Episode 31

031 | Building brands bottom-up balancing Nordic minimalism with Italian flair | with Joonas Mäkilä, Co-founder of Mother's Milk Beverages (Helsinki, FI & Prague, CZ)

In episode 031, Chris Maffeo had the honor of meeting in person with Joonas Mäkilä, a close friend and Co-founder of Mother's Milk Beverages, a Spirits Company based in Finland. He is a Finnish Commercial Advisor with two decades of experience in FMCG multinationals, private equity-backed hospitality groups, and other industries. We hope you will enjoy their chat.


This is a video episode if you watch it on Spotify.


About the Host: Chris Maffeo

About the Guest: Joonas Mäkilä


Time Stamps

(2:00); Lingoncello Launch

(9:10); Breaking Into Outlets

(11:50); Taking Advantage of The Back Bar

(13:50); A Outlet Owner's View of Attempted Sales

(18:38); Small & Big Brands

(28:45); Brand Stories

(38:00); Target Occasion > Target Consumer

(40:20); Expand Or Focus Distribution

(50:00) Win at Home

(57:00); Internal Competition

(1:02:35); Cash Efficiency


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About the Podcast

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The MAFFEO DRINKS Podcast
Brands Are Built Bottom-up.

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About your host

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Chris Maffeo

With 20 years of experience working for some of the biggest drinks brands across 30+ markets, I've developed a unique understanding of how brands grow in today's market.
Now, I help drinks brands build sustainable growth through bottom-up demand creation.
My methodology focuses on how brand demand spreads - from initial venue adoption to international expansion.
I teach brands how to create, convert, and sustain demand across the three critical stages of growth: from one bottle to one case to one pallet.
My expertise lies in understanding how brands grow through genuine advocacy, from bar to bar, city to city, and building foundations that enable natural scaling.
Through consulting, training, and speaking engagements, I help brands:
• Build sustainable demand from the ground up
• Systematize their approach to building brands city by city
• Navigate the path from local success to international growth
• Develop strategies based on occasions rather than demographics