1 00:00:03,400 --> 00:00:03,920 Speaker 1: Movie. 2 00:00:05,680 --> 00:00:08,720 Speaker 2: The views, information, and opinions express during this podcast are 3 00:00:08,720 --> 00:00:11,240 Speaker 2: solely those of the individuals involved and do not represent 4 00:00:11,240 --> 00:00:13,400 Speaker 2: those of Into It QuickBooks or any of its cornerstone 5 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:16,680 Speaker 2: brands or employees. This podcast does not constitute financial, legal, 6 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:19,520 Speaker 2: or other professional advice or services. No assurance is given 7 00:00:19,520 --> 00:00:22,520 Speaker 2: that the information is comprehensive, accurate, or free of errors, 8 00:00:22,520 --> 00:00:25,599 Speaker 2: and the information presented is for information purposes only. Into 9 00:00:25,640 --> 00:00:28,240 Speaker 2: It QuickBooks does not have any responsibility for updating or 10 00:00:28,240 --> 00:00:32,000 Speaker 2: revising any information presented. Listeners should verify statements before relying 11 00:00:32,000 --> 00:00:39,640 Speaker 2: on them. Welcome back to another episode of Mind the 12 00:00:39,680 --> 00:00:42,800 Speaker 2: Business Small Business Success Stories, a podcast brought to you 13 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:46,440 Speaker 2: by Into It QuickBooks and Brewy Studio from iHeartMedia. I'm 14 00:00:46,520 --> 00:00:50,160 Speaker 2: Jennie Torres, author of financially Lit, the Modern Latina's guide 15 00:00:50,280 --> 00:00:53,519 Speaker 2: to level up your denetto and become financially Polarosa, and 16 00:00:53,640 --> 00:00:56,440 Speaker 2: you may also recognize me from the other award winning 17 00:00:56,520 --> 00:00:58,920 Speaker 2: podcast I host called Jokiro di Netro. 18 00:00:59,360 --> 00:01:02,800 Speaker 3: And I'mkwitz, host of the Rich Habits podcast and co 19 00:01:02,880 --> 00:01:05,880 Speaker 3: founder of Wits Ventures. You also might know me from 20 00:01:05,880 --> 00:01:08,560 Speaker 3: my TikTok videos about personal finance and investing. 21 00:01:09,120 --> 00:01:11,240 Speaker 2: I feel like I say this every two weeks, but 22 00:01:11,440 --> 00:01:13,840 Speaker 2: today's topic is honestly one of my favorites. 23 00:01:14,600 --> 00:01:16,720 Speaker 3: You do say that every two weeks, and you're probably 24 00:01:16,760 --> 00:01:18,160 Speaker 3: going to say it in two weeks from. 25 00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:22,720 Speaker 2: Now probably, Okay, don't judge me, But today we're talking 26 00:01:22,720 --> 00:01:26,520 Speaker 2: about resilience and reinvention as a small business owner, the 27 00:01:26,600 --> 00:01:29,720 Speaker 2: types of mental toughness that it takes to turn setbacks 28 00:01:29,760 --> 00:01:33,119 Speaker 2: into victories, and the open mindedness that leads to being 29 00:01:33,160 --> 00:01:36,040 Speaker 2: willing to try something different. You know, I think about 30 00:01:36,080 --> 00:01:38,560 Speaker 2: just all of the challenges that I've had in my 31 00:01:38,760 --> 00:01:42,000 Speaker 2: now over decade long career as an entrepreneur, and I 32 00:01:42,040 --> 00:01:45,120 Speaker 2: think the important thing is you have to just really 33 00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:47,800 Speaker 2: be ready for anything, right. You just never know kind 34 00:01:47,840 --> 00:01:50,760 Speaker 2: of what life is going to bring. Knowing your numbers 35 00:01:50,800 --> 00:01:52,560 Speaker 2: is so important too, and I made the mistake of 36 00:01:52,600 --> 00:01:54,400 Speaker 2: that in the beginning. I didn't really have a system 37 00:01:54,400 --> 00:01:56,760 Speaker 2: for knowing what was going on with my finances until 38 00:01:56,800 --> 00:02:00,440 Speaker 2: tax time came around, and that's never fun. And you know, 39 00:02:00,480 --> 00:02:03,360 Speaker 2: I think one of the best skill sets that comes 40 00:02:03,360 --> 00:02:06,840 Speaker 2: from this journey is really that resilience that teaches you 41 00:02:06,880 --> 00:02:10,360 Speaker 2: how to turn those downturns into opportunities. 