Building a Brand without VC Dollars Featuring Sarah Kauss of S’well and Amanda Herson of Founder Collective

03/25/24 • 33 min

How do you build a successful large consumer brand without raising any VC dollars? Is VC the best fit for consumer brands? This episode features Sarah Kauss of iconic water bottle brand S’well and Amanda Herson, General Partner at Founder Collective – a founder and investor both talking about when VC is right for consumer brands, and when it isn’t.

Topics:

How Sarah started her brand S’well and how Amanda become a VC
Why Sarah didn’t raise VC funding for her company – and how she thinks about that now
What Sarah had to do since she had no VC dollars (spoiler – she had to get to profitability)
All the ways in which Sarah had to be scrappy
How Sarah got into retail accounts early on
Why Amanda and Founder Collective say that VC can be dangerous and is a “VC is a hell of a drug”
When VC is a good fit for a consumer brand in the early days
What needs to change in the ecosystem to change the current investor hesitation around consumer businesses
Great advice from Sarah and Amanda on other options if VC doesn’t work for your consumer company
Why picking the right partners is so important – in venture and other areas

Music by Eino Toivanen, kongano.com

Learn more at Retail X Series and follow @retailxseries on Twitter and Instagram.
To submit a pitch or to find out more about Sapna Shah, check out Red Giraffe Advisors.

Topics:

How Sarah started her brand S’well and how Amanda become a VC
Why Sarah didn’t raise VC funding for her company – and how she thinks about that now
What Sarah had to do since she had no VC dollars (spoiler – she had to get to profitability)
All the ways in which Sarah had to be scrappy
How Sarah got into retail accounts early on
Why Amanda and Founder Collective say that VC can be dangerous and is a “VC is a hell of a drug”
When VC is a good fit for a consumer brand in the early days
What needs to change in the ecosystem to change the current investor hesitation around consumer businesses
Great advice from Sarah and Amanda on other options if VC doesn’t work for your consumer company
Why picking the right partners is so important – in venture and other areas

Music by Eino Toivanen, kongano.com

Learn more at Retail X Series and follow @retailxseries on Twitter and Instagram.
To submit a pitch or to find out more about Sapna Shah, check out Red Giraffe Advisors.

Previous Episode

How to Sell into Nordstrom, Featuring Niki & Ritika Shamdasani, Co-founders of Sani

Selling into wholesale accounts is a really different proposition than selling through your own DTC channel. This episode features Niki & Ritika Shamdasani of Sani, an apparel brand inspired by South Asian culture. They walk us through how they built their brand, pitched to Nordstrom, made their launch at Nordstrom successful and so much more.

Topics:

How two sisters started the Sani brand
How they turned a warm intro into a pitch meeting by utilizing their strengths
How they prepared for the first meeting at Nordstrom – and what went into their deck
How working with a big brand can be different than your expectations
Why studying the Nordstrom supplier website was so critical for their success
How Sani set up their manufacturer for success
How Sani supported the Nordstrom launch
How much time and effort it takes to work with a wholesaler like Nordstrom
What’s next for Sani

Music by Eino Toivanen, kongano.com

Learn more at Retail X Series and follow @retailxseries on Twitter and Instagram.
To submit a pitch or to find out more about Sapna Shah, check out Red Giraffe Advisors.

Next Episode

How to Sell a Consumer Product into Costco, Featuring Michelle Razavi of Elavi

How can a startup with only two full-time employees sell their food product into Costco? This episode features Michelle Razavi, Founder & CEO of Elavi, a startup that specializes in gut-friendly, low-sugar dessert spreads. Michelle will tell us all about her journey getting her product into Costco.

Topics:

When in Elavi’s growth did Costco appear on their radar
Why Costco was a fit for Elavi, and how they got in the front door
How Elavi managed diligence and leaned on advisors for help
What steps Elavi had to take to be ready to sell into Costco
What is a Costco roadshow and how Elavi managed it
Key metrics that Michelle and her co-founder tracked during roadshow days
How Elavi turned the roadshow into a purchase order
What launching in stores required – including more financing
Why doing the research and being prepared is so critical when considering wholesale sales

Music by Eino Toivanen, kongano.com

Learn more at Retail X Series and follow @retailxseries on Twitter and Instagram.
To submit a pitch or to find out more about Sapna Shah, check out Red Giraffe Advisors.