own it without me in the room.
Selected projects
From opening programs to multi-unit rollouts, menu revamps to brand advisory — built for restaurants, boutique hotels, and fitness concepts across California and Hawaii — San Francisco, the Bay Area, San Diego, Orange County, Palm Springs, and beyond. Every engagement is built around the specific story a brand is trying to tell.
Traditional Mexican Flavors · San Francisco
Mexican ingredients and flavors paired with a wide variety of spirits — fun, fresh cocktails that go beyond the expected. A program built around discovery, not just margaritas.
Handmade Italian Casual · San Francisco
Classic cocktails with an Italian twist — aperitivi, amari, and vermouths woven throughout a menu designed for any time of day and all occasions. Bright and convivial by design.
Spanish Tapas & Cocktails · San Francisco
Adventurous but familiar — the vibrant flavors of Spain, sherry and herbs from Spanish cuisine incorporated throughout. A program that made the bar as essential as the tapas.
Craft Brewery & Bar · Ghirardelli Square, San Francisco
Opening bar program for one of San Francisco's most distinctive brewery concepts — a 10-barrel craft brewery with a full restaurant and outdoor beer garden at Ghirardelli Square. The cocktail program was built to complement an ambitious house beer lineup while standing fully on its own.
Classic French Brasserie · Bay Area (Multi-unit)
A multi-location French brasserie with an American Bar focus — extensive classic cocktail menus spanning prohibition-era originals and the modern canon. Built to scale across locations.
Retail Spirits Curation · North Park, San Diego
A 150-square-foot bottle shop on 30th Street dedicated to small-batch gin and natural wine — Erin curated the spirits collection, sourcing terroir-driven gins and rare bottles including a Japanese mandarin gin and a cashew-infused Indian gin. Also developed a quarterly gin-and-tonic club with in-person distiller tastings.
Cultural Cross-Section · San Francisco
Bright, bold flavors highlighting Southeast Asia's best ingredients — approachable yet transportive cocktails that took guests somewhere they hadn't expected to go.
Caribbean Rum Bar & Restaurant · Market Street, San Francisco
A multilevel rooftop cocktail bar, Caribbean restaurant, and event space on Market Street — drawing on Jamaican heritage with a rum program that goes deep on the island's best distilleries. Amaro-influenced, rooftop-ready, and built for a room with serious personality.
California Kitchen & Bar · San Francisco, Outer Sunset
Market-focused and neighborhood-rooted, lush with plants and California light. A cocktail program that matches the space — bright, fresh, and lively, leaning into local ingredients and golden-hour energy. Includes a non-alcoholic cocktail anchored by the Pacific Crest (hemp & root, lemon, ginger).
Mexican Robata · San Jose
Grounded in Mexico, shaped by Japan — every cocktail reflects both cultures simultaneously. A menu where mezcal meets shiso, rye gets washed in rice, and vermouth comes with wakame and cotija.
Menu Revamp · San Jose
A beloved San Jose institution given a fresh cocktail direction — whiskey-forward classics elevated with bright, seasonal flavors. The Farmer's Old Fashioned is barrel-aged in-house. The program respects the room without getting stuck in it.
About
"I've sat on every side of this business — and that's exactly the point."
I'm Erin Rea — 20+ years across spirits, hospitality, and fitness, in roles most consultants only advise on. I've worked in sales, I've run operations, I've done product development, I've built marketing strategies, and I've been behind the bar more times than I can count. I've opened concepts from scratch and turned around programs that had lost their way.
The through-line across all of it: I think like an operator, not a consultant. When I work with your brand, I'm not handing you a deck and wishing you luck. I'm in the details — your margins, your staff, your guests, your story — until the thing is actually running the way it should.
Before consulting, I spent years inside the spirits industry itself — as a West Division Sales lead, Marketing Director, Innovation Project Manager, and National Brand Ambassador across multiple major companies. I've built sales strategies, launched products, managed national campaigns, and represented brands in markets across the country. I know what it looks like from inside the supplier, not just across the table from one.
The fitness side of my work isn't new either. I've been a boutique fitness devotee for 15 years — barre, high-intensity Pilates, and more — and have been teaching for five. I've also held a VP of Operations role inside a growing multi-state fitness brand, which means I've seen the business from every angle that matters: the member, the instructor, and the executive. Now based in San Diego, I bring that full range of experience to Southern California and beyond.
My fitness industry experience spans the full arc — 15 years as a devotee, 5 as an instructor, and a VP of Operations role inside a growing multi-state fitness brand. I'm not advising from the sidelines. I know this business from the inside.
If you're a growing brand that needs someone who's genuinely done the work — not just advised on it — let's talk.
Experience
20+ years in industry
Background
Sales, marketing, ops, product dev
Based in
San Diego · Available nationally
Track record
SF Bay Area · Now serving San Diego
Boutique fitness
15-year devotee · Barre & Pilates instructor · Teaching since 2021
Fitness industry roles held
VP of Operations · Multi-state boutique fitness brand
Spirits industry roles held
National Brand Ambassador · Innovation Project Manager · Marketing Director · West Division Sales
Philosophy
Designed to outlast the build.
Approach
Operator first, always.
Before we talk
I work as a strategic partner.
My value is in the thinking and the systems I leave behind. Every engagement is designed so you and your team can run without me as quickly as possible — that's the goal, not a limitation.
Good work has a timeline.
I plan carefully and build programs that are ready when they need to be. The earlier we start working together, the better the result — for the work, and for both of us.
The best engagements are collaborations.
I bring 20+ years of operator experience to the table. The clients I do my best work with bring openness, honest context, and a genuine investment in getting it right — not just getting it done.
If that sounds like the way you work too — I'd love to hear what you're building.
Let's talk →What clients say
Across restaurants, bars, and the fitness industry — the common thread is always the same: programs that actually run, and work that moves the needle.
She is creative, consistent, strategic, and thorough. She brings a depth of experience that shows in every detail, from concept to final pour. Across every project, the pattern is the same: clear vision, steady execution, zero drama. She has a rare ability to take a beverage program from idea to reality in a way that feels easy.
Gregory Nasser
CEO, Borne LLC — Restaurant Intelligence AI/ML
Working with Erin means things get done — accurately, promptly, and without having to ask twice. She reshaped and scaled the operational foundation of our fitness brand in a way that created real, lasting change. She brings a rare combination of big-picture thinking and meticulous attention to detail that any growing company would be lucky to have.
Whitney Wolff
President & Creative Director, WhitWolff Media
From comprehensive trade advocacy programming, flawless event planning and execution, and strategic brand positioning — Erin always delivers. She’s creative, analytical, engaging, knowledgeable, and personable. The epitome of a professional at everything she does.
Sonia Urintsev
Marketing Director, CPG & Beverage Brands
Second beverage & restaurant testimonial coming soon.
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Get in touch
Every great engagement starts with a conversation. Whether you're in San Diego, Orange County, Palm Springs, Sacramento, the Bay Area, or Hawaii — let's talk about what you're building.
Based in San Diego and available across California — Orange County, Palm Springs, Los Angeles, Sacramento, the Bay Area — as well as Hawaii and nationally. Whether you're opening a new concept, refreshing a stale program, building a retail strategy, or growing a fitness brand — the first conversation is always free.
Or email directly → hello@byerinrea.com
Based in
San Diego · Orange County · Palm Springs · Sacramento · Bay Area · Hawaii · Nationally
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