We work on 3:1 schedule
@drinkLMNT
3 week sprints, 1 week rest and assess.
Is there something similar you can do for your teams to have more space and clarity for effective work?
Introducing LMNT Sparkling⚡️
Sparkling is our team's most ambitious undertaking to date. The end result is something we’re especially proud of — one our whole team had a hand in bringing to you. Because that’s what this is about. Putting health in your hands.
INSIDERS got first dibs. Now LMNT Sparkling goes public — available throughout the contiguous US ⚡️
Sparkling offers an invigorating way to take health into your own hands. To sip something that turns the tide towards health.
Welcome to the next chapter in the Salty Rebellion.
You know the intro email where you connect two people?
You’re not writing it for them.
It’s an opportunity to share a few lines of gratitude for the role each has played in your life.
Write it like that and see how you feel. See how it impacts the connection you’ve made.
@pt
@LeighWolf
@jgarzik
Imagine,
“Is a meat-based diet best for me?”
- we can’t comment on highly politically charged diets.
“Is a plant-based diet best for me?”
- yes! It’s better for your health and the environment.
This is a harmful paradigm - directly leading to poor health.
@shl
Post series B (or other similar metric) you’re no longer a startup.
In other words, most the jobs in tech are not with “startups.” Just high growth companies.
Most of us know Gatorade has sugar, but let it be known I have *many friends who default to Gatorade after a light workout or to kick a hangover...
@drinkLMNT
@Levels
I get a TON of requests for “catch ups” - esp now that our business has grown.
I’ve found exchanging voice notes is the answer.
Extremely high leverage:
- people get to the point, including their requests or Qs.
- we skip the 15 min of me weather and recent trips talk.
- I
@pt
@LeighWolf
@jgarzik
Coming from the health space, this is highly problematic. Many now accepted nutritional understandings were once “political, charged, conspiracies, etc”
We still have evolving understandings of “the science” today.
When companies say “we want to be the next Redbull or Gatorade.”
I don’t get it.
Do you mean you want to join the ranks of leading sugar and caffeine distributors who dramatically contribute to our diabetes, obesity, and mental health epidemics?
"To me, Stay Salty means stand up for your health. There's no one path to health." 👊
@jamestmurphy_
gives voice to the intentional simplicity of the brand, from product to packaging. And how the drive to simplicity follows one particular goal — putting health into your hands.
@damccormick13
Subscription discount becomes a credit and applies to second purchase 🤷♂️
Fwiw, We don’t mind this behavior. If someone values their time like this and needs that price, I figure it’s another form of price elasticity/two-part tariff at work.
@alexdunsdon
Advice I love from an old professor: “I always try to talk people out of starting a company. Entrepreneurship is hard, if they can be talked out of it, then they don’t want it enough. Entrepreneurs that make it can’t be talked out of pursuing the vision.”
@damccormick13
Q4 is a down quarter in this category. (Sports/nutrition in general) Often around 25%. Or 5-15% MoM. I wouldn’t worry about it AT ALL.
We don’t chase sales and we spend less on ads so as not to compete with every other holiday promo. Play your game - but Q4 is headwinds time.
A HUGE congrats to
@m_franceschetti
and the
@eightsleep
team. 🎉🎉
Sleep is so critical for health and these guys are changing the game.
Honored to be an investor and supporter. 🔥
BREAKING NEWS:
With so many industry leaders sleeping on the Pod (and loving it), we’re excited to welcome some of them as investors in
@eightsleep
.
Thanks to
@APompliano
for joining us & for breaking the news this am! Below is the full list of new investors: 👇🏽
Internal Nestlé docs:
60% of its food/drink products don't meet a “recognized definition of health"... some categories/products "will never be healthy"
Takeaways:
- avoid Big Food
- consumers want healthier options, still early in better-for-you food & bev, massive upside
@dhh
Some of the most experienced fintech folks I know have said for years they’re bearish on AI for underwriting - as it blatantly discriminates. They predict big fines and all sorts of other headaches.
@moizali
@TinaSharkey
Might actually look into debt holders. The speed of the shutdown might hint at debt issues and someone could be holding the first lien on assets.
@rorysutherland
Pro: amazing unlocks in towns when traveling.
Con: towns overrun by second homes with too few actual residents (we have this problem in big sky, MT - airbnb not the only contributor). 2,300 residents. 15,000 homes in the town.
A note to VCs dipping into CPG investing:
Becoming popular in VC twitter is one small slice of a customer base - and will skew your perception of its traction.
@dhh
No, I don’t trust apple with new products anymore and stay away for at least a year of bugs. Plus, I avoid all software updates for at least a quarter.
