Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to how I built this early and ad -free right now.
Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, or on Apple Podcasts.
Did you know that two in five homeowners experience water leak damage?
That means nearly half of us are at risk of experiencing catastrophic water damage, whether it's a slow, hidden leak or a sudden pipe burst. And the worst part?
Most people don't realize they have a water leak until it's too late.
That's why I have the MoenFlow Smart Water Monitor and Shutoff, a smart device that helps you better your odds against water damage before it happens.
MoenFlow has FlowSense technology and uses AI to analyze your water usage patterns and runs daily microleak tests to detect any irregular activity, including leaks as small as a drop per minute.
MoenFlow sends real -time alerts straight to your phone if it detects any abnormal activity, and automatically shuts off your water if it senses a catastrophic leak is about to occur, and the app is super simple and super easy to use.
Visit Moen .com -slash -Flo to learn how to protect your home and help stop leaks before they start.
That's M -O -E -N .com -slash -F -L -O.
Because, when it comes to water damage, Moen knows it's not about luck, it's about being prepared.
Automatic shutoff and real time alert capabilities will operate when the device is configured with the proper settings.
Hello, and welcome to the Advice Line on how I built this lab.
I'm Guy Raz. This is the place where we help try to solve your business challenges, and each week I'm joined by a legendary founder, a former guest on the show who will help me try to help you.
And so, if you are building something and you need advice, go ahead and give us a call and you might just be the next guest on the show.
Our number is 1 -800 -433 -1298.
Send us a one minute message with your name, a bit about your business, and the issues or questions that you'd like help with.
Or, you can send us a Voice Memo at HIVT at id .wondery .com.
And make sure to tell us how to reach you.
Also, don't forget to sign up for my newsletter, it's filled with insights and ideas from the world's greatest entrepreneurs, you can sign up for free at guyroz .com or on sub stack and we'll put all this info in the podcast description.
All right, let's go.
Joining me this week are Jeff and current dander and co founders of Jack Black skincare.
Jeff and current it's great to have you back on the show.
Great to be here. Good to see you again.
Great to see you. You of course were guests on how I built this originally in 2023.
And if you guys haven't heard that episode, we will put a link in the podcast description.
You guys launched this business in 2000 as a men's skincare brand.
And this is back when almost nobody was thinking about the men's skincare market.
And we should be clear because I know this sometimes comes up, this is not the same name as the well -known actor.
You guys came up with that name independently, just to confirm.
Absolutely. Right. No relation.
No relation. But a great guy, seems like a great guy.
I actually have interviewed him before, he's an amazing guy.
There are so many awesome lessons in that episode, including how you targeted golf clubs and men's locker rooms at higher -end gyms and how you sort of were inspired by cigar labels on old cigar boxes and how that really helped you gain traction with the brand.
And again, we will put a link to that episode in the podcast description.
But before we get to our callers today, I was hoping if I could ask you guys a couple of questions.
So, I was just sort of thinking about skincare, it's an incredibly crowded market, right?
Even more skincare brands for men now than there were when you guys launched in 2000.
And while it's not the same type of crowding as the women's skincare market, there's still a lot more competitors.
So if you were starting Jack Black today, you know, it's a different environment, do you think you would use the same playbook or do you think you might do things a little bit differently?
I think it'd be very difficult to start a men's skincare brand today.
The space is very crowded.
I've noticed going into stores that the retail space allowed for men's skincare has shrunk.
I think a lot of that's because of the direct -to -consumer strategy that most brands take.
So there's less space available.
Honestly, I don't think I would do it again.
I think our timing was so good.
And I just think it'd be very, very hard to start a men's skincare company today.
I really do. And gain traction and build a big brand.
Do you think that, I mean, there's, obviously there's two ways of going about it.
You guys started with the sort of the wholesale approach, right, trying to sell to boutiques and then department stores.
But a lot of brands we talked to on the show are really focused on direct to consumer, harder today than it was 10 years ago, right.
Because there, so many brands are doing this, but we have had, you know, recently we've told the story of a brand called Beyond Yoga which really start, started back in 2005, as a wholesale brand.
You know, really selling through retailers.
I mean it's almost counterintuitive, but do you think that if you were trying to start it today, you would still go with the wholesale route?
Still trying to sell it in retail?
I think so. I think for a strong brand, you need to have both, you need to be in brick and mortar, and you need to have a strong presence online.
Because people do want to touch and feel and try the product, and they want to experience it before they buy it.
