UC News

New Riff Distilling: Treat people right and the rest will follow

3 minute read September 9, 2022

New Riff Distilling Founder Ken Lewis knows that if he and his team relentlessly pursue making great whiskey, both New Riff’s reputation and its profits will grow. That’s what’s behind the ambitious mission for his company: To become one of the great small distilleries of the world.

Employees are the key to achieving that mission and New Riff has taken a page from leadership guru Jon Gordon to build a culture of greatness. It starts with hiring the best people who get New Riff’s culture and want to be a part of it and continues with bringing out the best in those same people. The company’s mantra is: "Give our employees a clear mission, provide the best tools for the job and get the hell out of their way."

Since its founding in 2014, New Riff has fostered a team mindset of high expectations and a collective determination to find pride in excellence and achievement. Underpinning its winning culture are the following concepts:

  • Shared Purpose: Human beings want a lot more than a paycheck. They want their work lives to have meaning and purpose.
  • Exceptionalism: New Riff expects every employee to be a career employee and seeks exceptional employees to make exceptional whiskey. In turn, New Riff provides exceptional pay and benefits.
  • Expectations: New Riff expects its employees to be high achievers who collectively provide an ethical, tolerant and fair workplace welcoming to all.
  • Trust: New Riff puts employees first, earning their trust through regular communication, a benefits plan that includes 100 percent healthcare coverage, unlimited time off and sick pay, and a profit-sharing pension plan to care for them in retirement.
  • Transparency: New Riff pledges to always be transparent to its customers, employees and community and it discusses strategy, plans and its financial position in regular employee meetings.

New Riff’s culture, with its strong focus on caring for employees, didn’t need adjustments for the company to get through the Great Resignation and Great Reawakening. Instead, it was the bedrock that sustained both employees and the company, leading it to spark a bourbon tourism boom in Cincinnati and earn medals, positive press, a sterling reputation, growing sales and profits. It’s a fitting outcome for its owners, who believe that "whatever you send into the lives of others will come back into your own."

Featured image: Ken Lewis (Founder/CEO) of New Riff Distilling

The Goering Center is sharing this content as part of its 2022 Family and Private Business Awards celebration.

About New Riff Distilling

New Riff began distilling in 2014 and now has about 53 full-time employees producing about 11,500 whiskey barrels a year. Proud to be the spark for bringing bourbon tourism to Greater Cincinnati, New Riff is family owned and operated with no outside investment now or forever. They know if they treat all people right, with respect and fairness, the whiskey will turn out right, too. And so they do. And so it does.

About the Goering Center for Family & Private Business

Established in 1989, the Goering Center serves more than 400 member companies, making it North America’s largest university-based educational non-profit center for family and private businesses. The Center’s mission is to nurture and educate family and private businesses to drive a vibrant economy. Affiliation with the Carl H. Lindner College of Business at the University of Cincinnati provides access to a vast resource of business programming and expertise. Goering Center members receive real-world insights that enlighten, strengthen and prolong family and private business success. For more information on the Center, participation and membership visit goering.uc.edu.

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