Kara Goldin loves to recount her tale of being laughed at and mocked by ex-Pepsi executives when she discussed selling non-carbonated flavored water. "That'll never work. No one will ever make it for you. Not scalable." These were the knee-jerk operational objections she heard from a mansplaining
One of the worst problems caused by annual trade show appearances is that young, insecure brands in formation get assaulted with all manner of ‘trends.’ The new ‘trend’ threatens to distract you and your team with noise from the sidelines of your particular battle for growth.
Go deeper than my book and learn how to build your own 1-page strategic plan for exponential growth. There are less than ten spots available for the January cohort training on January 10. So, you may want to grab one now. My book does not coach you
In my book, Ramping Your Brand, I stress the importance of category as the primary analytical tool, especially in your initial product development. What are you really bringing to the category? What’s the cultural news? How are YOU the most modern choice? What is new
Here are the most high-engagement posts from 2024. Don’t miss these as you finalize 2025 plans. The Glaring Funding Gap in CPG Pro Tip - Converting Velocity to Units 1 Page. It’s All You Need
Once brands get to Phase 3, in the eight figures, they often have marketing teams in-house. There’s enough cash flow to fund even the most perfunctory marketing efforts. When I work with these teams, I frequently get asked how much to invest in consumer marketing
“James provides insightful guidance to those who are working hard to start and scale their businesses.” The following is a brief excerpt from Episode 100 of Startup Confidential! I didn’t think I’d make it to this milestone, honestly, at twice per month. Thanks for listening in. "1)
It is possible to double your store count every year in an exponential ramp up of distribution. If your product is good, you will achieve a stable (i.e., not declining) velocity plateau. Great. You’re doing better than many brands. This will still appear ‘slow’ to the
When folks take my Riding the Ramp training each quarter, I ask them to do a live, rough draft of a competitive strategy statement using the theory in my book. Then, they send it to me for critique. I regularly get folks who write down emotional
The problem with consumer brand financing that few discuss openly is that the most mature, decent institutional firms don’t invest in brands selling less than $25M in ARR. Or rarely do, and only if the operating team is legendarily trustworthy (e.g., John Foraker's Once Upon