Founder Feature: Lex Evan of Lexington Bakes

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Hannah Dittman sits down with Bill Schultz, Partner at Beliade Consumer Partners — a venture fund focused exclusively on founder-led consumer brands across food and beverage, personal care, beauty, and lifestyle. Bill brings a rare combination of Wall Street pattern recognition and early-stage brand investing experience to the table, having spent the first decade of his career at Goldman Sachs covering publicly traded consumer and retail companies before joining Beliade, where he's now in his seventh year backing breakout challenger brands.Beliade invests at seed to Series A, writing first checks into companies approaching $1M in revenue and supporting them through the $1–10M growth phase. What sets them apart is a laser focus on disruptor brands in large, established categories — think Little Sesame in hummus or Coterie in diapers — and a deep conviction that the rise of the modern American family is the most powerful structural consumer shift happening right now.Bill and Hannah dig into everything founders need to know about the fundraising process: how investors actually think about unit economics and contribution margins, why financial savviness is one of the strongest predictors of founder success, and how to come into a raise with a clear, specific ask that builds conviction fast. They also get into the mindset questions every founder should ask themselves before raising a single venture dollar — and why honest self-reflection about what kind of business you want to build matters more than most people realize.They also walk through Beliade's full diligence process, from first conversation to term sheet, with clear, practical insight founders can use to prepare.Listen in as they cover:Bill's path from Goldman Sachs covering public consumer companies to backing early-stage challenger brands at BeliadeBeliade's investment thesis: categories, stage, check size, and what makes a disruptor brand worth backingThe rise of the modern American family — and why it's the structural shift driving the best consumer opportunities right nowWhy founders should think less about trends and more about enduring long-term changesThe honest question every founder should ask themselves before raising venture capitalWhy financial savviness is one of the strongest predictors of long-term founder successUnit economics and contribution margin — what they mean, why they matter, and what Beliade uses as a north starThe diligence process from first conversation to funded — what happens at each step and how long it takesWhy building investor relationships before you have a capital need is the smartest fundraising strategyWhat Beliade looks for in a founder: the ability to operate at 50,000 feet and zoom into the detailsWhether you're a founder preparing to fundraise, an operator trying to understand how investors underwrite opportunities, or just someone who wants a clearer picture of how early-stage CPG capital actually works, this episode is packed with practical, hard-won insight.Episode Links:Beliade Consumer Partners: https://www.beliade.com Bill Schultz on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billcschultz/ Beliade on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beliade/Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.Show Links:Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)Follow @startupcpgVisit host Hannah's Linkedin Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected] music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Caitlin Bricker sits down with Marc Brown, founder of ONOIN — a line of shelf-stable, pre-chopped and flavored onions in 100% olive oil designed to save you time and tears in the kitchen. ONOIN comes in four flavors — original, garlic and herb, jalapeño lime, and ginger and lemongrass — and is designed to go on or in anything, from eggs to meatballs to savory oatmeal bowls.Marc is a food scientist with a master's degree from Drexel University and a seriously stacked background: R&D and industrialization at Danone, Head of R&D as employee #8 at Clio Snacks, and R&D and contract manufacturing work at Hain Celestial. He came to founding ONOIN with a rare 360-degree view of the food industry — from bench science to co-manufacturer negotiations to retailer conversations — and shares hard-won lessons throughout this conversation.Together, Caitlin and Marc dig into why chopped onions in a jar hadn't been done before (and why it should have been), the origin story of the ONOIN name (credit goes to his brother-in-law at a backyard grill), and what makes a co-manufacturer relationship truly work. Marc breaks down the three-part pricing transparency framework every brand should demand from their co-man — raw, pack, and toll — and explains why trust and belief in your vision are just as important as the contract.They also get into the realities of early-stage distribution, how to build a velocity story with the right retail partners, and why knowing your product well enough to tell a buyer exactly why they need it on the shelf is non-negotiable.Listen in as they cover:How a graduate school innovation exercise sparked the idea for ONOINWhy shelf-stable pre-chopped onions solve a problem that fresh never fully couldThe naming journey from "Yun" to ONOIN — and why the name works on shelfThe three things every brand must demand from their co-manufacturer: raw, pack, and tollRed flags when vetting a co-man and why trust is the ultimate filterHow Marc's background at Danone, Clio Snacks, and Hain Celestial shaped his approach to foundingBuilding a velocity story with retailers who actually believe in your productWhy knowing your product's ideal placement in store can change your whole sales conversationReducing food waste — one of ONOIN's often-overlooked benefitsWhether you're a founder navigating co-manufacturer relationships, a food scientist thinking about making the jump to your own brand, or a buyer looking for the next smart pantry staple, this episode is for you.Episode Links:ONOIN Website: https://eatonoin.