Today we’d like to introduce you to Ryan LaShay.
Hi Ryan, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My journey into hospitality wasn’t something I originally mapped out—it became one of those paths that made more sense the further I walked it.
I’m originally from Jackson, Mississippi, and before entrepreneurship, sports were a huge part of my identity. I was a collegiate basketball player, and I think a lot of the discipline, competitiveness, resilience, and ability to perform under pressure that I developed as an athlete eventually followed me into business.
I moved to Atlanta in 2011, and a few years later I found myself behind the bar. What started as a way to make money quickly became something I was naturally good at. I loved the energy, the people, the creativity, and especially the experience of making someone feel taken care of. I began to understand early that great bartending wasn’t just about making a good drink—it was hospitality, presentation, personality, efficiency, and creating an experience people remembered.
When I returned to Mississippi, I saw an opportunity to take what I had learned and build something of my own. That became The Bartender Ryan Company.
In the beginning, I was doing what so many entrepreneurs do: wearing every hat. I was the bartender, marketer, salesperson, shopper, event coordinator, administrator, setup crew, cleanup crew—you name it. I learned the business through experience, mistakes, long nights, difficult clients, amazing clients, underpricing myself, learning to price myself correctly, and eventually understanding that being talented at your craft and knowing how to build a profitable business around that craft are two completely different skill sets.
Over the years, The Bartender Ryan has grown beyond simply providing bartending services. I’ve had the opportunity to serve private celebrations, weddings, corporate events, nonprofit organizations, cultural events, large-scale gatherings and hundreds of guests at a time. Every room taught me something different about service, systems, staffing, customer experience and what it actually takes to operate professionally in hospitality.
But I think 2026 has been especially significant for me because I’ve become much more intentional about treating the business like the company I always knew it could become. I’ve tightened my operations, become more strategic about pricing and profitability, focused on marketing and visibility, and really started looking at the knowledge I’ve accumulated over nearly a decade in this industry as an asset.
That’s also where the next chapter is beginning.
I’ve realized that my purpose in hospitality is bigger than being the person behind the bar. I want to help raise the standard of what professional bartending and hospitality entrepreneurship can look like. I’m developing The Bar Pro by Bartender Ryan™, which will allow me to take what I’ve learned about bartending, customer service, bar operations, training, profitability and getting booked and teach it to other bartenders and hospitality professionals.
For a long time, I think I was so busy doing the work that I wasn’t always intentional about letting people see the work. That’s changing.
I’m stepping into a season where I’m allowing myself to be more visible—not just as Ryan the bartender, but as Ryan LaShay, the entrepreneur and hospitality professional who has spent years building real experience behind the scenes.
Looking back, I’m grateful that I didn’t have the entire blueprint when I started. Every version of the journey prepared me for the next one. What began behind a bar has become a business, a brand, a body of knowledge and, now, a platform.
And I genuinely feel like I’m just getting started.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Absolutely not—and I think that’s one of the biggest reasons I’m so passionate about what I’m building now.
One of my biggest struggles was learning that being good at bartending did not automatically mean I knew how to run a bartending company. Those are two completely different skill sets.
For a long time, I knew how to show up, serve people well, create an experience and make sure my clients were happy. But behind the scenes, I was learning business in real time—pricing, contracts, staffing, inventory, marketing, profitability, boundaries and understanding the true cost of delivering a service.
I had to learn the difference between being booked and being profitable.
There were times when I underpriced myself because I was focused on getting the client instead of understanding what it actually cost me to execute the event. There were times I did too much myself because I thought that’s what being a business owner meant. And there were seasons when I wasn’t marketing consistently, even though I knew I had something valuable to offer.
Visibility has probably been one of my biggest personal challenges.
It’s funny because I can walk into an event, get behind a bar and command a room. But putting myself out there consistently as the face and authority behind my business has required a different level of confidence. I’ve had to realize that I can’t pray for bigger opportunities while continuing to hide from the visibility that comes with them.
I’ve also experienced the normal highs and lows of entrepreneurship. There have been seasons when business was flowing and seasons when it was much quieter. I’ve had ideas that worked, ideas that didn’t, moments when I questioned myself and moments when I had to completely reevaluate how I was operating.
But those experiences forced me to mature as an entrepreneur.
Today, I’m much more intentional about knowing my numbers, protecting my profit, creating systems, building the right team, strengthening the client experience and positioning the company for sustainable growth instead of simply chasing bookings.
I’ve also learned that every opportunity isn’t necessarily a good opportunity. Sometimes growth looks like saying no. Sometimes it looks like raising your price. Sometimes it looks like admitting that a system isn’t working and rebuilding it. And sometimes it means being willing to become a beginner again in an area where you need to grow.
My faith has played a huge role in how I’ve navigated those seasons. I’ve learned that delays don’t necessarily mean denial, and difficult seasons don’t automatically mean you’re on the wrong path. Sometimes they’re developing the capacity you’ll need for what you’re asking for next.
So no, the road hasn’t been smooth—but I wouldn’t erase the difficult parts. The mistakes gave me systems. The underpricing taught me value. The slow seasons taught me how important marketing is. The overwhelm taught me the importance of structure and delegation; and the moments when I played small taught me that hiding doesn’t serve the people I’m called to reach.
I’m still learning, still refining and still building. The difference now is that I’m no longer afraid to let people watch me do it.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about TheBartenderRyan Bartending Company?
The Bartender Ryan Company is a Mississippi-based mobile bartending and hospitality company specializing in elevated bar experiences for private events, corporate functions, weddings, celebrations and large-scale events.