42 00:02:10,440 --> 00:02:14,440 Speaker 3: Most definitely, and I feel like not just the resiliency 43 00:02:14,639 --> 00:02:16,720 Speaker 3: of it, but kind of taking that a step further 44 00:02:16,919 --> 00:02:20,800 Speaker 3: and really having that fortitude, that deep understanding of what 45 00:02:20,800 --> 00:02:23,080 Speaker 3: it means to be an entrepreneur and have to take 46 00:02:23,160 --> 00:02:26,840 Speaker 3: one step out of time left right breathe, left right breathe. 47 00:02:27,000 --> 00:02:30,360 Speaker 3: And to your point, there's a lot of things that 48 00:02:30,440 --> 00:02:33,320 Speaker 3: happen to us as entrepreneurs that come out of left 49 00:02:33,320 --> 00:02:36,480 Speaker 3: field that completely derail our days, our plans. But being 50 00:02:36,480 --> 00:02:39,760 Speaker 3: able to adapt and whether the storm is just so 51 00:02:39,760 --> 00:02:41,960 Speaker 3: so important and not just being able to do that 52 00:02:42,000 --> 00:02:44,120 Speaker 3: by ourselves because you know, we hear the word solopreneur 53 00:02:44,120 --> 00:02:46,880 Speaker 3: a lot, but also to have that support system. It's 54 00:02:46,880 --> 00:02:50,320 Speaker 3: so important to have that community of other entrepreneurs or 55 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:52,560 Speaker 3: maybe it's your friends or your spouse or you know, 56 00:02:52,680 --> 00:02:55,840 Speaker 3: things of that nature. But being an entrepreneur I've heard 57 00:02:56,160 --> 00:02:59,720 Speaker 3: described as eating glass and I couldnot agree more with 58 00:02:59,800 --> 00:03:00,520 Speaker 3: that description. 59 00:03:01,760 --> 00:03:04,120 Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, it's not always fun in games. 60 00:03:04,760 --> 00:03:07,440 Speaker 2: One of the biggest lessons that I've learned about resilience 61 00:03:07,560 --> 00:03:11,920 Speaker 2: is just really like having financial cushion, because so many 62 00:03:11,960 --> 00:03:15,320 Speaker 2: things can change from an economic standpoint, right, Like, there's 63 00:03:15,440 --> 00:03:18,399 Speaker 2: just no level of certainty when you're operating a business. 64 00:03:18,760 --> 00:03:21,760 Speaker 3: Actually, I couldn't agree more there. To give you an example, 65 00:03:22,240 --> 00:03:26,120 Speaker 3: So a pillar of my business is marketing consulting for 66 00:03:26,360 --> 00:03:29,920 Speaker 3: companies in general, but in the beginning I specifically focused 67 00:03:29,919 --> 00:03:35,080 Speaker 3: on marketing consulting for fintech companies. These fintech companies experienced 68 00:03:35,120 --> 00:03:37,120 Speaker 3: a little bit of a pullback and their marketing spend 69 00:03:37,120 --> 00:03:39,800 Speaker 3: in twenty twenty two when the stock market crashed by 70 00:03:39,840 --> 00:03:43,000 Speaker 3: about thirty to thirty five percent and the economy was 71 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:45,920 Speaker 3: not doing that hot, and so I had to pivot, right, 72 00:03:46,080 --> 00:03:49,600 Speaker 3: You got to have the resilience but also the adaptability 73 00:03:49,640 --> 00:03:53,000 Speaker 3: to say, Okay, I wasn't expecting this, but I do 74 00:03:53,160 --> 00:03:55,040 Speaker 3: know I could do this just as well. 75 00:03:55,400 --> 00:03:58,480 Speaker 2: Absolutely, it sounds like you've gotten really good at recognizing 76 00:03:58,560 --> 00:04:02,040 Speaker 2: opportunity in Austin, which I think is going to be 77 00:04:02,240 --> 00:04:04,360 Speaker 2: very central to our conversation today. 