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eat.onoin/ Marc Brown on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marc-brown-41500546/Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.Show Links:Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)Follow @startupcpgVisit host Caitlin's Linkedin Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected] music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Daniel Scharff sits down with Rebecca Urciuolo, a formulator with over 23 years of food and beverage experience at BevSource (FB Solutions Group), to dig into one of the most exciting and most misunderstood parts of building a CPG brand: working with a formulator to bring your product to life. From how to write a great project brief to what happens when things go sideways at the co-manufacturer, Rebecca shares hard-won lessons and insider knowledge that every founder — at any stage — needs to hear.Rebecca opens with a clear message: the best founders are partners, not passengers. They come with a firm goal in mind, stay present through the iteration process, and actively want to learn — because understanding what you don't know will inevitably make your product better. Daniel reflects on his own experience formulating a beverage during the early pandemic days, calling it one of the most joyful parts of his CPG career.The conversation covers the most common early-stage mistakes founders make when approaching a formulator: coming in too vague, being too rigid, or not understanding the regulatory and packaging constraints that shape what's actually possible. Rebecca explains how to write a strong project brief, why reference products are half the job, and how the tasting and feedback process works — including the vocabulary founders need to give useful, actionable notes.They also get into the nuances that make beverage formulation uniquely complex: the chicken-and-egg relationship between formulation and co-manufacturer selection, how packaging constraints shape your formula, what to do when an ingredient gets discontinued, and how your product will continue to evolve on shelf over its entire life. Rebecca walks through the gold standard process at first production, what to watch for at the co-man, and how to think about COGS and ingredient exposure from the very beginning.Whether you're developing your first SKU, scaling to a co-manufacturer, or trying to understand why your formula tastes different six months in, this episode gives you the practical framework you didn't know you needed.Listen in as they discuss:Why your project brief is the single most important thing you can bring to a formulator — and what it needs to includeHow reference products and flavor inspiration cut feedback cycles and unlock a formulator's creativityThe vocabulary of tasting: body, brix, mouthfeel, and why learning to give articulate feedback changes everythingWhy packaging and co-manufacturer selection can't be decoupled from formulation — and how to think about the chicken-and-egg problemWhat happens at the first production run: the gold standard process, what to watch for, and when to bring your formulator on-siteHow your product changes over time on shelf — and how shelf life studies help you understand what you're actually selling at month nine or twelveCOGS 101: novel ingredients, ingredient exposure, and why "welcome to capitalism" is the honest answerEpisode Links: Rebecca Urciuolo – Formulator, BevSource (FB Solutions Group)LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebeccaurciuolo/BevSource LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bevsource/ Website: https://www.bevsource.comFB Solutions Group (FBSG) is the strategic partner for food & beverage entrepreneurs, providing end-to-end development, production, and sourcing solutions. Through our specialized divisions—BevSource, AlcSource and iTi Tropicals—we offer the operational expertise and infrastructure needed to optimize supply chains and accelerate growth for emerging brands.Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.Show Links:Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)Follow @startupcpgVisit host Daniel's Linkedin Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected] music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of R&D Radio, hosted by food scientist Adam Yee, Adam sits down with Monte Ammons, founder of Liquid Sherpas. With more than 30 years spanning food service, Coca-Cola, Community Coffee, and natural ingredient sales at Dohler, Monte brings a uniquely operational lens to product development — one built not in a lab, but on the floor of real businesses learning hard lessons the hard way.Monte makes the case that most founders jump straight into formulation when they should be doing the opposite: starting with a product brief, understanding the business, and doing the competitive homework before a single ingredient is sourced. He walks through how one client nearly launched into a saturated market — then pivoted his entire proposition 35 degrees by doing the upfront work first.Listen in as they discuss:Why formulation should be one of the last steps in product development, not the firstWhat a technical product brief is and how it prevents costly downstream surprisesHow a client shifted consumer target, functional benefit, format, and channel — before spending real moneyThe realities of natural ingredient supply chains: seasonality, tariffs, sedimentation, and moreWhy founders should start small, stay flexible, and invest as little as possible early onHow to research your category by talking to founders, breweries, and operators who've done itThe role of AI as a research accelerator — and why you still shouldn't ask it to develop your formulaWhy