So I think the successful brands in the long term are going to be able to play well in both areas.
You know I know that both of you guys have stepped away from the company a few years after it was acquired.
Tell me a little bit about some of the things that you guys are up to.
I mean I know you're in Dallas.
There's a lot of startups there.
You're probably asked to come to all kinds of start -up events and talk about what you built.
What kinds of things are you guys up to?
Our son, Dylan, started a company.
He's called, Not Beer.
And Curren is helping him with the branding on that.
I've helped him a little bit with the distribution side of it.
And from what I understand, Not Beer is Sparkling Water, right?
Right. But with a fun beer -like positioning and personality.
So socially, it's really fun to drink when you don't wanna drink a beer, but you feel like you're drinking a beer.
And I think from the product standpoint, it's got a really smooth, mellow carbonation, so it's a lot easier to drink than say, topo Chico.
And he's already gotten some good distribution.
So he's in what I call the dark days of a startup.
Because there's a lot of heavy lifting and a lot of setbacks and a lot of tough sledding, but we've been there.
And so we can advise them on how to stay resilient and focused.
I'm on a couple of boards of beauty companies.
All women's brands and you go way back in this industry because you were you know obviously had 15 years of experience in the industry even before you start more before you start jack black.
Yep many decades that's pretty much all I've done is beauty beauty marketing product development and branding.
It's a really really fascinating category we do as you know we do a lot of it on the show um you You guys ready to take some calls?
Sure, let's do it. Yep, looking forward to it.
All right, let's bring in our first caller.
Hello, welcome to advice line you're on with Jeff and Kern Dandarand of Jack Black.
Welcome to the show.
Tell us your name, where you're calling from, and just a little bit about your business.
Hi guy, Jeff and Kern, it's so nice to be here.
My name is Inga Potter, I'm calling from Kittery, Maine.
I'm the co -founder of Cold Current Kelp.
We're a women founded kelp farm and skincare company.
We grow kelp regeneratively off the coast of Maine and we use our kelp to make our skincare products.
Amazing. Perfect people to have on.
So tell me a little bit more about cold current kelp.
So you harvest kelp off the coast of Maine and then you turn that into like creams or what?
Like, what are the products?
So, we make an extract from the kelp and we, currently, our product is a facial oil.
It's called Kelp Glow.
So we make it with nourishing oils that are great for your skin.
and we infuse our kelp extract into the oil, we have three scents and two sizes, and that's our product as of now.
We launched in August of 2023.
And selling directly to consumers through your website.
We sell directly to consumers, and we're currently in about 20 boutiques and a few small spas and stores.
Inga, before we bring Jeff and Corrine, tell us a little bit about how this started.
How did you get into this?
Do you have a background in skincare?
No, actually, I'm a marine biologist by background.
So, yeah. Okay, that's a good background to be involved in sea kelp harvesting.
Yes, exactly. So sort of what drew me first to the business is actually the environmental benefits of growing kelp and farming kelp and it's a really exciting and growing industry in Maine.
So that was sort of the initial draw.
But once, my co -founder's name is Christa Rosen, once we started doing some research about kelp, learning about all of these amazing bioactive compounds, we got really excited about finding some other high -value uses for it besides just the dinner plate.
So we found a lot of scientific research and evidence about the benefits of kelp for your skin and for your health.
And we decided that a skin care product was an achievable goal, and that's sort of how we framed our company.
That's super cool. And tell us what your question is for us today.
So my question is, we are sort of in those dark days, as Curren referred to, where we're really just kind of very hands -on and doing everything.
But we're wondering about the role advisors in business development.
Given the stage of growth our company is in, we're facing a lot of really critical decisions about expanding our product line, about whether or not we seek investment, we're doing some R &D, we have a lot of questions and we're just sort of wondering what role at this stage advisors should play and how we obtain them, and how do we choose them, and sort of what capacity, what that should look like.
All right, and you said about 18 months in, so what have you guys done in sales so far?
We've done about 50 ,000 in the last 12 months.
We're growing really organically.
We haven't invested anything in marketing.
So we're actually seeing a lot of growth.
We're getting a lot of earned media, so we're getting some great news coverage, we've earned some government grants.
So we're getting a lot of attention, and people are enjoying our products, and that's kind of where we are.
All right, let me bring Jeff and Corinne in.
Corinne, first to you, I'm sure you may have some questions for Inga.
