Predicting The Turn W/ Dave Knox

Over a decade ago, Charlotte’s Web created the CBD category and despite a roller coaster in the market, they remain the category leader today. As the category leader, they view it as their job to educate the industry and the general public on the benefits of CBD.  In pursuit of this mission, at the end of 2022, Charlotte's Web became the first “Official CBD of Major League Baseball.”  I sat down with co-founder and COO Jared Stanley, to discuss this partnership, the market as a whole. Since our interview, the FDA has concluded that a new regulatory pathway for CBD is needed and said they are prepared to work with Congress on this matter. Charlotte’s Web has been pushing for regulation for years and believes regulation from the FDA is vital to the continued growth and acceptance of CBD. We deep dive on all this and more. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many restaurants across the country encountered a situation that they never imagined. But thanks to the CookUnity, chefs were able to turn to a new platform to get their recipes and food onto kitchen tables across the country.  And for many of them, they have found a new source of revenue that allows them to reach more people than they ever thought possible. I sat down with Mateo Marietti, CEO & Founder of CookUnity, to learn more about what inspired him to launch CookUnity, how they attracted chefs to the platform, and why they decided to rebrand recently.

If there is one staple of nearly every household with children, it is a pantry with boxes of Kraft Mac & Cheese (or maybe Annie’s). But Jen Zeszut and the team at Goodles are out to change that, while making it ok for adults to admit that boxed mac and cheese doesn’t have to be a guilty pleasure.  I sat down with Zeszut, the CEO and Co-Founder of Goodles to learn more about the launch of the brand a year ago, why they tackled a space with such large competitors, and how they are differentiating themselves to make a product loved by adults and kids alike.

On Shark Tank, BeatBox secured a $1 million investment from Mark Cuban, one of the largest dollar raises in the history of the show. But in the explosive growth that followed, the brand learned the hard lesson of scaling too fast without having the fundamentals figured out. I sat down with Justin Fenchel, CEO and Co-Founder of BeatBox to talk about these lessons and how some timely pivots in their product and distribution strategy led the brand to reach new heights of growth a second time around.

When Dan Lourenco and Ryan Hughes started GHOST, they wanted to build something with authenticity at its core, not a fake version of fitness. Today, GHOST is one of the fastest growing brands in the industry across a multitude of categories. I sat down with Dan and Ryan to learn about their unique approach to brand building and how GHOST convinced brands like Chips Ahoy to work with them early on. 

Aimee Yang has crafted her entire career around the pursuit of one day being an entrepreneur. Today, the CEO and Founder of BetterBrand has taken those building blocks to redesign traditionally non-nutritious foods that we crave into delicious, guilt-free versions of themselves. I sat down with Yang to discuss the inspiration behind BetterBrand and her launch of ‘The Better Bagel’ in Whole Foods Market.

After two decades as one of the leading innovators in the world of music and entertainment, Jonas Tempel was trying to figure out what was next. An off-handed comment to his friend Bradley Roulier about making popcorn cool led them to Opopop. I sat down with Tempel to learn more about Opopop, the pivot the company made during COVID, and the first question he asks any entrepreneur.

Over the past decade, Patrick Schwarzenegger has been one of the most impactful investors in Consumer Products. After the success of his first investment, Blaze Pizza, Schwarzenegger has gone on to be an early check in breakout successes like Super Coffee, Olipop, and Liquid IV. In his latest investment, he’s turned to the role of founder, partnering with his mother Maria Shriver to launch MOSH, the Brain Brand. I sat down with Patrick to discuss how he started investing in consumer products and why launching MOSH was always the ultimate goal for him.

In 2017, Halo Top became the #1 selling pint of ice cream in the United States and was even named one of the top inventions of the year by TIME Magazine. The ice cream was one of its kind, igniting an entire category of low-calorie and high protein products where top companies even launched copycat competitors to get in on the craze. Halo Top was co-founded by former lawyers, Justin Woolverton and Doug Bouton, and the brand had one of the most dramatic growth stories within the CPG industry—going from $2 million in sales in 2015 and skyrocketing to over $300 million in just two years. Today, Bouton is starting his next brand as he takes aim at a category that is double the size of ice cream: chocolate. In 2021, Bouton founded GATSBY Chocolate, the lowest calorie chocolate on the market, and already released nearly 10 products with ambitious plans to introduce more innovations this year, including unique products like Peanut Butter Cups (for only 50 calories per cup!) and an upcoming Oat Milk-based line that i

As a 10 year old kid, Josh Luber loved nothing more than trading cards and sneakers. Decades later, Josh has made a career out of these passions, first as the founder of StockX and now as Chief Vision Officer at the recently launched Fanatics Collectibles.  I sat down with Josh to learn more about the massive impact that Fanatics has already made in trading cards, his views on pricing and distribution, and the plans he has in the years ahead.