the beverage industry's failure rate is so high, and what separates founders who make itEpisode Links:Monte Ammons — Founder, Liquid Sherpas 🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ammons/ 🔗 Website: www.liquidsherpas.comDon't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.Show Links:Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)Follow @startupcpgVisit host Adam's Linkedin Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected] music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Hannah Dittman sits down with Anabel González, founder of Good Bacteria, and Hayden Williams, Partner at BrandProject, for the podcast's first-ever founder and funder episode—a behind-the-curtain look at what the investment process actually looks like from both sides of the table.Good Bacteria is the first rotating probiotic system delivering a new blend of prebiotics, probiotics, and a postbiotic each week. Dr. formulated with clinically studied ingredients, it's designed to expose your body to different microbes over time to build up gut resilience—a smarter, science-backed approach to gut health that actually fits into your daily routine. BrandProject is an early-stage consumer fund partnering with founders building standout consumer-first brands, investing pre-seed and seed with check sizes of $500K–$3M and a hands-on, operator-minded approach.Anabel shares how a postpartum healing journey led her to a Johns Hopkins doctor via cold LinkedIn outreach, over 200 investor cold emails, and ultimately a pre-launch investment from BrandProject—a fund she had specifically targeted because of their portfolio. Hayden walks through what drew him to Good Bacteria before there was even a product in hand, how he validated the science, and why Anabel's personalized cold outreach stood out in a sea of generic pitches.Together, they cover:How a postpartum healing journey became the founding story of Good BacteriaWhy Good Bacteria was originally a beverage—and how it pivoted to a rotating probiotic systemWhat 200+ investor cold outreaches actually looks like, and how the BrandProject introduction happenedWhat BrandProject looks for in pre-launch founders when there's nothing but a deck and a storyWhy Anabel invested in brand and story before product—and why that was the right callThe diligence process: validating the science, the market, and the founder's operating instinctsThe "sense of inevitability" principle—and why the best founders make investors feel the train is leaving the stationWhat a healthy founder-investor relationship actually looks like day to dayHow many people from a company should be involved in fundraising—and whoGood Bacteria's product roadmap: four products coming, a master brand in the makingWhether you're a founder preparing to raise, trying to build the right cap table, or just want to understand what investors are really evaluating before they write a check, this episode is essential listening.Episode Links: Anabel Gonzálezon LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/anabelg Good Bacteria: https://www.itsgoodbacteria.com Good Bacteria on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/goodbacteria/ Hayden Williams on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/howillia/ BrandProject: https://www.brandproject.com BrandProject on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/brandproject-lp/Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.comShow Links:Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)Follow @startupcpgVisit host Hannah's Linkedin Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected] music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Caitlin Bricker sits down with Sean Knecht, co-founder of Tantos—the first and only puffed pasta chip. Tantos is built on a simple but revolutionary idea: a snack whose base ingredient is wheat and water, the true definition of pasta, bringing a brand new category to the salty snack aisle alongside business partner and celebrity chef Joe Sasto.Sean shares how a pasta lesson, a birthday gift, and a pop-up dinner led to a bromance-turned-business partnership, what it's really like to appear on Shark Tank not once but twice, and the reality of the Shark Tank effect—including the cash flow hit nobody talks about. He also walks through his strategy for convincing Whole Foods that the snack aisle is overloaded with tortilla chips and desperately needs something new.Together, they cover:How a DM about flour-to-egg ratios started a business partnership with celebrity chef Joe SastoWhat "first and only" really means—and why Sean wouldn't have launched Tantos without itAppearing on Shark Tank twice: what changed, what didn't, and how to actually prepareThe real Shark Tank effect: 3,000 orders in three days, a 3x sales floor increase, and the cash flow hit nobody warns you aboutWhy Amazon held their money for over a month after the episode airedHow their co-packer became their lead investor—and why that's an underrated startup strategyThe Whole Foods pitch: how Sean counted every SKU in the snack aisle and used the data to make his caseWhat it's like building a brand alongside a celebrity chef and reluctantly getting in front of the cameraTantos is available online at eattontos.com and on Amazon, with national retail ambitions and a Whole Foods conversation in progress. If you've ever wanted to bring something truly new to the snack aisle, this episode is for you.Episode Links: Sean Knecht on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sean-knecht-a1398b11/ Tantos on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eattantos/ Tantos Website: https://www.eattantos.comDon't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.Show Links:Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)Follow @startupcpgVisit host Caitlin's Linkedin Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected] music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Daniel