Please fire away. OK, first of all, I love your concept, bravo.
I think it's brilliant, and I think you've got a lot of potential.
I think my question to you is, where do you need help?
What expertise are you lacking?
Because that's where you start, right?
Yeah, that's a great question.
My co -founder, business partner is a former attorney, so she brings a different skillset than I do, But we are, we've never had a business, never had a skincare company.
So I think some of our critical questions have to do with, right now we have one flagship product, which we manufacture on our own.
We're looking to figure out sort of how to expand our product line.
Do we seek, you know, a manufacturer to do that?
That's one of our biggest questions.
Seeking investment is another question, how, you know, when to do that, how to go about doing it.
I would say those are kind of two of our biggest questions.
And also like a marketing, you know, how much should we be investing in marketing versus sort of the organic growth that we're seeing just by doing our own social media and things.
So kind of everything, I mean, I think you could benefit from having an advisor that has started a company in the, in the beauty space and has done it kind of bootstrapping with the Lean staff, not a lot of financing and how did they grow it, what decisions did they make, what trade offs did they make, I mean, I feel like, um, you need to focus on sales because nothing really happens until you sell something.
And you've got a great brand, you got a great story, but you've got to get it out there.
And I think sales is super important, maybe even more so than marketing because you need to get distribution.
You need to figure out how to place your product in the right retailers.
How are you opening retail stores today?
What's your process to opening up the retail partners you have today?
That is such a great question.
Neither of us are particularly great at the selling point, So I really appreciate Kern's advice on that.
And I know, Jeff, you you are so talented at that as well.
We've done a couple of trade shows.
That's where we've gotten the majority of our retailers.
We're also on a platform called Fair.
So people are reaching out to us because they're finding us on Fair, which is kind of a platform where, you know, you can put your company and your products and retailers can find you.
We've done a little bit of cold calling.
We really would like to get into the spa market, but we're we're not we don't really have much of a process, I guess is the long answer to that question.
I mean, the sales process is going to be, you know, critical at this point in your development.
I think, you know, going to gift shows, going to spa shows, hiring independent contractors, salespeople to help you, you know, anything that you can do to drive sales, how much emphasis would you put on sort of the trade show circuit versus kind of choosing companies and approaching them?
Because they look like they aligned with our and investing in that?
I think you're going to have to do both.
I think you have to cold call and try to connect with retailers that you think would be a good fit for your brand.
I think you need to try to find salespeople that have similar type products that they're selling, but they may be able to bring your brand in to sell as well.
I mean, most of these salespeople are on straight commission.
They're paid usually 15 % of the wholesale order.
So you don't have a lot of expense associated with having these people, but I think you gotta really focus on opening up some accounts at this point.
Okay, I appreciate that.
So are there freelance salespeople then that can represent multiple brands?
And off, off we could do this.
Yeah, independent rep groups, all over the country.
And we use them to help us build and open up accounts for Jack Black.
I mean, we had almost a thousand accounts like that and, you know, over the course of years.
So even if we're small, they would still kind of represent us?
Maybe, maybe not. I think you have to have a, you know, a good story.
You have to be persistent.
You have to, you know, follow up with them even when they say no. You have to go to shows on your own without a rep group.
You just have to talk to your existing retail partners and say, who's your best sales person?
I mean, you know, the retail accounts you have today, I think I saw 20 on your website.
You know, whatever the best account is.
I would go to that account and say who, who's your best salesperson that comes in here and sells you product?
That's the person that you need to talk to.
Okay, that's great advice.
You asked Inga about advisors and mentors, and one thought I had was you're in Maine.
There is a like in any state and particularly Maine where people really are proud of being Mainers.
There's going to be a strong community of entrepreneurs.
I mean, we've had, you know, Tom Chappell who founded Tom's domain and Roxanne Quimby who founded Burt's Bees.
I mean, it might be worthwhile just going on LinkedIn and cold, you know, cold contacting some main based founders that have managed to build an interesting business because especially in the personal care space because I think that goes pretty far, you know, people are hearing about another Maine -based entrepreneur, they wanna help you.
And you'd be surprised at how many people will say, sure, I'll hop on a call with you.
Okay, I love that, I love that, yeah, those are definitely inspirational stories, so that's great advice too, thank you.
One of the things that I'd love to see on your website is just, it's really cool, the video of you guys harvesting the Kalpa and that's awesome, and I would keep that exactly how it is.
