Jess Loseke – Wild Business Growth Podcast #358: Midwest Barrel Co., Used Bourbon Barrels & Wine Barrels

Be unreasonable. That’s the story of this week’s Wild Business Growth podcast guest, Jess Loseke. Jess is the Co-Founder of Midwest Barrel Co. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and your other favorite podcast platforms, and watch on YouTube.

• Episode Summary & Player
• Full Transcript
• Show Notes
• Wild Business Growth podcast Summary

Episode 358: Jess Loseke – Midwest Barrel Co., Used Bourbon Barrels & Wine Barrels

Jess Loseke, the Co-Founder of Midwest Barrel Co., joins the show to share her journey from suffering a scary injury to building the top provider of premium used bourbon, whiskey, and wine barrels. Hear how to find your niche market, the best way to manage your inventory, how to make tough decisions as an entrepreneur, how to find that risk-taking ability you had at the beginning, and a lesson in barrel anatomy. This episode covers everything from bourbon barrels to bungholes. Here’s a small sample of what you will hear in this episode:

• What was going through Jess’s mind when Ben was buying & selling so many items online
• How did Jess turn Midwest Barrel Co. into a real company
• What is a cooperage
• Why did Midwest Barrel Co. move from Nebraska to Louisville, KY
• Would Jess choose pickleball, pilates, or prosecco

Connect with Jess at MidwestBarrelCo.com, JessLoseke.com, on social media @JessLoseke & @TheBarrelGirl, and on LinkedIn.

Enjoy the shoooooow! Check out the show notes below for much more detail. You can also find the full transcript here.

Show Notes

• Intro & Spicy Bourbon Barrels
  • [0:27] Email me at to save time with your high-quality podcast and use it as a business-building tool
  • [0:32] Connect with Jess at MidwestBarrelCo.com, JessLoseke.com, on social media @JessLoseke & @TheBarrelGirl, and on LinkedIn
  • [2:12] What do barrels have to do with bungholes & sex toys
  • [3:23] “The Great Cornholio” from Beavis and Butt-Head

• The Midwest Barrel Co. Story
  • [5:08] How did Ben start Midwest Barrel Co.
  • [6:57] What was going through Jess’s mind when Ben was buying & selling so many items online
  • [8:22] Why did Jess join the business
  • [11:06] What markets do they sell used barrels to
  • [13:30] How did they find their niche market
  • [14:48] How did Jess turn Midwest Barrel Co. into a real company
  • [18:05] How do you stay efficient as you scale
  • [20:06] What’s the best way to manage your inventory
  • [22:40] What is a cooperage
  • [24:59] What is CapEx aka Capital Expenditure
  • [26:58] Why did Midwest Barrel Co. move from Nebraska to Louisville, KY
  • [30:35] How do you make tough decisions as an entrepreneur
  • [33:34] The Couples Therapist Couch by Shane Birkel
  • [34:24] The Wild Business Growth podcast is on YouTube! Subscribe @MaxBranstetter to watch full video interviews with Wild entrepreneurs like Jess every Friday
  • [34:25] Sign up for the Podcasting to the Max newsletter at MaxPodcasting.com/Newsletter and receive How to Edit Your Podcast in Audacity. It’s where podcasting meets entrepreneurship – and terrible puns
  • [34:27] Such an honor speaking at Podcast Movement ’23 in Denver! Sign up to grab the slides from my session at MaxPodcasting.com/PM23

• The Unusual: Pet Peeves, Quirks, and Weird Talents
  • [35:27] What’s a Quirk Jess has
  • [38:26] What’s a Weird Talent she has
  • [40:24] What’s her Biggest Pet Peeve
  • [42:00] Will work ethic always have value
• Rapid-Fire Q&A
  • [43:16] How do you recover well from a scary injury
  • [45:02] What’s the best part of living in Louisville
  • [47:12] Would Jess choose pickleball, pilates, or prosecco
  • [48:18] Connect with Jess at MidwestBarrelCo.com, JessLoseke.com, on social media @JessLoseke & @TheBarrelGirl, and on LinkedIn
  • [49:05] What are Jess’s Final Thoughts
  • [49:37] Follow the Wild Business Growth podcast and tell a friend about the podcast. And show love (or roast me) by leaving 5 stars on Apple Podcasts and/or Spotify
  • [49:42] The Wild Business Growth podcast is on YouTube! Subscribe @MaxBranstetter to watch full video interviews with Wild entrepreneurs like Jess
  • [49:44] Check out the Wild Business Growth podcast on Goodpods, where you can see what your favorite people are listening to
  • [49:47] Connect with me on LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter (aka X), and Threads @MaxBranstetter and TikTok @WildBusinessGrowth
  • [49:48] Save time with your high-quality podcast. Email me at to bring your podcast to life and use it as a business-building tool
  • [49:52] Sign up for the Podcasting to the Max newsletter at MaxPodcasting.com/Newsletter and receive How to Edit Your Podcast in Audacity. It’s where podcasting meets entrepreneurship – and terrible puns
  • Theme music: Freestyle Percussion Magik – “Jungle Tribe” – provided by Jamendo

What is the Wild Business Growth podcast?

Wild ideas. Wild growth. Every Wednesday morning a new entrepreneur joins the Wild Business Growth podcast to share the wildly creative and unusual ways they grew their business – and teaches you how to do it, too. Hear the minds behind WordPress, Stacy’s Pita Chips, Drybar, NFL RedZone, Big Mouth Billy Bass, the voice of Bart Simpson, and more Wild stories. Hosted by Max Branstetter (that’s me), Founder and Podcast Producer at MaxPodcasting.

How do you start a podcast?

Interested in starting a professional-sounding and professional-looking podcast for your brand, but don’t want to deal with the time commitment of all those behind-the-scenes details? I’ve got you covered. Email me at to save time with your high-quality podcast and use it as a business-building tool.

Thanks for listening to Jess Loseke on the Wild Business Growth podcast. To hear more Wild stories like this one every Wednesday morning, follow the Wild Business Growth podcast and tell a friend about it. And buy a barrel for them. Until next time, Let your business Run Wild…and Bring on the Bongos!!