Scharff sits down with Seth Goldman—co-founder of Honest Tea, co-founder and CEO of Just Ice Tea, and one of the most experienced board members in the CPG space, having served as chair of Beyond Meat, Plant Burger, and Mission Guardians of Tony's Chocolonely—to answer the questions most founders never get a straight answer on: When do you actually need a board? Who should be on it? How do you manage it? And how do you protect yourself?Seth walks through every stage of the board journey—from the friends-and-family raise where you probably don't need one yet, to the angel round where you do, to the institutional raise where investors will ask for seats and you need to know how to vet them back. He shares the story of a would-be investor he turned away after learning they wanted management options to install their own CEO, how he recruited legends like Gary Hirshberg of Stonyfield and Jeff Swartz of Timberland to an Honest Tea board when the company was doing a few million in sales, and why splitting your lead investment between two partners isn't just smart—it's protective.Daniel and Seth also dig into what makes a board meeting actually useful, how to avoid the nightmare scenario of surprising your board with bad news in the room, why diversity of opinion matters more than cheerleaders, and what it looks like to navigate a CEO transition as a board member. Plus: Seth's advice on how to position yourself if you want to become a board member someday—and the unsexy pallet configuration insight that saved Just Ice Tea hundreds of thousands of dollars.Together, they cover:When you actually need a board—and when you don'tHow to vet investors who want board seats before you say yesHow Seth recruited Gary Hirshberg and Jeff Swartz to the Honest Tea boardBoard composition: why you want A players, former CEOs, and real diversity of thoughtCompensation: options, terms, vesting, and the 1% rule of thumbThe "nose in the tent, hands outside" principle of healthy board governanceHow to run a board meeting that passes the test—OKRs, no surprises, every voice heardProtecting control: why splitting your lead raise between two investors mattersCEO transitions: what makes a founder-CEO hit a ceiling, and how boards navigate itHow to position yourself to become a board memberJust Ice Tea is now the top-selling bottled tea in the natural channel, launching nationally this year with Kroger, Safeway Albertsons, and Publix—and Seth has a lot more to say about how governance helped get them there.Episode Links Seth Goldman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seth-goldman-234bb7124/ Just Ice Tea on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/just-ice-tea/ Just Ice Tea: https://justicetea.com/ Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.Show Links:Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)Follow @startupcpgVisit host Daniel's Linkedin Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected] music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Caitlin Bricker sits down with Khalil Khamis, CEO of Crafty Ramen—a brand reimagining what frozen ramen can be by bringing restaurant-quality bowls to the freezer aisle. No water, no assembly. Just heat and eat in seven minutes.Crafty Ramen started as a 24-seat ramen shop in Canada, founded by husband-and-wife duo Jared and Mickey Farrell—a red seal chef and his partner who trained at the Yamato School of Ramen in Tokyo. Khalil joined the business eight years ago, leveraging his background in franchise restaurants, and officially came on as CEO in 2021 to take the brand into retail. Today, Crafty Ramen is in nearly 3,000 retail doors across Canada, partnered with every major Canadian retailer, on HelloFresh's marketplace as their first branded product, and gearing up for a nationwide U.S. launch later this summer.Caitlin shares how she tested the product as a toddler mom looking for something fast, fresh, and high quality—and how the frozen puck format (a layered block of broth, noodles, protein, and real toppings, blast-frozen from fresh ingredients) completely delivered. Khalil and Caitlin dig into the origin story that grew out of pandemic-era meal kits, the decision to never use plastic trays, what kaizen means in a CPG context, and how Crafty Ramen approaches SKU development using the restaurant as a living innovation lab.Together, they cover:How a 24-seat ramen restaurant became a pandemic-born retail brandThe "fresh frozen puck" format and why it stands apart in the freezer aisleWhy Crafty Ramen refuses to use plastic trays—and what that means for manufacturing partnershipsThe challenge of scaling a Michelin-trained chef's recipes to 10,000 units a dayWhat kaizen looks like as a core value in CPG vs. restaurantsHow the restaurant acts as a testing ground for new retail SKUsNavigating tariffs and cross-border logistics as a Canadian brand entering the U.S.The Costco roadshow experience—and the realities of a 13-week rotationKhalil's advice to CPG founders: seek out people who've done it beforeCrafty Ramen just took second place in the pitch competition with Advantage Solutions at Expo West—and Khalil has a lot more in the pipeline.Episode Links:Crafty Ramen Website: https://www.craftyramen.