Proof to Product

If you're considering exhibiting at trade shows this upcoming sales season, you are going to love today's episode. My guest is Amy Loewenberg, who is the Director of Buyer Relations for NY NOW . Amy is a seasoned veteran in the gift, home, and lifestyle industry, and she's an advocate for independent buyers and sellers. Amy leverages her unique experience on both sides of the aisles to drive growt...

Hey, friend. I'm back with part two of my interview with Victoria Venturi from Paper Epiphanies . If you have yet to listen to part one, that was episode 371 . In part one, Victoria shared about her business growth, including what it was like shifting from a business model that was 90% wholesale to a business driven by 90% retail today. Now, she's finding a middle ground between the two. Today, we...

Today's guest is Victoria Venturi, the founder and CEO of Paper Epiphanies , the coolest card store in the world. In less than a decade, Victoria has grown Paper Epiphanies from an idea into a global brand. Paper Epiphanies, also affectionately called PiPH, opened its flagship concept store in 2021, and they are expanding into the aviation space. They opened their 1st airport boutique in the Portl...

Today on the podcast, I have the pleasure of talking about sales reps with Kelly Bristol from Just Got 2 Have It . I can't believe it's taken me this long to have Kelly on the show because we have known each other for a very long time, and she has a wide range of knowledge that I'm excited for you to hear. She is the Vice President of Business Development at Just Got 2 Have It, a B2B sales rep age...

I'm coming to you on the heels of having a cold, and I'm here to remind you to take care of yourself. A lot is going on in the United States this week. Plus, this time of year is hectic for all of my product-based business owners. I know you are working so hard and are likely wearing yourself out. I thought now would be a good time to share simple ways to practice self-care before and during a bus...

Earlier this year, we conducted a state of the product industry survey . We had 925 people respond. We found that 15% of respondents are not utilizing email marketing to reach their audiences. My jaw fell to the floor! I've talked about why email marketing is so important in previous episodes. The number surprised me because email marketing has the highest ROI of all marketing channels. For every...

I feel like today's guest needs no introduction, but it would be a complete disservice to not share all of his accolades. Today, I'm talking with Seth Godin . He's an author, entrepreneur, and most of all, a teacher. In addition to launching one of the most popular blogs in the world, he has written 22 best-selling books, including The Dip , Linchpin , Purple Cow , Tribes , and This is Marketing ,...

Is it harder to start a business or scale a business? This was a question that someone posed over on Threads recently, and it got my wheels turning. In 2024, scaling is harder. It is easy to start a business these days. However, most don't have the grit to keep going long-term and scale the business. During this episode, I dive into why it's easier to start a business in 2024 but harder to scale a...

Have you ever sold out of your inventory in a few days? Today's guest did that when they were launching their embroidery kits to the wholesale market through Faire. Riki Inge of Rikrack had stocked up inventory. She'd prepped her Faire shop. She went live, and everything completely sold out in just a few days. While most people would see this as a good problem, it highlighted a lot of issues with...

I am excited to share today's episode with you because we have a fun guest. It's Brock Johnson . If you're not familiar with Brock, he is an Instagram expert who has coached thousands of entrepreneurs and creators on how to grow on Instagram, and he's been doing it since 2018. In 2021, his personal following blew up, thanks to his strategy of using Reels, and he has grown at a rate of approximatel...

We are back with another compilation episode with our Paper Camp coaches. If you missed last week's episode, you can check it out by going to episode 362 . In this episode, I'm taking a different approach and asking a different set of questions. These questions are directly aimed at our coaches who are wholesale buyers that run retail storefronts. Today's questions focus on tips for pitching produ...

We are in the final week of our signature program, Paper Camp . In Paper Camp, we teach product-based business owners how to get their products on the shelves of their favorite stores, big and small. Paper Camp is an insanely comprehensive coaching program focusing on foundational and growth strategies for selling wholesale. During Paper Camp, we answer hundreds of business owners' questions about...

