Today we’d like to introduce you to Zach Neil.
Hi Zach, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I’m an 8th-grade drop out from a poor humble family, raised in a Cult, shut out from many parts of the outside world. I became a musician and started a punk band and started touring when I was 16 years old. I used music and art to escape the cult and began a journey into becoming an artistic entrepreneur. Later I became a chef started opening my own restaurants and clubs, cosmetics and beauty brands, studios, advertising agencies, consulting firms, I’ve written two books (one bestseller and one on the way). I created a $60 million dollar business from $600.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Absolutely not! When you come from nothing, you have to work twice as hard for everything. Most people wouldn’t take me serious at all in the early days. It may have been my dyed hair, or painted black fingernails, or my tattoos. It could have been that I still had the stamp of poor Trash on me… whatever it was, nothing was easy. My path was paved in endless 18 hours workdays, doing all the jobs no one else would, saying yes to every opportunity, working my ass off until the things I wanted started to happen. Nothing was easy, but it was all worth it.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Beetle House is a year round celebration of Halloween with an artistic and thematic atmosphere inspired by horror culture, magic, and the artistic, literary and cinematic works of Tim Burton, Alfred Hitchcock, Bram Stoker, Washington Irving, Edgar Allen Poe and many more. In short, we are kind of like an adult Halloween party with a Burtonesque feel, curated by Alfred Hitchcock, with a 90s goth band on stage and everyone is wearing Weird costumes.:) We are a safe place where every goth, punk, freak, weirdo, artist, and visitor is welcomed and celebrated. Beetle House was created by Zach Neil and opened as a pop-up restaurant in New York City in April of 2016. Due to its demand and success after three years, Beetle House become permanent in New York City. Hollywood California opened in May of 2017 and three more locations are planned for the next three years.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Mentorship is great, find one and just ask. Keep asking until they say yes or stop answering you! 🙂
Contact Info:
- Email: beetlehousenyc.com
- Website: beetlehousela.com
- Instagram: @therealzachneil