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/crafty_ramen/Khalil Khamis on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/khalilkhamis/Crafty Ramen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/craftyramen/Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.Show Links:Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)Follow @startupcpgVisit host Caitlin's Linkedin Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected] music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Caitlin Bricker sits down with Lex Evan, founder of LEXINGTON BAKES, a luxury baked goods brand serving protein cookies, protein oat bars, and dessert brownies. But the luxury isn't in the price — it's in the ingredients. Lex just won a NEXTY Award at Expo West for best vegan product, and he's bringing that energy into this conversation.Caitlin and Lex dig into his 20-year career as a graphic designer, how he taught himself to bake from scratch, and why he trademarked both "radical ingredient transparency" and "no naughty ingredients" — two philosophies that sit at the heart of everything LEXINGTON BAKES does. From printing supplier logos directly on packaging to sharing every award with his ingredient partners, Lex has built a brand that puts integrity above everything else.They also get into the realities of being a solo founder — protecting your time, setting boundaries with your community, and why putting your head down and staying true to your vision is what ultimately led to winning the NEXTY Award. Plus, Lex drops some breaking news: his co-manufacturer just went out of business, and he's back to self-manufacturing while the brand continues to grow.Listen in as they discuss:How a 20-year design career at Johnson & Johnson laid the foundation for LEXINGTON BAKESWhy Lex taught himself to bake and how community feedback pushed him to turn a hobby into a brandWhat radical ingredient transparency means — and why he trademarked itWhy LEXINGTON BAKES prints supplier logos directly on packaging and shares every award with ingredient partnersWhat "no naughty ingredients" means and why Lex avoids the word "clean" entirelyThe serendipitous story of how Artisana came to him right as he was developing his nut butter-powered protein cookiesHow being a solo founder shapes every decision he makes about time, energy, and generosityWhy putting his head down and ignoring the competition led directly to his NEXTY Award winAdvice for first-time CPG founders: stay true to your vision and don't let unexpected opportunities derail where you're goingEpisode Links: Lex Evan — Founder, LEXINGTON BAKES LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/lexevan LEXINGTON BAKES LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lexingtonbakes/ LEXINGTON BAKES Website: https://lexingtonbakes.com Instagram: https://instagram.com/lexingtonbakesDon't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.Show Links:Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)Follow @startupcpgVisit host Caitlin's Linkedin Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected] music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Daniel Scharff sits down with John Craven, founder and CEO of BevNET, to trace the remarkable 30-year journey of one of CPG media's most essential platforms. From a college web project in 1996 to a full media empire spanning BevNET, Nosh, Brewbound, live events, and multiple podcasts, John shares the origin story, the industry inflection points, and the hard-won wisdom that comes from watching hundreds of brands rise, pivot, and exit.John opens with a vivid picture of the CPG world he entered — one where Snapple and Arizona Iced Tea were the disruptors, where beverage founders looked up co-packers in the Yellow Pages, and where getting press meant waiting six months for a magazine to maybe run your story. He explains how BevNET was born out of a simple college assignment to build a webpage, and how the speed and accessibility of the internet gave emerging brands something legacy trade media simply couldn't: real-time visibility.The conversation covers the major inflection points that shaped the emerging CPG ecosystem — from landmark acquisitions like Snapple and Vitamin Water that fueled the next generation of founders, to the mid-2000s natural food boom that made Expo West a legitimate launching pad. John and Daniel dig into why the barriers to entry have never been lower, yet the standards have never been higher, and what that means for founders trying to break through today.They also get into what separates brands with staying power from those that flame out — why incremental innovation over existing consumer behavior almost always wins, why scarcity-to-ubiquity transitions are so dangerous (see: Prime), and why the most successful brands, like Celsius, Poppy, and Siete, are often 20-year overnight successes. John shares his perspective on the current M&A cycle, why he's bullish on CPG despite the turbulence, and why economic uncertainty historically makes CPG look like a safe bet.And in a candid closing stretch, John opens up about the loneliness of entrepreneurship, the weight of responsibility that comes with building a team, and why compartmentalizing — maybe to an unhealthy degree — is just part of surviving as a founder.Listen in as they discuss:How BevNET started as a college web project in 1996 and grew into CPG's leading media platformThe state of the industry when John started — and the landmark acquisitions that changed everythingWhy the barriers to entry are lower than ever, but the standards are higher than everHow to spot brands with real staying power vs. those riding a hype waveThe danger of going from scarcity to ubiquity too fast — and what Prime illustratesWhy incremental innovation over existing behavior almost always beats truly novel ideasJohn's read on the current M&A cycle and why he's still bullish on CPGThe loneliness of entrepreneurship, founder mental health, and the art of compartmentalizingHow to get your brand featured on BevNET and Nosh — and why you shouldn't wait until you're "ready"Episode Links: John Craven – Founder & CEO, BevNET LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cravenjohn/ BevNET LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bevnet.com-inc/ BevNET Website: https://www.bevnet.com/ Also: nosh.com | brewbound.comDon't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.Show Links:Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)Follow @startupcpgVisit host Daniel's Linkedin Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected] music by Super Fantastics