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 man ..read more

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 ..read more

Fundraising at the early stages is hard, and it’s been especially difficult over the last year or so – and even more so for a solo founder. This episode features Ann Wehren of In-seam, a private marketplace and sourcing toolkit for connectors whose relationships power the luxury fashion industry. She walks us through her step-by-step guide to raising a pre-seed round from VCs, from how she found warm intros, dealt with all the no’s, confirmed a lead investor and filled out her round.  Note: this episode was recorded in November 2023. Topics: How Ann launched her company with friends and ..read more

How do you do customer research before launching your product? This episode features Ann Rosenstein, CEO of Amante 1530, a newly launched aperitif brand. Ana tells us how she developed Amante 1530 from the ground up, based on the research she did early on – both with bartenders and end customers.  How Ana’s background led her to launching an aperitif brand How she identified a hole in the aperitif market The critical research insights Ana gained from talking to bartenders and learning from them – on the product and the packaging How Amante 1530's brand identity came out of intense study ..read more

Hi everyone, a quick Retail X Series update for you. There won’t be any new podcast episodes during the summer. Instead, I’m going to take the summer to plan out and record episodes for the fall. But I’d also like to hear what topics you’re most interested in hearing about in future podcast episodes. So if you’ve got a topic or speaker you’d like to hear from, shoot me an email at info@redgiraffeadvisors.com or reach out to me on Twitter @retailxseries.  I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts. And in the meanwhile, have a great summer!   Learn more at Retail X Series and follow ..read more

Marketplaces are notoriously hard to build. This episode features Jaclyn Grauman, CEO of The Verticale, a social shopping platform that enables customers to discover brands that align with their values. Jaclyn discusses her journey building a DTC marketplace that is focused on brand discovery, the challenges of connecting customers to brands, and the pivots along the way. Using community and word of mouth as a tool to build customer acquisition  Partnering with brands in a different way versus typical B2C marketplaces Utilizing customer and creator feedback as a tool to iterate the platf ..read more

Cracking the code on B2B sales, particularly in retail tech, is not easy. This episode features Casey Golden, CEO of Luxlock, an omni-retail experience platform startup. Casey talks about how she targeted her first customers, utilized her network, and how she is now scaling sales after those first efforts.  How to utilize your network to build relationships before you start selling Which brands to target in the early days Trying an unusual approach to get product feedback  Getting that first customer – and the trial and error process Why retail tech sales are so hard as a startup&nb ..read more

Most new brands today want to be omnichannel right from the beginning. This episode features Vanessa Dawson, Founder & CEO of Arber, a startup that specializes in organic plant biologicals. Vanessa talks about why an omnichannel approach was important for her company right from its launch, how she has gotten into wholesale accounts from tastemakers, to independents to Walmart, and how she measures success in a seasonal category. Topics: What organic plant biologicals are, and why they’re important Which distribution channels were most critical at first Getting those early accounts and edu ..read more

Building a beverage brand from the ground up? Then this episode is for you. This episode features Lan Pham, who recently founded Sang, a ready-to-drink Vietnamese coffee brand. Lan talks about how she raised money pre-launch, how she thought about distribution, and the marketing activities she planned for launch. How Lan found the right investors for a beverage business pre-launch Why using a paid advisory brand incubator was a good move  How using expert advisors helped with finding the right co-packers Cold messaging on LinkedIn  Figuring out which products to launch with – and ho ..read more

Building an apparel brand, particularly in womenswear, is incredibly challenging. This episode features Siyana and Andy Huszar, who founded and scaled Marcella from zero to success by prioritizing slow, profitable growth. Siyana and Andy talk about their early moments on Etsy to dealing with a COVID pivot to fundraising in difficult environments. Topics: Why Etsy was a great place to learn about retail and launch a proof of concept Early keys to success on Etsy How starting small with production and making small mistakes was important for early testing Moving off Etsy onto their own DTC chann ..read more