The Retail X Series Podcast

How can a startup with a small, lean team institute a 4-day workweek? Especially one that has customer service at its core? Matt Hornbuckle, co-founder of Stantt, talks about how Stantt implemented a 4-day work week and what needed to change at his company to make it successful.  Topics: How Stantt started the 4-day workweek as a trial Why getting the team involved from the beginning was crucial H...

Everyone knows that markteplaces are hard to build. And apparel marketplaces are even harder. This episode features Trisha Bantigue , CEO of formalwear marketplace Queenly , who talks about how she built a fashion marketplace using tech innovation to create a better, stickier customer experience, in an apparel sector that has historically had low trust, low frequency and high return rates.  Topics...

How do you craft a customer journey for brick and mortar retail? How do you get to know your customer deeply? How do you build a company with the customer at the center? This episode features Louisa Schneider , CEO and Founder of Rowan , who will talk about how Rowan built a focus on the customer, from the earliest days through their retail expansion to over 40 locations. Topics: How Louisa thinks...

When you’re just starting up your company, it may feel too early to be thinking about a future potential exit. But how does that exit ultimately happen? This episode features Ju Rhyu , co-founder and CEO of Hero Cosmetics , who sold her company for $630 million dollars to a strategic acquiror. Ju will talk about the decisions she and her co-founders made along the way that ultimately led them to a...

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...

How do you build a successful large consumer brand without raising any VC dollars? Is VC the best fit for consumer brands? This episode features Sarah Kauss of iconic water bottle brand S’well and Amanda Herson, General Partner at Founder Collective – a founder and investor both talking about when VC is right for consumer brands, and when it isn’t. Topics: How Sarah started her brand S’well and ho...

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 Ho...

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...

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...

Ever wondered how brands make the decision to implement a particular retail tech product? This episode features Monica Royer, Founder & CEO of Monica & Andy, a baby & children’s apparel brand. Monica gives us an inside look into how she thinks about technology, what types of solutions are interesting to her as a founder, and tips for retail tech founders in selling to brands.  The crit...

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@redgiraffea...

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 wor...

For many founders, raising outside capital, including venture capital, is the accepted path. But is this always the case? This episode features Leigh Sevin , co-founder of Endear , a retail clienteling software startup. Leigh and I talk about her fundraising journey, choices they’ve made and how to think about VC versus other fundraising options.   Raising early-stage funding for a tech startup wi...

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...

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 meas...

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 pa...

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...

Should early-stage founders sell their brands on Amazon? And if so, how? This episode features Annalisa DeMarta , who founded and scaled a children’s brand on Amazon, and is also the founder of Ridgeline Insights an agency focused on helping brands succeed on the Amazon platform. Annalisa talks through how built her brand on Amazon, and tips she’s learned along the way. Why Amazon is an important...

How do you build successful partnerships with big brands when you’re still a startup? This episode features Trisha Goyal, Founder & CEO of Break the Love, an early-stage marketplace that connects lovers of racket sports with underused spaces. Trisha talks through how she built some key B2B partnerships with large, marquee brands by starting small and being focused.  Topics include: How strateg...

How do you raise a seed round? This episode features VC Anna Palmer , General Partner at Flybridge Capital . Anna talks through how the fundraising market has changed, why founders need to seek out “true believers,” and how to build relationships with VCs. Don't miss this informative episode, whether you’re a pre-seed or seed stage founder (note: this episode was recorded in late October 2022...

You might have heard that building a consumer app is hard, and scaling it is even harder. In this episode, Genevieve Bellaire , Founder & CEO of Realworld , a “super-app” for adulthood, gives her advice on building consumer apps. Genevieve talks through why an app was important for her business, the launch of the app, how she thinks about user cohorts and more.  Thinking through the decision t...

Can DTC companies raise early-stage capital right now? Well, it’s a little more complicated right now. This episode features VC Sarah Foley, Partner at SWAT Equity . Sarah talks through how digitally native brands can raise equity rounds right now, what valuations and round sizes are important to note, and where the market is going. Don't miss this informative episode (note: this episode was...

This bonus episode of the Retail X Series podcast features Meha Agrawal , founder and CEO of Silk + Sonder , a self-care membership experience for modern women that makes daily and proactive mental wellness easy and fun from the comfort of women’s homes. Meha has raised over $4m in capital to date, with the most recent seed round being led by Redpoint Ventures. Meha shares her secrets to writing g...

"Simplicity is king." Think of this episode of the Retail X Series podcast as your "Cap Tables 101" class. This episode features attorney Allison Cooper , Corporate Partner at Fenwick & West .  Allison talks through the importance of keeping your cap table organized even at the earliest stages, how to manage dilution, best  practices for option pools and more. If you'r...

This episode of the Retail X Series podcast features Kate Anderson, VP of Revenue Operations at IFundWomen.  Kate goes through the critical steps founders need to take to successfully run a rewards-based crowdfunding campaign.  She also shares some resources to help founders get started. This episode is a can't-miss for any founder considering a crowdfunding campaign on any platform.   Topics...