78 00:04:04,840 --> 00:04:07,279 Speaker 1: We're going to be talking to some folks. 79 00:04:06,960 --> 00:04:10,600 Speaker 2: Who are really like creating a new industry right before 80 00:04:10,600 --> 00:04:13,360 Speaker 2: our eyes. We tend to think of innovation as like 81 00:04:13,520 --> 00:04:17,520 Speaker 2: largely tech based, but cultural shifts can fuel marketing changes 82 00:04:17,560 --> 00:04:20,680 Speaker 2: as well. And one market that is skyrocketing at a 83 00:04:20,720 --> 00:04:23,200 Speaker 2: rate that's hard to even keep track of is the 84 00:04:23,320 --> 00:04:27,080 Speaker 2: non alcoholic beverage industry, and when I say skyrocketing, I 85 00:04:27,160 --> 00:04:30,240 Speaker 2: mean it. A Grand View research study is predicting that 86 00:04:30,320 --> 00:04:33,560 Speaker 2: market to hit two point one point eight trillion, yes 87 00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:36,679 Speaker 2: t trillion dollars by twenty thirty. 88 00:04:37,040 --> 00:04:39,880 Speaker 3: That is absolutely insane genius. 89 00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:42,680 Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, And there's a lot of reasons for this. 90 00:04:43,040 --> 00:04:44,880 Speaker 2: A big reason is that people still want to go 91 00:04:44,960 --> 00:04:47,919 Speaker 2: out and socialize, but in this information age, we're just 92 00:04:47,960 --> 00:04:49,400 Speaker 2: so much more health conscious. 93 00:04:49,400 --> 00:04:49,640 Speaker 1: Now. 94 00:04:50,040 --> 00:04:52,760 Speaker 2: Three women in particular, wanted to be able to have 95 00:04:52,800 --> 00:04:55,960 Speaker 2: fun while minimizing the occasional bad effects of consuming too 96 00:04:56,000 --> 00:05:00,520 Speaker 2: much alcohol. Shanna Watkins, Ashland Knox, and Dare and Roads 97 00:05:00,560 --> 00:05:04,320 Speaker 2: came together to create Sensory, a non alcoholic beverage line 98 00:05:04,320 --> 00:05:07,400 Speaker 2: that gives you the euphoric feeling of being buzzed, but 99 00:05:07,520 --> 00:05:09,279 Speaker 2: without compromising your health goals. 100 00:05:09,640 --> 00:05:12,240 Speaker 3: Now, like many Americans during the pandemic, they were stuck 101 00:05:12,279 --> 00:05:15,000 Speaker 3: inside with plenty of time to research their own health. 102 00:05:15,480 --> 00:05:17,400 Speaker 3: They came out the other side of things feeling the 103 00:05:17,440 --> 00:05:19,599 Speaker 3: same way a lot of other people felt, with a 104 00:05:19,640 --> 00:05:23,240 Speaker 3: new found appreciation for being able to socialize and a 105 00:05:23,279 --> 00:05:27,320 Speaker 3: new knowledge surrounding their beverage options. Through their own personal 106 00:05:27,360 --> 00:05:31,279 Speaker 3: journeys and research. The three friends invented a recipe that's 107 00:05:31,279 --> 00:05:33,560 Speaker 3: a way to celebrate that feels good in the moment, 108 00:05:33,720 --> 00:05:37,160 Speaker 3: and even better the next day, they found funding and 109 00:05:37,240 --> 00:05:41,200 Speaker 3: launched their business, diving headfirst into arguably the fastest moving 110 00:05:41,240 --> 00:05:42,040 Speaker 3: market there is. 111 00:05:42,400 --> 00:05:46,000 Speaker 2: Absolutely they are totally making it cool to order mocktails 112 00:05:46,040 --> 00:05:49,760 Speaker 2: and I'm so here for this, and today they're here 113 00:05:49,800 --> 00:05:52,200 Speaker 2: to tell us all about their story and about the 114 00:05:52,279 --> 00:05:55,560 Speaker 2: resilience that got them through tough times and allowed them 115 00:05:55,600 --> 00:06:02,440 Speaker 2: to reinvent an idea that turned into a business. Let's 116 00:06:02,480 --> 00:06:06,719 Speaker 2: welcome to the show. Shanna Watkins, Ashland Knox, and Darien Rhodes. 