Lagos Cocktail Week (LCW), West Africa’s largest and most renowned cocktail event returns for its eighth edition. The 9-day event, which runs from October 14th to October 22nd, 2022, promises an even more spectacular lineup of standard seminars, masterclasses, bar battles, an exclusive guest-speaker roster, and some of the world’s most prominent drink labels.
On October 12th, a press conference was conducted at The Wheatbaker Hotel in Ikoyi, Lagos. Yosola Atere (Director, Area Marketing, Mastercard), Bisi Omojare (Director, Creative Sets Department, Lagos State Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture), Elizabeth Anthony (Brand Manager, Martell), Chiamaka Efelu (Brand Manager, Star Radler), Tinya Alonge (Brand Ambassador, Diageo Reserve), Ijeuru Metu (Product Manager, Moet Hennessy), Nkem Onwudiwe (Founder, Her Network)—all Lagos Cocktail Week sponsors and stakeholders were in attendance.
During the conference, Lara Rawa, the founder of Lagos Cocktail Week, enlightened all attendees on what to expect in this year’s edition.
The theme for this year’s event, according to Rawa, an award-winning mixologist, is “Behind the Bars, Drinks, and Brands.” She stated that the concept was inspired by the employees that work persistently behind the scenes to provide a fantastic hospitality experience via their art. Bartenders, mixologists, and brand managers for beverage corporations are examples of these professionals.
She also said that the participating bars in the event’s Bar-Hop component, which is sponsored by MasterCard, would offer visitors unique African-infused specialty cocktail concoctions during the 9-day event.
Furthermore, Rawa emphasized another aspect that distinguishes this year’s LCW: the festival will include more female bartenders than ever before, with an emphasis on promoting the work of women in the sector. “I feel this is an important step toward making the cocktail business more accessible and friendly to all individuals“, she added.
Lagos Cocktail Week is collaborating with Her Network, a worldwide inspirational and lifestyle network that provides women with the resources they need to excel in their endeavors, to promote these female bartenders. As part of the collaboration, four female bartenders will compete in a “Mixher challenge,” where they will be challenged with producing unique cocktails inspired by women they admire. Winners will be chosen by judges and will receive cash awards to help them further their bartending profession.
Yosola Atere, the event’s sponsor this year, claimed that “we are dedicated to assisting SMEs in the culinary field flourish.” We want to help aspiring chefs, mixologists, and other experts in the area, and basically, just encourage them to reach their objectives and aspirations.”
Similarly, Martell’s motivation for sponsoring the event was highlighted by Elizabeth Anthony, who remarked, “…the bartending community is incredibly important to us throughout the world, which is why it’s logical that we work with LCW.” By 2030, we want to have trained 10,000 bartenders.”