Swig founder Nicole Tanner on what makes St. George great for business

ST. GEORGE — The St. George Chamber of Commerce held the 2021 Rise St. George Business Summit on Wednesday, September 8 at the Dixie Convention Center in St. George.

Business and economic leaders from the area gathered to network, share ideas, and learn from a panel of notable Utah businesspeople. Speakers addressed topics like economic growth in St. George, adapting to unexpected setbacks like the pandemic, and what makes St. George Utah a great place to start a business. 

One of the speakers at the event was Nicole Tanner, who founded the popular drive-thru drink shop Swig. Tanner said she cannot imagine starting Swig anywhere but St. George.

“It is such a destination for people,” said Tanner. “St. George just gathers people from all over.”

Tanner credits the success of Swig to the tourism industry in St. George. She said visitors would stop by Swig when they visited the area, and then it would become a tradition. Once Swig began opening shops outside of St. George, she was worried that people might not keep coming back. But that was obviously wrong.

Since its humble beginnings in an old U-Haul store in 2010, Swig has grown to become a soda empire of 30 stores. In this, their 11th year, Swig plans on opening another 10 stores, and 12 more the year after that.

Tanner said that learning to adapt was key to growing her business. “I wouldn’t change any of our journey,” said Tanner. “Sometimes you have to make a mistake in order to know that’s not the right road.”

Tanner said Swig used to serve shaved ice, until she realized “we weren’t the best at it.” The machines broke down easily, were difficult to maintain, and slowed down Swig’s usually lightning-fast service. So they got rid of them.

“It wasn’t a mistake that we started with shaved ice,” said Tanner, but she figured Swig would be better by playing to its strengths: fountain drinks and cookies. “Don’t be afraid to make those mistakes, because those are really what shape you into the entrepreneur or business you’ve always dreamed of.”

Another way Tanner says Swig has adapted is by changing up their menu. Soda shops like Swig are a very Utah phenomenon, and as the company has grown to other areas Tanner wanted to make sure there was something for everyone. Swig has recently added sparkling water, fruit water, energy drinks and boba smoothies to their menu. As long as it doesn’t slow down the line.

Swig is still corporately owned and has not yet decided to franchise. Tanner says this is because she wants every Swig store to look and feel like the original in St. George.

Tanner is proud of Swig’s St. George roots and is looking forward to the company’s future. To anyone thinking about starting a business in St. George, Tanner said “With St. George growing like it is, I think it’s a hot place to start a business.”