Von Mandl first entered the alcohol business by selling imported wines from his car in Vancouver after graduating from college in the early 1970s, according to wine writer John Schreiner.

He also worked out of "a little office about the size of a cupboard in the back of a building," according to Schreiner.

Von Mandl then did an apprenticeship in wine-selling after college, which inspired him to open an importing business in Vancouver, according to his biography on his winery's website.