117 00:06:06,920 --> 00:06:09,000 Speaker 4: Thank you so much for having us. We're excited to 118 00:06:09,040 --> 00:06:10,560 Speaker 4: be here. Yes, thank you. 119 00:06:10,880 --> 00:06:13,920 Speaker 2: All right, so let's start at the beginning. You've said 120 00:06:14,000 --> 00:06:16,200 Speaker 2: that it was the pandemic that had a huge impact 121 00:06:16,240 --> 00:06:20,040 Speaker 2: on all of you deciding to get into this business. So, Shanna, 122 00:06:20,080 --> 00:06:22,799 Speaker 2: can you talk a little bit about your journey from 123 00:06:22,800 --> 00:06:25,560 Speaker 2: being at the job that you had then COVID hitting 124 00:06:25,680 --> 00:06:28,039 Speaker 2: and how you came out on the other side running 125 00:06:28,040 --> 00:06:29,760 Speaker 2: your own business with your two best friends, Like, how 126 00:06:29,800 --> 00:06:30,440 Speaker 2: does that happen? 127 00:06:31,120 --> 00:06:31,400 Speaker 1: Yeah? 128 00:06:31,600 --> 00:06:35,320 Speaker 5: So, I think, like many people, COVID gave us all 129 00:06:35,360 --> 00:06:38,080 Speaker 5: space to sort of like pause life and just kind 130 00:06:38,080 --> 00:06:42,160 Speaker 5: of do some evaluating. And so during that time, myself, 131 00:06:42,279 --> 00:06:45,960 Speaker 5: Darien Ashland, we have all always been like wellness girlies, 132 00:06:46,080 --> 00:06:49,680 Speaker 5: So we would you know, jump on on Sundays and 133 00:06:49,720 --> 00:06:51,720 Speaker 5: listen to a church sermon together and then we would 134 00:06:51,720 --> 00:06:55,320 Speaker 5: discuss like what our key learnings were. Or Ashland's always 135 00:06:55,360 --> 00:06:58,120 Speaker 5: been a physical trainer, so we would join Ashland's like 136 00:06:58,360 --> 00:07:02,160 Speaker 5: physical training sessions. And then similarly, I think a lot 137 00:07:02,240 --> 00:07:04,480 Speaker 5: of us just like held this passion for like what 138 00:07:04,480 --> 00:07:07,240 Speaker 5: we were putting inside of our bodies, and so became 139 00:07:07,320 --> 00:07:10,480 Speaker 5: super passionate about, you know, just like the organic options 140 00:07:10,480 --> 00:07:13,640 Speaker 5: of things and just organic you know, plants that you 141 00:07:13,640 --> 00:07:16,360 Speaker 5: could use to heal your body and whatnot. So I 142 00:07:16,400 --> 00:07:19,640 Speaker 5: started going down this exploration of like what was out 143 00:07:19,640 --> 00:07:22,920 Speaker 5: there for me that I could use as a replacement 144 00:07:23,000 --> 00:07:25,920 Speaker 5: to alcohol. And that was sort of the start of 145 00:07:25,960 --> 00:07:29,440 Speaker 5: me just exploring like what sort of adaptage and mushrooms 146 00:07:29,560 --> 00:07:31,640 Speaker 5: or what sort of just like plants I had never 147 00:07:31,680 --> 00:07:34,360 Speaker 5: heard of existed that could serve as sort of a 148 00:07:34,400 --> 00:07:36,960 Speaker 5: replacement to give you that ritual of like I like 149 00:07:37,000 --> 00:07:39,360 Speaker 5: to have a drink, but I know that alcohol doesn't 150 00:07:39,400 --> 00:07:42,680 Speaker 5: serve me. I was in my kitchen and my husband 151 00:07:42,760 --> 00:07:45,120 Speaker 5: was like, you know, you keep complaining about the lack 152 00:07:45,160 --> 00:07:49,120 Speaker 5: of options for non alcoholic