But I would love to see just what it does for the skin.
I'd love to see something like that on the other side.
Yeah, we tried to include a section about the benefits of kelp in skin care, but maybe we need to do it a little more visually?
Is that what you're suggesting?
Yeah, I think so. Yeah, I think so.
Okay. I think so for sure.
Or even you could do a small clinical study that shows your product and how it works and the before and afters and the measurements of the elasticity and the fine lines and wrinkles and hyperpigmentation, you really need to establish the efficacy of kelp for your product.
I know you cited all the research, which is great, and that's very legit, but you want to talk about your product and how it works.
I'd also show your reviews.
I see you have the stars, but you can't drill into it and read the reviews.
Okay, so put more details about their views.
I guess we would love to do a clinical trial, I really appreciate that advice.
I guess we were sort of intimidated at the financial cost. How much would that cost?
Corinne, how much do you think you could do a clinical trial?
Could you do it for under $10 ,000?
Yeah. I think you could.
I mean, you're not going to have as many people in it, but you could have enough to talk about and to show before and afters and get some measurements, and you could get different quotes.
I mean it all comes down to how many respondents you have in the study.
Yeah, that is good advice.
All right, the brand is called Cold Current Kelp, Inga Potter, thank you so much for calling and good luck.
It's awesome. Thank you guys so much. Thank you so much, Chef Curt and Guy.
It was so great to be here, thank you.
All right. Thank you.
Bye -bye. All right, bye -bye.
I mean, it makes sense to me to seek help, right?
You know, there would be a lot of benefits to it.
It's a great story all around.
Did you guys ever experiment with sea vegetables or anything like that in any of your products?
Oh, gosh. I think we had seaweed.
But, Sea Kelp was not on the radar.
But, it has a lot of great attributes.
It's environmentally friendly.
I just love their story.
I mean, she's a PhD in biology, but there's a legit science behind this.
Right. I think the more they lean into that, the better as well.
Yeah. No, I like it.
We're going to take a quick break, but when we come back, another caller, another question, and another round of advice.
I'm Guy Roz, and we're answering your questions right here on the advice line on how I built this lab.
Are you tired of paying for overpriced razors and grooming products?
Dollar Shave Club has everything you need to not only get a quality shave, but an affordable one too.
From razors and electric trimmers to pre - and post -shave care, including their cult favorite Shave Butter, they have a full lineup of personal care products for any man, anywhere, with any type of hair.
But don't take my word for it.
Try for yourself. Dollar Shave Club products are now available everywhere, so you can order from their website, Amazon, or get them at your favorite retailer near you.
Alternatively, you can visit their site right now for 20 % off orders of $20 or more and get your products delivered right to your door.
Visit dollarshaveclub .com slash howibilitethis and use promo code built for 20 % off orders of $20 or more.
And remember, whatever you shave, welcome to the club.
If you've been a longtime listener to How I Built This, you might remember the very first episode we aired back in 2016.
I sat down with Sarah Blakely, the founder of Spanx, and we explored her journey from selling fax machines to starting her own company that's now valued at over $700 million.
When Spanx launched in the early 2000s, it revolutionized the fashion industry by creating an entirely new category of clothing—shapewear.
Then, in 2019, Kim Kardashian launched her own shapewear company, Skims. She may have had fame and fortune on her side, but going up against an established titan like Spanks was no safe bet.
The newest season of Business Wars dives into this fascinating rivalry.
This is a story about what it takes to launch a product, and how far celebrity backing can really take a brand.
Follow Business Wars on the Wondery app, or wherever you get your podcasts.
you can binge business wars Spanx vs Skims early and ad free right now on Wondery Plus.
Scammers are best known for living the high life until they're forced to trade it all in for handcuffs and an orange jumpsuit once they're finally caught.
I'm Saachi Cole and I'm Sarah Hagee and we're the host of Scamfluencers, a weekly podcast from Wondery that takes you along the twists and turns of some of the most infamous scams of all time, the impact on victims and what's left once a facade falls away.
We've covered stories like a Shark Tank certified entrepreneur who left the show with an investment but soon faced mounting bills, an active lawsuit filed by Larry King, and no real product to push.
He then began to prey on vulnerable women instead – selling the idea of a future together while stealing from them behind their backs.
To the infamous scams of Real Housewives stars like Teresa Giudice, what should have proven to be a major downfall only seemed to solidify her place in the Real Housewives Hall of Fame.