But I’ve always believed that what we provide goes far beyond simply making drinks.
When someone hires The Bartender Ryan Company, they’re hiring us to help create an experience. The bar is often one of the most social spaces at an event. It’s where people gather, have conversations, celebrate and create memories. I take that responsibility seriously, so our focus is on hospitality just as much as bartending.
We’re known for professionalism, personality, presentation and creating customized experiences that make sense for the client and the event. That can include traditional bartending services, signature cocktail development, beer and wine service, elevated mobile bar experiences, non-alcoholic mocktails and wellness/refresher stations.
One thing that sets us apart is that I don’t believe hospitality should ever feel transactional. You can teach someone how to pour a drink, but great service requires awareness. You have to know how to read a room, anticipate needs, communicate, move efficiently under pressure and still make the person standing in front of you feel seen.
That’s the standard I’ve worked to build into my company.
Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to serve everything from intimate celebrations to events with hundreds of guests, including corporate, nonprofit and cultural events. Those experiences have allowed me to see hospitality from several perspectives—not only as a bartender, but as an operator responsible for staffing, logistics, inventory, guest experience, profitability and execution.
I’m especially proud of the growth we’re experiencing now because it represents more than increased bookings. It represents maturity.
I’ve become much more intentional about building a company that can grow beyond me. That means improving systems, understanding our numbers, protecting profitability, strengthening our team and creating a consistent standard that clients can trust whether I’m personally standing behind their bar or not.
That’s a huge shift for me.
For years, so much of the brand was centered around what Ryan could personally do. Now I’m building infrastructure around what **The Bartender Ryan Company can consistently deliver.**
I’m also proud that I’ve never felt the need to limit the brand to alcohol. Hospitality is the product. The drink is simply one way we deliver it. As consumers become more intentional about wellness and alcohol consumption, I want our company positioned to serve everyone in the room. That’s why mocktails, refreshers and non-alcoholic experiences are an important part of what we’re continuing to develop.
The next evolution of my work is also education and consulting through **The Bar Pro by Bartender Ryan™**.
After nearly a decade in this industry, I’ve realized that some of the most valuable things I’ve gained aren’t recipes—they’re lessons. I’ve learned how to work a bar, serve people, build relationships, price services, manage events, recover from mistakes, create systems and turn a skill into income.
Now I want to help other bartenders understand that there’s a difference between knowing how to make drinks and knowing how to build a career or business around your talent.
That’s why I’m developing educational resources and training around the business of bartending, hospitality and getting booked. I want the next generation of bartenders to have access to some of the information I had to learn through years of trial and error.
Ultimately, I want readers to understand that The Bartender Ryan Company isn’t just about cocktails.
We’re in the business of **hospitality, experience and connection.**
I’m proud of what we’ve built in Mississippi, but I’m equally excited about where we’re going. I see the brand expanding into larger corporate opportunities, brand partnerships, hospitality consulting, education, media and experiences beyond our current market.
I’ve spent years becoming good at the work.
Now I’m focused on building the company, sharing the knowledge and making sure more people know we exist.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
My biggest advice is: **learn the business just as seriously as you learn the craft.**
I wish I had understood that much earlier.
When I started bartending, I was focused on becoming great behind the bar. I wanted to know the drinks, move quickly, give great service and create an experience. And all of that mattered—but when I became an entrepreneur, I eventually learned that talent alone doesn’t build a sustainable business.
You have to understand your numbers. You have to know what it actually costs to provide your service. You need contracts, policies, systems, boundaries and a plan for how you’re going to consistently attract customers.
And please—**price for the business you’re trying to build, not from the fear of losing the client.**
I spent time thinking that getting booked meant I was doing well. It took experience for me to understand that revenue and profit are not the same thing. You can have a calendar full of events and still have very little to show for it if you don’t understand your expenses, labor and margins.
I would also tell anyone starting out to document the journey and let people see you.
That’s something I’m still challenging myself to do better.
I spent years working, learning and becoming better without consistently showing people what I was building. I think sometimes we tell ourselves, “I’ll really start posting when this is perfect,” or “I’ll put myself out there once I’m bigger.”
But visibility is part of building.
People can’t support what they don’t know exists. They can’t book you, recommend you, interview you or invite you into rooms if they don’t know what you do.
Another lesson I’ve learned is not to compare your beginning to somebody else’s middle. Study people who are where you want to go, absolutely—but study them for strategy, not for reasons to doubt yourself. Your path may take longer. You may have to pivot. You may build something completely different from what you originally imagined and that’s okay.
Lastly, I would tell someone starting out not to wait until they feel completely ready. There are things I understand today only because I started before I knew everything.
Start. Pay attention. Learn. Adjust. Get better. Repeat. Give yourself permission to evolve.
Some of the things I did in the beginning wouldn’t work for the business I’m building today—and that’s actually a good thing. Your business should grow as you grow.
If I could sit down with the version of myself who was just getting started, I would tell her: **Take yourself seriously sooner. Learn the numbers. Build the systems. Protect your value. Let people see your work. And don’t be afraid of how big this could become.**
Because sometimes the biggest thing standing between where you are and where you’re capable of going isn’t talent.
It’s finally believing that what you’ve built deserves to be treated like a business.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://bartenderryan.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebartenderryan
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thebartenderryan
- Yelp: https://share.google/cvd1aKAvt15AcJX4A
- Other: https://bartenderryan.com/event-inquiry-form
