Raising a glass to honorary degree recipient Anthony von Mandl

Wine grapes require the perfect blend of warmth, light, water and nutrients. Similarly, building a successful, internationally recognized business from the ground up requires special conditions and the courage to take a chance. 

Anthony von Mandl, founder and CEO of Mark Anthony Group — notable for producing innovative beverages like White Claw Hard Seltzers and Mike’s Hard Lemonade, in addition to their beloved Okanagan estate wineries and distilled spirits — found his recipe for success was courage, curiosity, creativity and care.  

von Mandl was one of two recipients of an honorary doctorate at Royal Roads University’s Fall 2024 Convocation. The honorary degree is the university’s highest honour, awarded to people who reflect RRU vision and values, and have achieved a significant record of success and community service.

Along the winding, sometimes bumpy, path of his career, von Mandl has earned countless insights. While on campus to receive his honorary degree, he stopped in at a classroom to speak with RRU School of Business students. 

Here is some of the knowledge he shared: 

Have the courage to try. 

“First of all, you have to believe in yourself,” says von Mandl. “Begin with a purpose that is not about making money. Money is the byproduct of doing something you love and believe in. Every person can accomplish so much if they embrace life, they’re curious and courageous.” 

Failure is a common occurrence as a business owner, explains von Mandl, but how we react to failure can be meaningful. It’s important to have the courage to explore new avenues, adapt and pivot quickly when necessary. 

When he first opened his wine merchant business at the age of 22, von Mandl was shocked to find he could not sell his European wines in Canada. For the first six years of his business, he recalls he could not afford to pay himself and was barely making ends meet. His first success came when he discovered he could sell his wines directly to Canadian airlines, which yielded just enough revenue to pay his bills.

Follow your curiosity. 

“It’s my favourite thing to speak to university students because it’s where it all begins,” says von Mandl. “Today, students have the ability to accomplish more than ever by embracing technology. There’s also never been a greater need to harness the new thinking, the audaciousness, the dreams and relentlessness of young people,” he adds. 

When he encountered obstacles in his career, von Mandl’s curiosity lead him to investigate innovative solutions or create new products. 

During his convocation address at RRU, he revealed that a cold snap in January 2024 wiped out wine grape buds in the Okanagan, causing a net-zero harvest at his wineries in the 2024 season. Rather than continue with business-as-usual, von Mandl and his team pulled out their 25-year-old vines and assembled wine experts from around the world to design a more temperature-resistant plant. With the new vines now in the ground, von Mandl once again set a precedent for Okanagan wines, the full extent of which he will not see in his own lifetime, though he hopes his 16-year-old son will.

Harness your creativity. 

“It’s about what you can make happen with very little,” says von Mandl. “I believe that small teams can accomplish incredible things, and I’m certain of that because we’ve done that.” 

When von Mandl purchased his first winery — the now award-winning Mission Hill Family Estate — he was chasing his vision of creating an Okanagan wine that could measure up to those on the world stage. When he opened Mission Hill, it was one of only five wineries in the Okanagan at the time and it was far from world-class. 

When an economic recession hit one year later, he had no choice but to get creative with his products, using apples grown on the property — thus marked the beginning of the Okanagan Cider Company. To keep up with his 25% interest payments on the property, he created the world’s first flavoured ciders, based on the Okanagan’s incredible fruit growing reputation.

His flavour innovations were later copied by the major British and European cider makers. His remarkable success with flavoured ciders was just a glimmer of the breakthrough he later achieved with his other ready-to-drink beverage brands. What he started as a function of financing his winery opened a new beverage landscape with global impacts.

Proceed with care. 

“We all have the potential to leave a legacy,” says von Mandl. “Through our family, community, or accomplishments — to leave the world around us a little bit better than it was when we arrived. Nothing could be more fulfilling for someone’s life than that.” 

As much as he leads with purpose, von Mandl is also guided by his strong values of respect and care. 

Recognizing the complex and delicate nature of the ecosystem in the Okanagan, the Mark Anthony Group made the move to completely organic certified vineyards by 2021, setting a high sustainability standard for other Okanagan winemakers.

“We are stewards of this land and have an obligation to look after this region for future generations,” he says. “Sustainability is critical to long-term success."

Though von Mandl’s business acumen earned him a top spot among international beverage companies, he hasn’t lost sight of his humble beginnings. He was born in Vancouver to two European immigrants, who fled their home countries to escape Nazis, and was raised to appreciate his freedom, safety and joy.

Anthony von Mandl received the Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, at the Fall 2024 Convocation ceremonies.