Follow ScamFluencers on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts.
You can listen to ScamFluencers early and ad -free right now on Wondery+.
Welcome back to the advice line on how I built this lab.
I'm Guy Raas, and today I'm taking your calls with Jeff and Curran Dandaran.
So Jeff, Curran, let's get back to it.
Take another call. Yep, let's go.
Let's go. Caller, welcome to the Advice line on Jeff and Karen Dandle and the founders of Jack Black.
Hello. Welcome. Tell us your name, where you're calling from, and a little bit about your business.
Thank you. My name is Ashley Gold.
I'm calling from Park City, Utah, and I'm the founder of AAM Atand, an everyday luxury home and tableware brand dedicated to helping people reconnect with themselves, their spaces, and the people in their lives.
We design our own products and we make them in small batch production all over the world from the United States to France to the Czech Republic.
Our designs are based on function, sensory experience, and aesthetics.
Welcome to the show, Ashleigh.
Thank you. Thank you for calling in.
And so what does that mean, by the way?
I should know. No, that's French for, to take care of your soul.
Oh, nice. Okay, so it's home goods or is it dinnerware, like plates?
It's plates. Yes, we've got ceramics, glassware, crystal, wooden cutting boards, things that are in your home.
And you design everything?
I have a designer, Dylan Williamson, who works with me, and the two of us work on them together.
And you're based in Park City.
And do you sell any of this in shops on Park City?
Because I'm looking at your website, this is fancy stuff.
Park City is a fancy town.
We do not. And that actually is actually my question is where to find our customers.
We're currently direct to consumer only.
And we spend a lot of money on our photography and obviously the margins are better direct to consumer.
But I do think we need to find the right places, the right retail locations for people to be able to touch and feel our products to really see the quality because the price point is also high.
they're expensive to design and manufacture in small batch production.
Tell me a little bit about how you founded the business.
What were you doing before?
Where you were like, did you come from this industry?
I am a lawyer by training.
Actually, I worked at Juul, which is an e -cigarette company.
Oh yes. The infamous Juul, so you were like their in -house lawyer and one of the lawyers?
I wore a lot of different hats while I was there.
I ended as the Chief Administrative Officer.
I testified before Congress.
it was a very, very challenging job.
And maybe not for the reasons you might think, I still very much believe in the product for Addicted Smokers.
The way that society and news and everybody talked about it and I felt like failed to actually have the conversations, just led me to this broader sense that we are having trouble disagreeing respectfully.
So I moved to Park City during COVID and decided to completely change what I was doing, and was really driven by being able to sit around the table, have difficult conversations, not necessarily agree, but spend the time together and connect as humans.
Wow. All right, so you left that world behind, and you moved to Park City to start this new business.
And is this entirely self -funded?
It is. And since you launched, how have you guys done in sales total?
It is slow going. We made about $25 ,000 last year and would obviously love to see that grow substantially.
Got it. Okay, so, your question is how can we reach the right people and kind of convince them?
I want to bring Jeff and Kern in before we answer Ashley's questions.
Do you have any questions for her?
Yeah, I do. First of all, your website is beautiful.
I love your concept.
But I was struck by how broad your product line is, and that makes it extremely challenging when you're a start up, just your inventory costs, the cost of maintaining all those skews.
So my question is, do you see the 80 -20 rule coming into play in your product line thus far?
Meaning that twenty percent of your products generate eighty percent of your sales.
Yes, absolutely. Thank you so much, Karin.
So I had a consultant who actually suggested that we had to have a relatively large number of products to launch and Yet to your point we are definitely seeing a few products be the ones that resonate with people So I I mean, I like this idea of potentially narrowing down.
For example we have these beautiful hand -blown crystal tumblers that are made in the Czech Republic and And we have three colorways right now, and now we're expanding into a couple more colorways.
So maybe if we find the products that people are gravitating to, we give people more color options of those products, but simplify the number of products that we offer.
I totally agree and I think you're going to build your community by focusing on your hero products at this stage in your development and making people fall in love with those products and then you introduce them to the rest of your line as you evolve and as you get stronger and that's how you build your community.
First they've got to fall in love with your product and it's a bit overwhelming when you look at your site because you have so much there, It's all very beautiful, but you kinda don't know where to start, and I think if you're gonna go wholesale, that is way too much for a retailer to bring in.
You know, they're gonna focus on the best sellers and your hero product, and what is that entry point product to your brand.
