Today we’d like to introduce you to Anne Fishkin.
Hi Anne, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I grew up in Fort Collins, Colorado, home of the Lampkins (embarrassing, I know), and fled to California at 18 for college at UCSB, double majoring in Film and PoliSci. (When do I start saying I’m from California? Probably now?) I graduated in 3 years, and my goal was to work at a TV station, which I landed fresh out of college at KEYT ABC/FOX. in advertising.
There is nothing better to me than a delicious meal, a refreshing bevvy and incredible conversion with people who you love deeply.
That’s why I simultaneously started working at Santa Barbara Winery on the weekends to help pay for my these personal outings (travel/eating out/at the time, alcohol) and started a food Instagram (then @eatingsantabarbara, now @eating_venice). Santa Barbara magazine found my Instagram a few months into me posting and asked if I’d be interested in writing a monthly column. I jumped at the chance and started my new trend of holding 2+ jobs at all times and writing alongside my daytime job.
One piece of advice I was given by my fabulous mentor, Gail Kvistad, at 22 was “always be creating,” and I think about those words daily.
After 3 years… the itch began; now what? What’s my next challenge? I had always wanted to live in La La Land and made the decision to move there. Without having any connections in the media space, I drove down to LA and hand-delivered my resume to the top companies I wanted to work at, including Hulu. I got in touch with the right recruiter, had an intense interview, and then landed another advertising role at Hulu in 2017. As a Hulugan, life was always changing and exciting, and it led me to meet my now husband, which I will always be grateful for.
While I stopped writing for Santa Barbara Magazine, I missed the food/beverage community and connected with the EaterLA team, which then led me to LA Weekly’s editor, who then onboarded me as a freelancer for writing their “What’s Popping Up in LA” column. I met the most incredible restaurant owners, PR teams and loved trying all the vivacious cuisines that LA had to offer.
A few years later, and after a change of leadership at Hulu, I then craved my next move. I went through an even more intense interview process at Amazon, and started there as a Sr. Account Executive, which I still hold today. I worked in the Kitchen category, which was a dream of mine as I have always been obsessed with the food/beverage industry – I worked with incredible brands like De’Longhi, Nutri Bullet, and Le Creuset.
A year into my Amazon career (2021), I made the scary but important decision to stop drinking for so many reasons, but the biggest were/are 1.) wasted days, I lost my mom to brain cancer in 2019, and it truly hit me that life is so precious. WTF was I doing wasting my precious Sundays hungover in bed, regretting/not remembering what I did the night before? That’s not the life I wanted to live anymore 2.) Every time I meditated on what was in the way of my growth, alcohol came up for me. I knew that it was the one thing blocking from me from my full potential (and I was right).
Working in advertising, the drinking culture is all around you. That’s why when I found out through a colleague that another Amazonian, Elizabeth Gascoigne, didn’t drink and was throwing non-alcoholic parties, I was eager to meet this superwoman.
Elizabeth and I grabbed coffee in the Amazon office in New York in October 2022, and she told me all about Absence of Proofs mission, to create curated experiences for those who want a night, a month, or a lifetime off of drinking. I immediately was inspired and excited about her mission and told her when/if she was ready to launch in LA, I’d love to help.
Fast forward to February 2023, I went to Fest Forums (a festival event about festivals) and was inspired to curate large events that did NOT involve alcohol. Elizabeth was the first person I called, and without hesitation, she said, “We’re coming to LA in March; I’d love to have you as our events manager!”
We launched in March, and since then, I’ve led 15+ events ranging from yin yoga with non-alcoholic nightcaps to acoustic concerts and collaborations with Season Of (a wellness brand, do yourself a favor and follow Taylor Roberts now), mixology classes with The New Bar and Saje, Self-Care Saturdays with Little Lunch and most recently intention writing workshops with sound healing with the magnetic Reanna Holt (creator of Reawaken journals and healer of all kinds). Through these events, we’ve curated the Absence of Proof community in Los Angeles.
I feel like I truly landed the jackpot of marrying my passion for food/beverage with another passion of mine, which is empowering others to live a sober, curious, and mindful life. Ask yourself, is this going to elevate my experience for an hour? What about a day from now? How will I feel tomorrow? Being sober and curious doesn’t have to be black and white; it’s about exactly what the name implies… CURIOSITY.
Our community is diverse, curious, creative, and passionate about wellness. We have an another exciting year ahead of us with even larger events and more partnerships. I can’t wait to look back on these years and remember that it was just the beginning.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
As with launching any new company, there are challenges, but as the owner of The New Bar, Brianda Gonzales, taught me, “That’s showbiz, baby!” You roll with the punches and find ways to figure it out. Oh no, we forgot stirring spoons? Let’s go to Trader Joe’s and get regular spoons. Oh no, the table broke? Let’s find a bench and make that work. If there’s a will, there’s a way. The energy and the people are what matter above everything.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Being a non-drinker is a risk in itself – it’s a rebellion against the norm of drinking for centuries. It has opened me up to become more vulnerable, to see the world clearly in my perspective, and to give me more energy than I could have imagined (and if you know me, I have a LOT of energy). It’s left room for others to judge me for not drinking (which is interesting), and it’s risked many friendships – the ones that were not there without the alcohol have slowly faded.
My biggest personal risks, besides stopping drinking, was moving out of state to a city I knew no one (Santa Barbara), and deciding to become a marathon runner in 2022 after being warned about the physical risks.
There are so many risks and choices in life — it’s like Everything Everywhere All At Once. Which path will you choose? The good news is most of our decisions are two-way doors, so if I’m facing one of those, I make my decision with thought but without wasting time. That event didn’t work? Why not? Okay, let’s learn about that and do something different next time.
As long as I’m continuing to grow, change, and empower others, I am happy. Now, I have curated a life where taking risks feels less scary because I have my people- my husband, my massive family, my dear friends, the AoP community, and my insanely adorable puppy, Graham (I wouldn’t be a true millennial without mentioning my dog, right?)
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.absenceofproof.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/absenceofproof_la
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annehamner/
- Other: https://www.instagram.com/absenceofproof
Image Credits
@n.sink
@jennys_lens
