of the flavor. It makes a great, late- afternoon, evening or dessert coffee,” David adds.
David Sr.’s goal right from the start was to create a sustain- able business for his family to carry on through generations. While he is the owner of many other businesses in York, he considers the distillery to be the legacy marker — the business that will employ generations of the Woods family. “I have been self-employed since I was 18,” David explains. “I’m probably unemployable! … We currently operate eight family businesses, my children and their spouses all work for the company, managing the different entities. I’ve got six grandchildren, and that’s what the distillery is built for — to provide them with a livelihood as they get older, if they so choose.” At the moment, the plans for the distillery under David’s watch is to become a well- recognized brand in New England. “We really just want to be a NorthEast brand. We have a production cap, actually. Once we hit that, that’s all we will sell. If we continue to hit that, we will just raise prices and use that as the throttle.” And a recognized brand they are indeed. David points out that the distillery has walked away from three acquisition deals, at least one of them coming with a pretty hefty payday. However, the main commitment in the business plan for the future is to ensure that Wiggly Bridge remains a family-run company. And the hard work inherent with running a distill- ery is part of the deal for future generations to bear. Wiggly Bridge is indeed a real bridge. In fact, it turns out that it is the world’s smallest suspension bridge, sitting about 2 miles from their barn distillery. It was built in 1929 and spans from the town to a little island of public land. “It was an island, but through the years, when they tore the junior high school down, they dumped all the cinder blocks and dirt there, so it’s now connected to the mainland.” “When I hear ‘you can’t do that’, it provides me with the incentive to go in the other direction and do it.” David segues into the reason for paying homage to the bridge by pointing out that the island was the destination for many teen partiers of his generation. “It seemed appro- priate, getting into the spirit business, to name it after a place where I consumed a fair amount of spirits and beer!” “I don’t believe in trust fund kids,” he offers. “Everyone needs to know what an 80- hour work week looks like.” The conversation with David concludes with a bit of history behind the name.
bones about the fact that the distillery is his last effort before hanging ‘em up, and the future lies with upcoming genera- tions. “It’s my retirement gig. And it’s fun to work with all of the family. I’m a pretty philosophical guy and I stick to the plan.” If the plan is to make Wiggly Bridge one of the most respected and lucrative family- run spirit producers in Maine, they’re right on track!
David concludes by explaining that Wiggly Bridge is about halfway to their final size and distribution plan. He makes no
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DECEMBER 2018 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
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