Inside The Little Margarita Wagon, Vancouver’s cocktail-on-wheels business with heart

It was 2:30 a.m. when Marli McGaw’s phone lit up with a message from her friend Jen Vollrath. The text simply read, “Are you awake?” 

What followed wasn’t a crisis as McGaw feared, but an unexpected vision: a mobile bar centred on their favourite cocktail. The call lasted hours, and by morning, the two were already tossing around names and sketching designs for their custom-built wagon, Rita. Nine months later, The Little Margarita Wagon was up and running.

“We may look youthful, but we are kind of probably mid-life,” McGaw says with a laugh. “We wanted something that was ours, something fun and something that people also thought was fun.”

As to why a mobile bar? A serious case of FOMO, Vollrath says.

“We hitch it [Rita] up to Marli’s vehicle and go anywhere and everywhere,” she says. “We want to help create special spaces where people get together.”

Since launching their business in December 2023, Vollrath and McGaw have been serving up premium cocktails and drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) throughout Vancouver and the Lower Mainland—from backyard weddings and corporate events to street festivals like the Granville Block Party.

From Ottawa to Vancouver, from pandemic to partnership

The friendship itself started with a recommendation. Originally from Ottawa, Vollrath shared a mutual friend with McGaw who recommended the two should meet. A few years later, when Vollrath moved to Vancouver in 2020, the chance came for them to do so. 

“Our mutual friend said, ‘Okay, you’re moving, and it’s during a pandemic. You really are going to need friends in Vancouver, so please give her a call,’” Vollrath recalls. With a shared sense of humour and love for travel and margaritas, the pair immediately hit it off. 

It was during the period following the COVID-19 pandemic that Vollrath and McGaw felt the impact of isolation and the longing for human interaction. “There’s nothing to ever replace that in-person interaction, right?” says Vollrath. 

Beyond the drinks, that desire for connection became the heart of The Little Margarita Wagon’s business model. McGaw notes that people aren’t partying and gathering the same way they used to, with many hosting events such as weddings in backyards and “funny” spaces. “And we can go to all the funny places,” McGaw adds.

The keeners of bartending school

When asked about advice they would give to people who are looking to create their own small business, Vollrath and McGaw stress the importance of research and planning. In their own process of building a business, they took entrepreneur courses and familiarized themselves with all the rules and regulations.

The dynamic duo took their planning seriously—perhaps too seriously. They enrolled in bartending school, expecting to find peers their age. Instead, they became “the senior citizens” of the class.

“We did this for fun, but we were the keeners,” Vollrath admits. “We had to memorize a hundred different cocktails. What glass, what garnish, what alcohol, what type of ice…is it shaken, is it stirred, you name it.”

Those rigorous tests gave them what Vollrath calls “street cred” and a foundation for their standards: house-made juices and syrups, local and organic ingredients wherever possible and thoughtful garnishes that elevate every drink. “We don’t settle for mediocrity,” Vollrath adds. “We want to level it up.”

That commitment to craft shows up in unexpected ways. The Little Margarita Wagon is known for customizing their menu for every event, bringing their client’s vision to life. From communicating with customers about their preferences to naming drinks tailored to the events, they strive for genuineness, creating what Vollrath calls “a trifecta: great products, reasonable pricing and great service.”

Finding their rhythm

Over the last few years, Vollrath and McGaw have found their own rhythm in managing their small business. A key decision in their development was switching over to a storage unit to use as headquarters. As they began to outgrow the space available in their homes, the friends discovered the Maple Leaf Storage when picking up donated drinks for a charitable golf tournament. Sitting perfectly between their two homes, the space has become their “happy place,” allowing them to scale operations.

Looking ahead, the partners are eyeing merchandise and possibly bottling some of their house-made products. But some things won’t change. “There’s only one Rita,” Vollrath emphasizes. “It’s not just about making money—it’s about people having fun and having a good time.”