Monica Berg joins Campari Academy

Drinks industry ‘icon’ Monica Berg has been appointed as creative director of the Campari Academy, which is expanding with a global activation this month.

The Campari Academy is a first-of-its-kind educational platform, which seeks to take inspiration from outside of the drinks industry to educate, connect and inspire bartenders at all levels of their career on a global scale.

London-based bartender and entrepreneur, Berg, said: “Being part of the Campari Academy as creative director is hugely important to me.

“The industry needs educational platforms which can impart knowledge, inspire creativity and prompt discussions which the bartending community can really engage with.

“By working directly with bartenders as well as leading voices from varied disciplines, we can provide the community with a network and platform which currently doesn’t exist.”

Campari Academy has created a strong local network of physical hubs in key markets around the world over the last 10 years, including Italy, the US, Spain, Brazil, Austria, Jamaica, China and Australia, with more to follow including France and the UK.

The global digital expansion will draw on the success of this network to create a platform that is accessible to all global bartenders.

The activation will launch in May with a series of events in different territories. It will showcase the Academy’s innovative approach to education with a bartender led programme of content designed to change perspectives and open discussions on topics relevant to the drinks industry.

Berg’s role will be to provide insight and knowledge to help others take inspiration from a variety of sectors.

The local Campari Academy network will coordinate on the ground activations and networking opportunities for communities in their region, while The Campari Academy will aim to engage and inspire bartenders working at every level in bars, restaurants and hotels around the world.

“Bartenders are the beating heart of our industry and we want to support and champion that,” said Patrick Piana, group head of commercial capabilities at Campari Group. “For years Campari Group has been committed to creating networks and hubs for local bartending communities to engage with, collaborate across and learn from.

“We’ve seen great success with this over the last decade, and now wish to welcome all bartenders all over the world to be part of this movement. We’re creating something which is inclusive and which we hope will inspire bartenders the world over in a way never seen before.”

New perspectives

A flagship element of the Campari Academy will be a docuseries called Perspectives, which will explore topics relating to the drinks industry and hospitality, and uncover how they are interpreted around the world.

Perspectives will consist of episodes that have been filmed around the world and will cover a range of themes.

Each theme will be explored across three episodes. The first in the series, titled Community & Culture, will be premiered at the Roma Bar Show on 30 May as part of a seminar and Q&A session with Berg.

The following two episodes will be premiered in similar style at Cocktail Spirits in Paris and Tales of The Cocktail in New Orleans.

Berg opened east London venue Tayēr + Elementary in 2019, and has since launched a variety of projects, including a range of RTDs, a collection of liqueurs and a clothing line.