Last decade:
10: Yale
11: Housing in Haiti
12: Perlmutter brand dev
13: Grain Brain - NYT
#1
14: Launch probiotics DTC
15: Acquisition by GoL, NYC move
16: Angel investing & fintech turn around
17: GoL probiotics hit
#1
18: New brand Dev
19: LMNT launch
@ShrugCap
@Nivo0o0
“We bring a mildly different perspective, paired with a mostly similar network, to invest in founders that resemble ones other firms are also likely to back.
We’re slight variation - why change it up?”
@becca_peng
Facts at the top. Flair for those that want more. Don’t bury facts within the flair as it can look like hiding.
I start my updates with: “for the short read, here’s what you need to know” and I do 3-5 bullets summary.
$GROV is trading at $145MM market cap with $104MM in cash and $56MM in inventory.
Valued at half revenues and less than assets listed on the balance sheet 😬😬
@ryan_caldbeck
I’ve seen an interesting one pop up which starts to look at how many robinhood trades are made on a stock (generally a millennial consumer buyer) vs institutional trades.
(Ie, Tesla) can play it as smart v dumb money. But also as a consumer demand indicator.
There is a MASSIVE need for quality graphic designers in cpg/dtc.
Social, product, web, ads. Designers that can nail it visually and have a hair of strategy.
We need it and I’m seeing everyone looking for it (7 others this week alone).
Idea for DTC brands:
Do you have a channel partner that’s particularly hurting during COVID?
(Existing or potential new)
Invest in supporting them to pay dividends for the long term.
We have a sleep crisis in the US. By that I mean, massive chronic issues with sleeping (duration and quality).
It’s not talked about relative to the scale. Sleep shame?
@benedictevans
Def not a tech company. But to mince words, I’d say it’s a digitally native brand.
A retailer is a curator of other brands. A DN brand is omnichannel. With community, feedback, engagement etc that retail-native brands can’t fathom.
They’re brands built for today’s world.
@web
has been saying this for years. Another powerful graph on how the US has far more retail space than other countries. Ecommerce is up, retail is down and the US has 5x+ more retail space than others. Yikes.
@benedictevans
I don’t understand why
@Spotify
hasn’t rolled out premium pages for artists where they can livestream, host concerts, etc (for money)
They can literally save millions of artists RN - even help the arts+community thrive
@AppleMusic
? Here’s your chance to be relavant again
@IanRountree
Wish
@sharespost
100 fund wasn’t so awful. Has totally underperformed over last 5 years (7% annualized) in a sector that’s been soaring.
Maybe
@AngelList
can create a fund that could execute well?
Maybe
@cartainc
becomes a platform someone can build on top of to do this?
@jmj
Agreed.
Tho the Warby Parker innovation was probably more about cutting out middlemen in the supply chain than DTC. Their margins are far better than plants or socks.
BREAKING NEWS
We are proud to announce that
@eightsleep
has raised a $86M Series C.
Sleep hasn't changed for 1000s of years, until the Pod. This funding will unlock development of cutting-edge tech that tracks more bio signals & maximizes recovery & rest
This is of course a promo piece for
@bolt
but it's actually pretty good - history of ecommerce payments, why existing stuff is terrible (I am familiar first hand) and what's on the horizon... little Andreessen call to arms in there too ;)
@RyanBreslow
I am thinking of doing a small rolling fund to invest in health/wellness and great founders. There are so many great companies being built out there right now. If interested, just DM me and I can share more
@avc
You think a nation will shift eating habits in a decade?
We’ve known sugar is the leading cause of chronic inflammatory conditions (diabetes et all) and have hardly stemmed that consumption yet.
$GROV is trading at $145MM market cap with $104MM in cash and $56MM in inventory.
Valued at half revenues and less than assets listed on the balance sheet 😬😬
I know people are upset about the calendly thing.
But how about the “send me some times” email?
I can’t stand it.
Take the extra minute to put forward options. It’s proactive, professional, and saves everyone a back and forth.
The FDA just kneecapped approval of MDMA.
This is the highest efficacy / lowest side effect intervention for depression and PTSD ever studied. Helps those suffering get to root cause of trauma.
But it’s not a recurring treatment. Against pharma business model.
Outrageous.
We ran a budgeting process this week forecasting a 75% loss in revenues.
I’m optimistic we won’t be hit that hard - but we’re moving forward with that budget until we have confidence things will be better.
@zachmstuck
Sounds early, so in trying to assess P/M fit:
- revenue growth (without over paying CAC) 10-20% MoM growth a good marker.
- repeat buyers / organic referrals. 30%+ repeat rate.
- Capital efficiency - small and scrappy team and budget.
- do I use or am aligned with product.
I met 3 Yale undergrads running a startup last night.
Some of the most alive faces ☺️
Such a delight.
One’s on the football team and two are deep tech guys - one interned with apple at 12 and they’ve both been building together for fun for 6 years.