Dan Freeman

Military Service

Dan served in the Royal Signals for 12 years (2012-2024), working in communications and information systems. He deployed to the Falklands, Afghanistan, and Estonia, with exercises across Europe and the US. Nothing heroic – just the usual soldiering.

The Journey to Jerry Can Spirits

The idea of making rum had been coming up for years – one of those conversations that kept happening whenever Dan and Rhys got together. In July 2025, Dan decided to stop just talking about it and actually have a go. Having tried well over 100 different rums and genuinely loving the stuff, it felt like the right time to create something worth drinking.

Since then, it's been a lot of learning – getting the Essentials in Distilling qualification from the Chartered Institute of Brewers and Distillers, sorting out the personal alcohol licence, navigating HMRC for AWRS approval. The usual stuff you have to figure out when you're starting from scratch. Read more about how we got here.

Role at Jerry Can Spirits

Since leaving the forces, Dan's been doing a bit of everything – operations, finance, legal compliance, building the website, SEO, product development. When you're a small outfit, you end up wearing a lot of hats.

The military taught him to pay attention to details and plan things properly, which comes in handy when you're trying to build something from nothing. His approach is pretty simple: make something you're proud of, and don't cut corners.