beverages. At the time, there 153 00:07:49,160 --> 00:07:52,280 Speaker 5: were probably like three or four players that were doing it, 154 00:07:52,440 --> 00:07:54,720 Speaker 5: like sort of ats scale, and he's like, I think 155 00:07:54,760 --> 00:07:56,840 Speaker 5: you just need to go ahead and start one. And 156 00:07:56,880 --> 00:07:59,000 Speaker 5: so I was like, oh my gosh, like why hadn't 157 00:07:59,000 --> 00:08:02,239 Speaker 5: I thought about this? And then, you know, some months later, 158 00:08:02,440 --> 00:08:05,040 Speaker 5: I brought my two best friends in with me, and 159 00:08:05,200 --> 00:08:09,400 Speaker 5: ever since it's been like this extremely fast moving journey 160 00:08:09,440 --> 00:08:12,000 Speaker 5: that has been honestly the best thing in my entire life. 161 00:08:12,240 --> 00:08:14,800 Speaker 2: That's incredible. You know, it's like, yeah, sure, let's start 162 00:08:14,800 --> 00:08:17,280 Speaker 2: a business. I don't think that's a conversation that I've 163 00:08:17,320 --> 00:08:20,040 Speaker 2: had with my best friends at all. I feel like 164 00:08:20,040 --> 00:08:22,960 Speaker 2: we need to start elevating our conversations, all right, So 165 00:08:23,160 --> 00:08:25,560 Speaker 2: over to you, Ashlyn, was there a moment or a 166 00:08:25,560 --> 00:08:29,720 Speaker 2: collection of moments where you found yourself wanting to find 167 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:33,400 Speaker 2: an alcohol alternative? Like when did you first discover the 168 00:08:33,400 --> 00:08:36,240 Speaker 2: fact that there were even alternatives and when did you 169 00:08:36,320 --> 00:08:40,280 Speaker 2: realize that it could be a really big market for sure? 170 00:08:40,400 --> 00:08:43,800 Speaker 6: Well, what actually put me onto adapted into neotropics before 171 00:08:43,880 --> 00:08:47,120 Speaker 6: even our first like dry January together in Shanna even 172 00:08:47,200 --> 00:08:50,000 Speaker 6: telling me about them was with my own challenges with ADHD. 173 00:08:50,880 --> 00:08:53,160 Speaker 6: So when I was diagnosed, I was diagnosed like as 174 00:08:53,200 --> 00:08:54,960 Speaker 6: a very young adult. I think it was like my 175 00:08:55,000 --> 00:08:57,160 Speaker 6: first year out of college, and I soon came to 176 00:08:57,160 --> 00:08:58,760 Speaker 6: find that I just didn't really like the way my 177 00:08:58,800 --> 00:09:01,480 Speaker 6: stimulant medication made you feel. So I was doing a 178 00:09:01,480 --> 00:09:04,840 Speaker 6: lot of research into herbs and adaptagens that could replace 179 00:09:05,000 --> 00:09:08,000 Speaker 6: that for myself, and then talking to Shanna, talking to Darien, 180 00:09:08,280 --> 00:09:10,040 Speaker 6: and then even a lot of my other like young 181 00:09:10,040 --> 00:09:12,959 Speaker 6: adult friends who were like, I'm struggling with not being 182 00:09:13,000 --> 00:09:15,400 Speaker 6: able to drink or struggling to focus, or I want 183 00:09:15,400 --> 00:09:18,080 Speaker 6: to drink less caffeine. And it kind of like turned 184 00:09:18,080 --> 00:09:19,960 Speaker 6: on a little bit of a light bulb moment for myself. 