Off with a Shot and a Business is Born.

This blog started in the middle of our adventure in wine importing. When people hear that we own our own wine importing company, they say, “Cooool! How did you get into that?”. Well, let me tell you the story over the next few blog entries.

Elemental Importers was born during a time of great struggle for the newly engaged Ashley & Ryan. I won’t go into the details, but we came face to face with the evils of the ability of humans to thoughtlessly harm others for personal gain. “The Man” stuck it to us, and while our natural instinct was to turn tail and run we gathered together and resolved to grow stronger. We decided to not stick it back to “The Man” but rather rise above “The Man” and never think of him again.

So, puffed up with optimism and determination, we did a rather stupid (or brilliant depending on your perspective) thing…we pledged with a clink of vodka-filled shot glasses to start our own business. Sometimes God doesn’t allow you to see the whole picture in the beginning, because if he did, you wouldn’t want to be part of the show. Completely unaware of what was to follow, we rolled up our sleeves and dove in.

Looking back, I consider the moment I felt that cold burn of vodka rushing down my throat as the bravest and greatest moment of my life thus far – I guess except for the moment when I married Ryan a number of months later – of course.