What does it take to build a beverage-forward concept that doesn't just survive industry turbulence but actually grows through it? At the 2026 Vibe Conference, three CEOs who have done exactly that sat down for a candid conversation about the strategies, philosophies, and hard-won lessons behind their brands' success. The panel included:
- David Kaplan, CEO of Gin & Luck and Co-Founder of Death & Co
- Alex Monahan, CEO of Fat Tuesday
- Michael Montagano, CEO of Dog Haus
They all represent very different concepts — a craft cocktail institution, the country's largest on-premise frozen drink operation, and a craft-casual biergarten chain — but they found surprising common ground on what it takes to sustain growth in a challenging environment.
Know Exactly Who You Are
The through-line of the entire conversation was brand identity. All three leaders returned repeatedly to the idea that clarity about who you are is the most powerful strategic tool an operator can have.
For Kaplan, that means Death & Co continues to be an exercise in trust and craft — a place where guests hand themselves over to the expertise of the bar team. The brand's newer concept, Close Company, channels a more accessible, nostalgic diner energy, but even there, the identity is sharp and intentional. "If we ruthlessly examine our core values and know who we are," Kaplan said, "and consistently turn back to that and make decisions based upon that instead of being reactive, that will lead to the best, most authentic experience."
Monahan echoed that sentiment from the Fat Tuesday side, noting that when the brand tried rolling out a "skinny" drink menu years ago, it fell flat because it went against the indulgence the brand is known for. "We can't pretend to be something different," he said.
For Montagano, Dog Haus's identity is built around quality proteins, local beer partnerships, and an honest, unpretentious experience. That clarity has helped the brand navigate value-war pressures without chasing competitors into a race to the bottom.
Beverage as a Traffic Driver and Differentiator
All three brands have leaned deliberately into beverage programming as both a traffic driver and a point of genuine differentiation — not as an afterthought to food.
At Dog Haus, a mandate of seven core beer selections is paired with deep flexibility for operators to work with regional and local brewery partners. In some markets, those local beer partnerships drive as much traffic as the food itself. The brand has also found success elevating its "dirty soda" and non-alcoholic beer offerings, which have attracted a meaningfully younger demographic.
Fat Tuesday's frozen drink program is the brand's heartbeat, and recent evolution on that front has been thoughtful rather than reactive. The core five flavors remain constant across all locations, but the brand introduces new and seasonal flavors regularly, including co-created options with celebrity spirit partners. A major recent win: putting recommended drink combinations front and center on menu boards. That simple change — making customization visible and approachable for newer guests — drove measurable increases in average ticket size.
Death & Co's approach to innovation is perhaps the most organic of the three. With over 2,500 original cocktails developed across its 20-year history, and individual bar teams empowered to create their own signatures, each location develops a distinct personality. An upcoming fourth book will document that creative canon. The brand's new "choose your own spirit" cocktail format at Close Company has also been a standout success — leaning into guest agency in a way that feels natural to the brand rather than gimmicky.
Customization and the Younger Guest
A recurring theme was the expectation of personalization among younger guests — and how operators can meet that demand in ways that feel authentic rather than pandering. Fat Tuesday's model, with its mix-and-match frozen flavor combinations and branded cups designed for social sharing (cowboy boots in Texas, for instance), has been particularly effective at generating organic social content. Monahan noted that watching customers photograph their drinks at the bar is one of his favorite metrics.
All three panelists observed that their core demographics skew younger than the industry hand-wringing about youth drinking trends might suggest. Death & Co's primary guest is 25–35, and Close Company runs a couple of years younger than that. Fat Tuesday's base is largely under 35 as well. The challenge, as Monahan framed it, isn't that young guests won't come — it's that they face real affordability pressures, and operators need to earn the visit. That means building enough value, flexibility, and experience into the concept so that choosing to go out feels worth it.
Data Is No Longer Optional
When the topic shifted to data and technology, all three operators described a meaningful change in how they're using guest data — and acknowledged they're still catching up to what's now possible.
Montagano described the launch of Dog Haus's first-party app and ordering system two years ago as a turning point that provided the brand with genuine behavioral data for the first time. One early insight: Breakfast-daypart guests weren't attaching sides to their orders, not because they didn't want them, but because the default burrito came fully loaded. Recognizing that and adjusting the upsell approach to push beverages instead drove a 54% increase in drink attachment at breakfast. Montagano said it's about "getting out of your own way sometimes" and doing what the numbers tell you.
Kaplan said Death & Co always used data to help drive operations but not its marketing. Historically, the brand is great at social media, but they weren't capturing their guests' data, which led to a very one-sided conversation. All of that has changed in the last year. "We have so much more at our fingertips than we ever have had in terms of CRM platforms and the AI pieces that we can put on top of those to scrape that data and to help utilize it various, different ways," he said.
Death & Co has since launched a curated membership program that's invitation-only and built from existing community data, aimed at identifying and deepening relationships with the brand's best guests. Early results have been strong, and the recurring revenue model represents a meaningful shift in how the business thinks about guest relationships.
Fat Tuesday scans every purchase, building a picture of where guests are coming from and how to bring them back. In a brand where many locations are in tourist-heavy environments, that data has become essential to understanding the difference between a transient guest and a potential loyal one.
Navigating Value Wars and the GLP-1 Question
No CEO conversation in 2025 or 2026 is complete without addressing the pressures of the current value environment — and the elephant in the room of GLP-1 medications.
Fat Tuesday hasn't raised prices in two years, a deliberate choice to keep the experience accessible even as input costs climb. Dog Haus has taken some measured price increases but has stayed principled about not sacrificing the quality of its proteins to chase margin. Kaplan found a characteristically creative workaround during a crowdfunding campaign: Offering a throwback $12 cocktail menu at 2006–2007 prices as a shareholder perk. It went viral, raised millions, and made a marketing asset out of a cost conversation.
On GLP-1s and health and wellness trends more broadly, the panel was optimistic rather than alarmed. The consensus: when people do go out, the experience and the food and drinks better be worth it. Impulse visits may decline, but the guests who show up will be more intentional — and more willing to spend on something exceptional. Montagano framed it as a potential golden age for operators who get the experience right.
The Future of Hospitality Is Human
Asked to look ahead, all three panelists circled back to the same fundamental: Genuine human connection is the irreplaceable core of the hospitality business. As AI becomes more embedded in daily life and social interaction continues to shift toward screens, the experience of being in a room with great people, great drinks, and great energy becomes more valuable — not less.
"Great hospitality and the need for human connectivity is not going to go away," Kaplan said. "It's a psychological fundamental need, and we're the people that provide that."
It all points back to the guest experience being one of the most important elements. "If we remember that this is meant to be fun, then our guests will remember it too, and that fun can look like a lot of different things," said Kaplan.
Keep an eye out for more recaps of our Vibe Conference sessions!
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