I love staying connected to our community while they're out exhibiting or attending trade shows throughout the year. One update that caught my eye this summer was from Biff Ulm of Nice Enough Stickers about his experience at the Las Vegas gift show. Now Biff is no stranger to the podcast. He's been sharing tips about leveraging point-of-sale systems back on episode 146 , and we did a COVID check-i...

Is it possible to have a thriving business and not be on social media? In episode 309 , Brigida Swanson from Yardia joined me to discuss what it was like for her to leave social media. We talked a lot about choosing contentment over business growth, and this episode was a listener favorite. We decided to invite Brigida back onto the podcast to check in and see how things are going 1 year later. Br...

We have all heard that we need to showcase our authentic selves for our businesses, but what does that actually mean? What does that look like in our business? This week's podcast episode features a recent portion of a coffee chat hosted by Kiwi Schloffel held inside of our private LABS program . LABS is our membership for product-based business owners where we talk about how to work smarter, not...

We are gearing up for our next round of Paper Camp and we are so excited! This is our wholesale intensive program, and I wanted to do something fun for this week's podcast episode to celebrate this milestone and the fact that enrollment for Paper Camp is currently open. I asked our past Paper Camp students to answer 1 question: How have you and your business grown since participating in Paper Camp...

A wholesale catalog's purpose is to sell your products, tell your story, and build a relationship with a buyer when you can't be there with them in person. Ultimately, the goal of your wholesale catalog is to sell your products, and it's important to build your catalog with your retailer in mind. Today I'm going to go through five quick tips for creating an effective wholesale catalog. Today's epi...

There's no "easy mode" in business. Selling physical products is a lot of work and being a product entrepreneur requires grit, tenacity, and courage. Today's episode is for seasoned wholesalers who might be experiencing a slower sales season this summer. If your sales have stalled, there are two metrics that you can tap into to build stronger relationships with your current accounts and sustainabl...

Pitching large retailers is a completely different process and timeline than working with independent retailers. Having worked with thousands of brands, I know that it can feel like an intimidating process to pitch your work to these key accounts. Today on the podcast, we're pulling back the curtain and explaining how it all works. My guest today is Sally Diguette, a home and lifestyle buyer with...

When we have our eyes set on a specific business goal, something like selling wholesale, it is incredibly beneficial to hear from people who are a few steps ahead of us in the process, which is why we close out every round of our Paper Camp program with an alumni panel. I want our students to hear from their peers. In today's podcast episode, we're sharing a portion of our alumni roundtable with a...

If you're listening today that means you're likely interested in applying for our Paper Camp scholarship ! Giving back is one of our core values here at Proof to Product and we give back through our time, knowledge as well as financial scholarships. Since 2011, we've awarded over $275,000+ in scholarship funds to creative entrepreneurs who sell physical products to the wholesale market. These bran...

Selling wholesale can be a valuable and lucrative strategy for businesses of all sizes, but there are a few myths about the process that can discourage some entrepreneurs from exploring whether wholesale is a good fit for them or prevent some brands from pushing further into wholesale and expanding the revenue stream. Listen in to hear 5 myths about selling wholesale and the truths behind each! To...

It is so deflating when we put our work out into the world and either don't hear back or we're told that now isn't the right time. Our students feel this deeply when they are pitching wholesale accounts, but today's guest is reminding us that a no today doesn't always mean that it's a no forever. Nellys Syria is the owner of Cocoa Loves Grey , a colorful accessories brand that sells very popular a...

Today's episode is short but very detailed, so find a quiet place to listen and grab a notebook. This is a quick training that I recorded for our LABS members. Our LABS members are Paper Camp alumni, so they have been through our intensive program. This is something that we walk you through in Paper Camp as well, but I wanted to bring it up here publicly on the podcast because I know from the 2024...

I love bringing a variety of perspectives and people from the retail space to this podcast. Buyers, sales reps, you name it, they've been on the Proof to Product podcast. This week's episode, I'm joined by Keli Faw, who is the owner of Crow & Canary . Crow & Canary might sound familiar as we've had the previous owner, Carina Murray, on the show in episode 232 . Carina has also been a long-...