Ep 15: Visiting Stores at Night to Check if Her Product Was on the Shelf

Mara Smith is the founder and CEO of Inspiro Tequila, an additive-free, women-owned tequila brand distilled, created, and led by women. A Chicago native and Northwestern Law graduate, Mara practiced at a large law firm before joining the corporate strategy team at McDonald's, then stepped away from the corporate world to raise her three children. In 2020 she set out to build the tequila she couldn't find on the shelf: clean, additive-free, and made for thoughtful consumers like herself.

As an industry outsider, she taught herself the category from the ground up, earning CRT certification in the history and production of tequila before launching. Inspiro is now Certified B Corp, kosher, and Women-Owned, distributed across multiple markets, and Mara is known for handwriting thank-you notes to online customers and checking store shelves herself. She named the brand after the two women who inspired her most, her mother and grandmother, and is committed to supporting other women founders through mentorship and financial backing.

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