Frankie Walker has been in the business of serving alcohol for years. Photo / Supplied
Frankie Walker has been in the business of serving alcohol for years. Photo / Supplied
There aren't many businesses where it's okay to drink on the job.
The man behind Auckland cocktail company Black Pineapple Co, Frankie Walker spends his days surrounded by premium booze.
But after 12 years in the drinks business - he worked for beer giant Lion for 10 years before starting his own company - the UK native realised he had a problem with his own drinking.
"Growing up in 70s, 80s culture was different, and working in hospitality you're drinking in a way that is definitely damaging," Walker tells the Herald.
"Drinking on the job is so normalised. When you work in bars, you're serving people six nights a week, watching them have a good time and then of course on your one night off a week, you want to go out. The trigger is such a deep pattern that goes back years."
Walker decided he wanted to get to a place where he had more conscious control over his drinking.
"When you stop drinking, you realise all of the triggers, and there's a lot more than I thought: a good day, a bad day, going to a particular restaurant, hanging out with a particular person."
One of the toughest parts of giving up booze is explaining it to your mates - it can be "triggering" for them to hear, he says.
"Personally I've found with not drinking myself that there are times when it's just easier not to say anything - but I'm becoming more confident with being able to talk about it. People just have to deal with it. A lot of people who have stopped drinking, a very common thing they all say is that you will lose friends as a result of not drinking.
Walker wants to make more quality alcohol-free drink options available for Kiwis. Photo / Supplied
"But if someone's really your mate and you're truthful with them, they will understand."
One of the reasons Walker started Black Pineapple Co was that he was "disappointed" with the range of alcohol-free drinks on offer at events.
"If you're lucky, you'll get an orange juice or some sparkling water with a bit of lemon in it."
With alcohol-free versions of his signature at-home cocktail kits available, he wants to give more Kiwis the option to enjoy a quality alcohol-free drink - but he's banned the use of the word "mocktail".
"We don't talk about anything being 'virgin' or 'mock' - they're all cocktails, some have alcohol and some don't."
He hopes that if more options become available, more people will feel encouraged to try cutting back on the booze. It's about "drinking less, drinking better", he says - "not just being a means to an end, just to get p***ed".
"We've still got a way to go, I would like to see it more normalised. It's got to be a good thing for people to be more responsibly drinking."