And that's where you need to really focus right now, I think.
And do you think that that entry point product needs to be a more affordable product, or is it okay if it's a more expensive product?
I think it depends on how expensive, and how you can justify the price point, how easily you can communicate that it's worth the step up.
It's always nice to have something that's a little more accessible, to bring them into the brand, and again, have them fall in love with you, and then you can upgrade them as they become a fan.
So I would be sensitive to that.
Okay. One of the things that I thought of was, you know, you're in Park City, you're in an area just filled with affluent people throughout the year, especially as we speak, you know, people getting ready to go to Sundance.
And I wonder how, whether you've tried to or considered working with some of the boutiques in Park City to at least have some of your items in the stores.
I haven't, but I think it's a great idea.
Yeah, I mean, you know, you're - you're in the Bay Area for a long time, so I'm sure you're familiar with Heath.
Absolutely. Heath ceramics is a product that people are willing to spend a lot of money for.
I have a few Heath serving bowls.
They're very expensive, but they've been around for a long time, and they've done things like collaborations with, you know, Alice Waters, one of the most famous chefs in America, where you go to her restaurants and everything is served on Heath, well, you know, plates.
Now, that business was really revived in the last sort of decade or so by people who bought it.
So to me there's some interesting things that you could try to get people to say, oh, that's Amatond, I mean, that's a really high end brand, but you've got going from the website alone to that perception is challenging unless you have a celebrity who's behind you and backing this and also promoting it.
I feel like you wanna kind of build this out I would say starting in Park City, because it's such a, I mean, it's one of those places that's small, but really influential, because of the people who go there.
Does that make sense?
It totally makes sense.
I think it's a great idea.
And I like the idea we've thought about influencers, but that's so I really want this to be authentic.
I want people who really, really love the products and when people use them, they do fall in love with them, but the price point is high.
So they need to be, there needs to be some reason to try it, and so maybe that is a local restaurant or some of the local retail shops.
I mean, I think that's the way we got I mean I you know, because it's a premium product and and by the way, with Jack Black, I mean, you guys were were also making a premium product.
I mean, this was not, it wasn't, you know, out of, you know, sort of astronomically expensive for most people, but it was, it was a pre there was a premium price on it.
And that's how you guys also positioned it.
Right? Right. But to your point, we made sure we did a lot of sampling and we demonstrated in store so people could feel it and touch it and see the textures and go, yeah, this is worth the premium.
And so I like Guy's idea of getting placement in the right retailers so people can see your product, feel it and see the context that it's marketed in, in within the right stores to establish your price point.
I would even consider pinpointing five or six retailers in Park City, Deer Valley, these super high end ski resort areas, and going to them with, I don't know how much inventory you have right now of certain items, but you could even go to them and I don't like to sell on consignment, we never did it, but I think you could at least offer that as an option to open up a retail account.
Just say, hey, I'm specifically targeting your store, I think it's beautiful, I think our products are beautiful, and I'd like to have the opportunity to sell my products here for the next 30 days.
I'll come back in 30 days, whatever you've sold you pay me for, if we don't sell anything, I'll just pick it up and move on.
But I need a chance in your store.
I love your store. I mean, we used to do that all the time.
I love that idea. That's a great idea.
and you could do events.
You could do events at the store and talk about your concept and talk about your products and Yeah, and you're also you also have the access to some really high -end hotels and resorts Montage and Waldorf and St. Regis as a bunch of really super fancy hotels out there I mean people are paying two three thousand dollars a night, you know to stay in these places to ski I I think there's a world where you try and get into those gift shops I mean, those kinds of gift shops in those kinds of places, they want high -end local products.
Especially high -end local products.
And do you think that I need to go and sell this personally to each of these places?
And it's easy to do because you're there.
Yeah, that's true. Jeff, you led the sales, right?
It's hard. You've got to go in to, how would you suggest she go and do that?
Like, what should her pitch be?
I mean, I would target the top five or six retailers.
I'd find out who their buyer was, or whoever owned the store.
I would show up at their store, unannounced.
I'd ask for that person.
I'd tell them, hey, I love your store.
And I would say that, hey, I've got this product line, and I wanna find a home for it.
I think you'd be a perfect home for this, and would you give me a shot?
I can do that. All right, you got a plan.
We've given you a plan actually.
I love it. The brand is called Ama Tanda.
Thanks so much. Good luck.
Thank you so much. Thank you.