Before joining Kraft Heinz as Chief Growth Officer for North America, Sanjiv Gajiwala was the CMO at Mark Anthony Brands where he launched White Claw Seltzer. Today, Sanjiv brings that same approach to Kraft Heinz, where he is taking an iconic portfolio of brands that he views as a portfolio of challengers, competing for consumers' attention. I sat down with Sanjiv to talk more about this challenger mindset and how it is leading Kraft Heinz to take a different approach to brand building.

Justin Wiesehan is a self-proclaimed snackaholic. But when he started to count his macros in his quest to eat healthier, he found the better-for-you snacks lacking the flavor and crunch that he loved. His quest to solve that problem led him to launch HA! A Healthier Alternative, which is line-up of salty snacks that offer 11 grams of protein and 140 calories. I sat down with Justin to learn more about the journey of launching HA! and his plans for the business in the years ahead.

When Mike Russell decided that he needed to change his relationship with alcohol, he realized that most resources were focused only on the daily drinker. This inspired him to launch Monument, an online treatment platform for anyone looking to change their relationship with alcohol. I sat down with Mike to learn about his personal journey launching Monument, and the impact Covid-19 has had on telehealth businesses like his. 

With The Bruery, membership has its privileges. That is because since their earliest days, The Bruery has offered an industry leading direct-to-consumer subscription program called Societies that offers beer lovers exclusive access to some of the most innovative beers in the industry. I sat down with The Bruery’s CEO Barry Holmes to talk about their Societies, why they proved so valuable in the early days of Covid-19, and what led the company to launch a new brand called Offshoot.

Growing up, Justin Gill and his family would spend the holidays making a big batch of Japanese barbeque sauce that they would give out as holiday gifts. Years later, he would take the family recipe and with a lot of ingenuity turn into Bachan’s.  I sat down with Gill, founder and CEO of Bachan's, to talk about how his grandmother inspired the business and the challenges he faced in creating a shelf stable version of the family recipe.

Public Goods is on a mission to make nearly everything in your house healthier and more sustainable.  Behind that mission, revenue has grown over 200% when comparing the month of January 2020 to January 2021, and the company has been able to plant over 300,000 trees  – one for every order placed.  I sat down with Morgan Hirsh, founder and CEO of Public Goods, to talk about their growth since launching, their recent launch of wine, and how their company culture proved so valuable during the pandemic.

Stuck in an unfulfilling job on Wall Street, Ashley Thompson was looking for something more.  She found that inspiration in the most unlikely of places with ready to eat oats.  Starting in farmer’s markets, Thompson started MUSH to make it easier for people to eat healthy - starting with breakfast.  I sat down with Thompson to learn more about the early days of the brand, how they ended up appearing on Shark Tank, and the advice she gives to fellow entrepreneurs.

Over nearly three decades, Ben Fischman has been one of retail’s pioneering entrepreneurs.  In college he started the baseball cap retailer Lids and then followed that with e-commerce retailer Rue La La.  In his latest venture, Launch, Fischman is partnering with entrepreneurs and bringing his years of experience to help them succeed.  We sat down to talk about what he looks for in entrepreneurs, why Launch doesn't consider itself a venture capital firm, and what led to them competing in workwear with their newest brand BRUNT.

Launched two years ago, Ergatta offers an alternative to instructor-led fitness with what the company calls game-based workouts.  As Ergatta looks to broaden the awareness of the company and their at-home rower, they are launching their first brand campaign with former NFL player Colin Kaepernick at the center of it.  I sat down with Randi Charles, VP of Marketing for Ergatta, to talk more about the upcoming campaign and what made Kaepernick the right fit to tell their brand story.

Over the last several years, Anheuser-Busch has been undergoing a mindset change as they put the consumer at the center of their innovation efforts. Leading this change is Dafne Hefner, Vice President of Insights and Strategy for Anheuser-Busch.   I sat down with Hefner to talk about A-B’s renewed focus on the consumer and how that focus has impacted both their new product pipeline, as well as the innovation strategy of their biggest brands.