The Busker

Mark Hickey has worked the alcohol industry for 25 Years and is the National Brand Ambassadorial Manager at Spirits Platform. He leads the Brand Ambassador team and our educational programs.

Mark’s knowledge about  the methods, history & story of the people behind the brands & distilleries we represent. He believes in first-hand education through the interaction of all the senses (sight, sound, touch & of course taste). His passion for the industry is obvious whenever discussing the topic of whisky and he has travelled the globe to learn in detail how many of our products are made.

In August 2018 Mark was awarded the 2018/19 Icons of Whisky Scotch whisky ambassador of the year & will represent Australia in the World Ambassador finals in London March.

He is currently writing educational books on both Scottish & Irish whiskey.

Josh has worked in hospitality for over a decade having started picking up glasses in a dirty night club in the UK and worked his way up to become their assistant manager. He then hopped around the UK for 3 more years, learning the classic English style of cocktails before moving back to Australia and hometown of Newcastle.

Several years later he ran a Brisbane cocktail institution – The Bowery.  Later he moved to Sydney to join the Spirits Platform team as NSW Brand Ambassador. Josh has won several State, national and international cocktail competitions, his most memorable the Cointreau La Maison, winning both the Australian and Asia-Pacific titles.

Having recently moved to Australia from Canada, Max joins the Spirits Platform with a wealth of knowledge he has gleaned over his many years in the thriving beverage industry in Vancouver.

Max began his career in bartending in 2010 at the acclaimed Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel where he learned about classic cocktails and gained an appreciation for fine spirits. From there he branched off on his own and began to open several popular venues as a bar and cocktail consultant for various endeavours around the city.

Most recently Max served as the Diageo Reserve Ambassador in Vancouver for 2 years and has now joined Spirits Platform bringing with him knowledge on the premium spirits category. Throughout the years Max has competed and placed well in prestigious cocktail competitions such as World Class and Beefeater Mix London and he has engaged in qualifications such as WSET Level 3 in Spirits to increase his knowledge and keep up with trends both at home and abroad.

Max is the Brand Ambassador for VIC/TAS.

Jack Creighton is the Brand Ambassador for QLD/NT. Jack has worked in renowned bars such as Death & Taxes & cobbler in Brisbane.

Having worked in some of Brisbane’s best cocktail and whiskey bars, Jack comes well-equipped with a love for all things whisk’e’y and cocktail related. Most recently he served as the Creative Director of the multi-award-winning Death and Taxes, implementing the venue’s most recent iteration of its cocktail menu. During his time as a bartender, he competed in several cocktail competitions including Diageo’s World Class.

Jack grew up all over the world from Singapore and Qatar to the south of France, where he was exposed to the fascinating and vibrant culinary world. This exposure inspired his lifelong fascination for the unique interplay which exists between what we consume and how it influences our respective cultures. It is this fascination that has driven his career and continues to drive his love and curiosity for all things spirits related.