Yeah, bye. Bye fight Yeah, it's I mean I'm looking at websites, really really nice stuff But to convince right to convince people to spend that on on this brandy I think they have to know it first a little bit right to current's point.
There's a lot of items on that website I mean yes It's everything.
They've got to have a lot of their capital tied up in inventory to maintain all those skus in the different colors and just makes it tough when you're just starting out like that to have that kind of carrying costs in your inventory.
Sculptures, games, the… Yeah.
The sculptures, yeah.
All kinds of things.
Yeah, and over time, they can move that inventory.
But it may make sense to focus on the serve ware, the dinner ware, the drink ware, right.
and then, you know, because you got stationary, and the food and gifts, but really nice stuff.
We're going to take a quick break, but when we come back, another caller another question and another round of advice.
I'm Guy Raz and we're answering your questions right here on the advice line on how I built this lab.
In the early hours of December 4, 2024, CEO Brian Thompson stepped out onto the streets of midtown Manhattan.
This assailant pulls out a weapon and starts firing at him.
We're talking about the CEO of the biggest private health insurance corporation in the world.
And the suspect. He has been identified as Luigi Nicholas Mangione became one of the most divisive figures in modern criminal history.
It was targeted, premeditated, and meant to sow terror.
I'm Jesse Weber, host of Luigi produced by Law & Crime and Twist. This is more than a true crime investigation.
We explore a uniquely American moment that could change the country forever.
He's awoken the people to a true issue.
Finally, maybe this would lead rich and powerful people to acknowledge the barbaric nature of our health care system.
Listen to Law and Crime's Luigi exclusively on Wondery+.
You can join Wondery -Plus on the Wondery app, Spotify, or Apple podcasts.
You know those creepy stories that give you goosebumps?
The ones that make you really question what's real?
Well, what if I told you that some of the strangest, darkest, and most mysterious stories are not found in haunted houses or abandoned forests, but instead in hospital rooms and doctors' offices.
Hi, I'm Mr. Ballen, the host of Mr. Ballen's Medical Mysteries.
And each week on my podcast, you can expect to hear stories about bizarre illnesses no one can explain, miraculous recoveries that shouldn't have happened, and cases so baffling they stumped even the best doctors.
So if you crave totally true and thoroughly twisted horror stories and mysteries, Mr. Ballen's Medical Mysteries should be your new go -to weekly show.
Listen to Mr. Bawlin's Medical Mysteries on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts.
You can listen early and ad -free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.
Welcome back to the Advice Line on how I built this lab.
I'm Guy Raz and my guests today are Jack Black, skincare co -founders Kern and Jeff Dandurand.
Jeff, Kern, let's take another call.
Yep, let's do it. Yeah, let's go.
All right. let's bring in our final caller.
Welcome to the advice line, you're on with Jeff and Curren D 'Andran, founders of Jack Black Skincare.
Please tell us your name, where you're calling from, and a little bit about your business.
Yeah. Hi everyone. I'm really excited to be here.
My name is Brent and I'm calling in from the beautiful mountain town of Nelson, British Columbia, Canada.
And I'm the founder of Go So Cookware.
So Go So Cookware is a line of premium quality camp cookware.
So designed for people who both love to cook and love to camp.
Got it, okay, tell us a little about what makes this, because cookware for camping exists, so what's so special about GOESOL?
Totally, so cookware for camping definitely exists.
You have, you know, heavy duty cast iron pans which are great but they're really bulky, heavy And heavy, you don't want to backpack with that on No you don't Within there, yeah So then the answer to that is well, there's also really light weight backpacking equipment, right?
Backpacking cookware, which is great if you like to boil water But if you wanna do anything else, then there's like nothing really in between.
And so I created a frying pan that is a carbon steel frying pan.
So carbon steel has all of the great benefits of a cast iron frying pan where there's no toxic - Heats evenly.
Totally, heats evenly, there's no toxic coatings.
My pan is made in America out of 14 gauge American carbon steel.
It's great cooking properties that you can season it so it's almost non -stick.
But then we created a custom made, completely removable handle.
So it's a handle that can lock onto the pan, or you can take it off.
So if you pack up the pan and the handle, they all pack down to a very small footprint.
So it packs as a, as like a, a bowl basically.
Yeah, exactly, it's two pans, an eight inch and a 10 inch pan that's stacked together.
And then the handle nestles in the side.
So you have two frying pans in the, the footprint of like a 10 inch surface.
