With a love for unique spirits and a rapid renovation to his parents’ 33-year-old gas station in Ozark, Daniel Scott and his wife launched Whiskey Tangos.
Jan 2025
Daniel Scott is no stranger to entrepreneurship. Having started at Lily Chemicals as an outside salesman, he worked his way up through management to president, and is now the company’s owner.
Scott’s parents had also been business owners. “It was a small family-owned, independent gas station that they opened in 1985,” Scott says. When Scott’s father’s health declined, his mother reached out to him for advice.
“My mother was taking care of my father and asked me to decide what to do with the store,” says Scott. “My wife, Kim, and I decided that the most profitable items were spirits and wine, so we decided to renovate.”
The shift from gas station to wine and spirits specialty store required some major changes. Scott hired an environmental group to take out the tanks and pumps and hired Commercial Builders to do a full remodel.
“I wanted to open as quickly as possible,” says Scott. “Kim and I made the decision in late May. We opened on August 1, 2018.” What started as an attempt to carry on the family legacy quickly turned into Whiskey Tangos Spirits (711 N. 20th St., Ozark, MO), a passion for the whiskey market and an opportunity to help grow the bourbon community in 417-land.
“We’ve maintained year-over-year sales growth every year since opening, which is a big one as we know we’re doing something right,” he says. Scott adds that there have been lessons with navigating vendor relationships. He’s quicker to point out the wins, such as partnering with The Bourbon Society of the Ozarks last February to host the first annual Ozarks Whiskey and Wine Social.
“The event was a fundraiser benefiting Down Syndrome Group of the Ozarks and The Potter’s House,” says Scott. “After the event, we presented each charity with a check for $40,000.”
He also pours accolades onto his staff, including General Manager Brian Warren and Assistant Manager Bryan Brake, noting that they make things so easy, which enables him to show up for the fun. “We’ve met so many great people,” he says. “I’ve developed some of my closest friends through the community that we helped to build.”
