FAT & HAPPY BEVERAGES
Honoring Tradition And Sharing The Love!
When you’re an Armenian spirits entrepreneur casting around for just the right business name to aptly describe your firm, invite conversation and brand exploration, it behooves you to pick something that really resonates in your industry, and with consumers. Karen Meymaryan, Founder of Fat & Happy Beverages, settled on the name as it brings a fun, easy going aspect to the company, it’s easily understandable by Americans, and it is one that resonates with Armenians as well. He sought something that he hopes will, “spread the joy and happiness of presenting and marketing liquor products!"
Meymaryan is confident that no matter how you raise a toast (chax u baxtavor is the Armenian way to "cheers" to your wellbeing), you will be happily celebrating things old and new with the wines, spirits and specialty foods that this boutique distributor imports from Armenia. Fat & Happy’s brand portfolio includes the world famous Ararat Brandy, Karas Wines, many specialty vodkas, and other unique items. If you should ever happen to explore the landlocked nation of Armenia, you will quickly discover it is without coastal light breezes, but what it does have is plenty of sunshine, about 300 days per year of it, enhancing the output of the wine grapes and the varieties of fruit that thrive in Armenia, which are used to create premium wines and exquisite brandies.
These are the likes of centuries-old brandies that Winston Churchill loved and that Meymaryan has been shepherding through the American market for the last seven years. He shares some common knowledge about the favorite brand of the British Prime Minister, noting, “Ararat is the most successful and recognizable Armenian brandy. If people know Armenia, they know Ararat,” said Meymaryan. Certainly some of the success of Ararat as an internationally renowned brand has rubbed off on Meymaryan who began his career as the United States Export Manager of the company that oversaw Ararat production, but it was not just mere proximity, as he has worked diligently since the beginning and expects to continue for the duration.
Meymaryan is inspired by those who are passionate about the spirits industry and sites longevity as his model in saying, “Overnight success is not about us. I have met many distributors in the United States that have inspired me, especially those who have forty to sixty years invested in the liquor business. For example, I met with the founder of Mutual Wholesale Liquor, who since 1959, is still in business today. His commitment to longevity, his sharing of his stories and learning about their developments are all very inspiring.”
Meymaryan, is also inspired to represent his portfolio with national pride, along with additional remarkable brandies, and wines from Armenia, neighboring Georgia, along with notable wine growing regions in Argentina, all while growing his business and evolving his career. He explains, “You can see the success of the Ararat Brand growth and how its reputation developed in America, as I oversaw its placement here, and now that I’m the owner of an import company, it was a huge journey for me to go from overseeing that one brand to undertaking an entire change of business within the U.S. marketplace. It required that I establish Fat & Happy Beverages as a reputable name that not only implies "fun", it also translates to "cheers" in Armenian, but additionally as one that represents a feeling of happiness, ie, "Fat & Happy feelings" about the portfolio. Part of the journey was finding the balance between Americanizing the brand and staying true to my roots. As far as good business platforms go, in my opinion, the best is in America.”
Karen Meymaryan, Founder of Fat & Happy Beverages
The American Dream that drew Meymaryan from the role of corporate worker to overseeing the business presented plenty of opportunities and difficulties along the way, and not even being in the midst of a pandemic could stop him. Set on a course with a goal that he explains is to become recognized and respected as a company that is selling premium products from Eastern European countries, Karen embraced the move to the other side of the table as an opportunity to realize his dreams that first began while he was working at Pernod Ricard, wherein which he states, “They taught me a huge amount of experience and gave me sense of confidence that I still implement in my day to day operations.”
Fat & Happy Beverages continued operating and kept all of its employees working throughout the pandemic. Meymaryan shares, “Even during the very difficult and challenging times of Covid, we did not close for even one hour of business operations. We had so many projects that needed our attention.” Meymaryan was motivated by exports he saw coming out of other countries. When asked why it was important to bring Armenian products here to the United States marketplace, he remarked, “The history of Armenia and the stories of its products needed to be told here, and seeing the opportunities and successes other nations had when they presented their best products in the U.S. awakened a sense of competition in me.”
That sense of competition also becomes a sense of pride when he walks into a Costco, Total Wine & More, BevMo!, Remedy Liquor or Mission Liquor store and sees his wines and brandies standing tall on the shelves. Karas Wines is a brand that recently joined the Fat & Happy Beverage portfolio and there are plenty of others, including a brand new apricot brandy blend that truly is the essence of Armenia. The color of the brandy shares one of the colors of the national flag, and it has already graciously received rave reviews. Meymaryan shares his approach to creating a home for these brands, some of which are centuriesold, and others are newer than the country, which declared its independence from Russia thirty years ago! He explains how he has built his company, “It's based on a mutual connection to the brand and the people behind it. While certainly there are ratios and financial criteria, it’s not just about measuring, but it's about a feeling. I am most passionate about building up the brands, and watching them develop, rather rather than just merely distributing the product. When you have a personal connection with the product you can successfully become an advocate of the brand. Many Armenian and Eastern European manufacturers who follow the United States market trust us. They're reaching out to us to onboard them on this journey.”
Unique products, like the nation of Armenia, which is unique in and of itself, as it is the first Christian nation in the world, and therefore it needs a careful, conscientious steward, especially if they are to survive the journey. Meymaryan honors the fine brandy traditions of his country and its winemaking history that spans 6200 years, and he could not be more proud to bring this portfolio to the best bars and restaurants in America, introducing them to the evolving Armenia he knows and loves. Every single one of the products brings something special to our customers. It is much more than just a 94 rating, like his apricot brandy carries, it is the story of a nation. Meymaryan concludes, “Armenia is recharging and rejuvenating. Armenians are very honest people. They are extremely hardworking, strongly believing that they have a special role in the international community. Alcohol liquor traditions are one of the most effective ways to embrace and acknowledge the culture which we are witnessing several times each day. These are the traditions of ambitious and challenged nations, yet sharing alcohol that is consumed responsibly, allows us to see how the celebrations and organizations of their family events occur. Exploring Armenian spirits speaks volumes about the nation itself, in all of its uniqueness and beauty.”