Carlos A. Rios Email & Phone Number

New York, Ny, Us

Los Angeles, California, Us

East Farmingdale, New York, Us

I founded Cosmic Turtle Group with the intent of joining forces with other do-gooders in the cannabis space in order to help great weed brands with great owners who care to make it onto great shelves.• CTG offers sales & marketing leadership services for high-profile, startup cannabis brands.• Work with agency partners to develop & execute plans: sales, distribution, field marketing, demand planning, pricing strategy, hiring, new product development, hiring.• Identify and broker new cultivation/ flower, manufacturing, and distribution partnership for agency brands.• Recruit, hire, train, and manage all field sales reps and brand advocacy representatives.• Individual contributor (player/ coach), call on local & regional dispensary buyers to secure placements.• Develop custom reporting tools, provide weekly recaps, monthly wrap-ups, and annual reviews.• Lead all retail marketing efforts including POS development, staff trainings, and demo/ PAD days.• Represent agency brands at large-scale cannabis events (Hall of Flowers, Emerald Cup, Champs Las Vegas).

Los Angeles, California, Us

• Director of Sales for Russian Assassin Boyz & High Season, both ultra-premium cannabis brands.• Created 3rd party retail (outside sales) division, grossing $900k in revenue in initial 10 months of sales.• As interim Director of Marketing, spearheaded development and launch of the “Micro Batch Series.”• As “Player/ Coach,” personally built a $100k/ month territory in Southern California.• Worked closely with leadership to develop annual sales plans, hiring, demand planning, & pricing strategy.• Led the buildout of our Distribution Center, recruiting, hiring and managing 4 direct reports.

• Represented a portfolio of luxury spirits across North America for Atom Brands, which is owned by Anheuser Busch's ZY Ventures.• Oversaw all Atom Group sales functions with a focus on the CA, NY, IL, FL, GA, TX and Canada markets.• Managed distributor partner relationships and performance, reporting on and improving systems to increase depletions.

I moved to Los Angeles from NYC in April 2018 to manage the sales and marketing of Espiritus Group's brands. I was tasked with assessing the market and identifying areas of opportunity. I worked closely with our distributor partners to develop new sales plans based on their feedback. We identified markets where brands were underrepresented and found the best wholesale partners to join forces with. We worked closely with regional chains to generate distribution. I hired and trained sampling agencies to develop sampling programs across California. In addition to my market management duties, I also called on Key Accounts in the territory that aligned with our new sales focus. Year one in market I was primarily focused on SelvaRey rum (co-founded by Bruno Mars), Lost Distillery scotch, Berentzen German fruit liqueurs, and Blue Nectar tequila.

• Promoted to Regional Manager for the states of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.• Managed network of 9 distributors across 3 states.• Launched Lost Distillery & Six Saints Rum with Tri-Vin Imports in NY & NJ.• Worked to align distributor network where needed.• Worked with Allied Beverage & Breakthru Beverage in New Jersey during their merger to ensure a seamless transition.

• One of two Espiritus Group employees to hit their bonus goals (2017).• Registered timely pricing and promotional calendars across all distributors for the state of NY.• Analyzed blended margin to ensure both supplier and distributor partner profitability.• Participated in all Brand Management calls across portfolio, specifically as an on-premise specialist and trade advocate.• Worked with Nestle Waters to launch co-branded San Pellegrino/ Perrier and Purus Organic Vodka pilot program.

Blue Nectar Tequila joins the Espiritus Group portfolio. My position is absorbed, and I am promoted• NY/ CT is fastest growing market for Blue Nectar tequila (#3 overall), despite distributor transition (2016).• Spearheaded transition of Blue Nectar tequila from Manhattan Beer Distributors to Empire Merchants in NY.• Interviewed and hired first direct report (Metro NY Account Manager).• Hired, trained, and managed all promotional agencies in NY and CT.• Brand launches with Slocum & Sons and CDI (CT).

Blue Nectar Spirits Company recruits me from SoHo Experiential to launch New York.I launched Blue Nectar tequila in NY in August 2014 with New York Wine & Spirits, a division of Manhattan Beer Distributors. I worked hand-in-hand to get Blue Nectar to 300 accounts in its first year. I conducted weekly work-withs as well as at least weekly off-premise tastings. I represented Blue Nectar tequila at all trade shows, promotions, marketing opportunities, and sponsorships. I reported my progress back to the sales team on a weekly basis.

New York, Ny, Us

• Managed the on-site execution of the multicultural on-premise Hennessy cognac campaign in Metro New York.• Trained & managed Sampling Agents, providing timely recaps to Hennessy Field Manager.• Invited to work as a Hennessy Mixologist under the direction of the Hennessy National Mixologist.

New York, Ny, Us

I represented Blue Nectar tequila, traveling to key markets to conduct large-scale consumer tastings, educating on the history and the merits of the brands. I also conducted deep-dive trainings for trade. During my time in this role, I traveled to Chicago, Denver, Miami, Dallas, and New York. Blue Nectar Spirits would go on to hire me full-time as their Metro NY Account Manager

New York, New York, Us

• Worked closely with Empire Merchants to achieve 150+ new points of distribution and 100+ menu placements.• Activated all NYS Stoli marketing activity, working closely with our Market Managers to sell in programming.• Assessed brand partnerships and executed sponsorships, trade events, distributor trainings, and account activations.

• US point person for Hiro Sake, reporting directly to CEO; develop and coordinate all sales and marketing initiatives• Hired, trained, and oversee sales activity for 2 direct reports.• Execute daily cold calling/ lead generation, attend weekly distributor work withs, and monthly distributor sales meetings.• Route management with an account base of 50+ key accounts in the NY/NJ area.• Successfully plan & execute brand appropriate events including “Chicago the Musical” 15 yr anniversary, “The King’s Speech” producers’ party, and other high profile sponsorship opportunities.• Oversee development of all POS and reporting material: sell sheets, shelf talker, KPI reporting, cocktail menus, etc.

Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Us

• Managed Dewar’s Scotch whisky sales & marketing initiatives at over 100 key accounts throughout New York State.• +337% increase in overall sales of Dewar’s premium marques across our key accounts.• Recruited, trained, and managed a team of 15 promotional models & 5 event supervisors.• Worked closely with Bacardi & the Empire Distributor reps to increase Dewar’s distribution & visibility in market.• Activated 183 on-premise Scotch whisky tastings throughout New York.• Sought out & sponsored 5 upscale, target demographic rich events in NYC.• Presented timely Dewar’s progress reports for Bacardi & distributor sales teams, Ryan Partnership & TEAM Enterprises.

Corona, California, Us

• Introduce & develop Monster Energy's on-premise program in target Manhattan, Queens & Long Island markets.Increase brand awareness via effective POS management & programming.• Conduct weekly ride-alongs with Anheuser-Busch sales reps & cold call key accounts to successfully execute sales & marketing initiatives in their territories.• Train venue staff on Monster talking points, generate buzz, & enable them to increase their Monster Energy sales.• Track, maintain, and report weekly T&E reports, recaps, and success stories to On-Premise Sales Director.

Bronx, Ny, Us

• Averaged $25,000 in weekly sales while developing key relationships across 100+ on-premise and off-premise venues.• Maintained weekly sales calls for a 300+ alcoholic and non-alcoholic brand portfolio across a wide, geographic territory.• Worked closely with supplier reps on a weekly basis to help them achieve sales benchmarks.

Bachelor Of Arts - Ba, Major - Economics, Minor - Psychology

Education record