185 00:09:20,040 --> 00:09:22,920 Speaker 6: And at the time, I was running a social media agency, so, 186 00:09:22,960 --> 00:09:25,400 Speaker 6: like Shanna said, we were really waiting on, honestly, like 187 00:09:25,480 --> 00:09:28,600 Speaker 6: the universe to just show us this opportunity. And when 188 00:09:28,600 --> 00:09:30,280 Speaker 6: Shanna kind of had that light bulb moment when her 189 00:09:30,360 --> 00:09:32,760 Speaker 6: husband asked her like, why don't you just make one, 190 00:09:32,960 --> 00:09:34,640 Speaker 6: that was literally it like we kind of waited on 191 00:09:34,679 --> 00:09:36,520 Speaker 6: it for like a good year year and a half 192 00:09:37,000 --> 00:09:39,040 Speaker 6: and I think we recognized that it was truly an 193 00:09:39,040 --> 00:09:41,120 Speaker 6: issue in just talking to people. This was becoming like 194 00:09:41,120 --> 00:09:44,560 Speaker 6: a common struggle, especially after COVID, coming off of being 195 00:09:44,600 --> 00:09:46,480 Speaker 6: just super bored honestly because we were just drinking out 196 00:09:46,480 --> 00:09:49,160 Speaker 6: of boredom. We had worked out, we had read, we 197 00:09:49,200 --> 00:09:51,000 Speaker 6: had meditated, we did all the things. So it was 198 00:09:51,040 --> 00:09:54,040 Speaker 6: like by two PM we already watched like Ali Tiger King, 199 00:09:54,080 --> 00:09:55,120 Speaker 6: like what else is there to do? 200 00:09:56,320 --> 00:09:58,640 Speaker 3: Acelyn. I'm going to jump in here because I've got 201 00:09:58,640 --> 00:10:01,640 Speaker 3: a background in financing economics and you're using words that 202 00:10:01,679 --> 00:10:06,680 Speaker 3: are above my just understand adaptagens like walk me through 203 00:10:06,760 --> 00:10:09,000 Speaker 3: real quick. What does what are some of those ingredients 204 00:10:09,040 --> 00:10:11,360 Speaker 3: you mentioned lionsman, Like what does that do to a 205 00:10:11,400 --> 00:10:13,840 Speaker 3: person who might have ADHD or someone who's trying to wind, Like, 206 00:10:13,880 --> 00:10:15,240 Speaker 3: walk me through some of that real quick. 207 00:10:15,480 --> 00:10:18,920 Speaker 6: Yeah, So adaptogens are essentially natural herbal ingredients to help 208 00:10:18,960 --> 00:10:23,520 Speaker 6: your body adapt to external stressors. So lions main really 209 00:10:23,559 --> 00:10:27,000 Speaker 6: helps any external like distractions you may have, really help 210 00:10:27,080 --> 00:10:29,560 Speaker 6: you focus hone in and just have like a nice 211 00:10:29,559 --> 00:10:32,000 Speaker 6: clear mind, which was why it was great to replace 212 00:10:32,040 --> 00:10:36,079 Speaker 6: my ADHD prescriptions or stimulant medications. And then we also 213 00:10:36,120 --> 00:10:38,880 Speaker 6: have new tropics, which are what we kind of like 214 00:10:38,920 --> 00:10:41,720 Speaker 6: explain is like brain boosters, so they help with you know, 215 00:10:41,760 --> 00:10:45,120 Speaker 6: your memory, with your cognitivity and things of that sort. 216 00:10:45,360 --> 00:10:47,480 Speaker 6: So that's what kind of gives you, like amongst our 217 00:10:47,480 --> 00:10:50,520 Speaker 6: other ingredients that are in the beverages, those that kind 218 00:10:50,520 --> 00:10:53,400 Speaker 6: of like uplifted feeling, but also feeling super clear, which 219 00:10:53,440 --> 00:10:55,160 Speaker 6: is the opposite of what alcohol does. 220 00:10:55,320 --> 00:10:57,880 Speaker 3: I appreciate that breakdown, Ashland Darien. I want to bring 221 00:10:57,920 --> 00:11:00,559 Speaker 3: you into this conversation because I'm sure there was a 222 00:11:00,600 --> 00:11:02,440 Speaker 3: point where you're looking around and you're like, my friends 223 00:11:02,440 --> 00:11:05,320 Speaker 3: are talking about these adaptogens and these new tropics, and 224 00:11:05,840 --> 00:11:08,040 Speaker 3: you know it's over here. I'm learning more about this 225 00:11:08,520 --> 00:11:10,600 Speaker 3: in real time now, So walk me through. How did 226 00:11:10,640 --> 00:11:12,240 Speaker 3: you decide to get in the game. 227 00:11:12,559 --> 00:11:15,440 Speaker 7: Well, I will say that we all kind of have 228 00:11:15,800 --> 00:11:22,080 Speaker 7: a similar story of experimenting with adaptogens, nootropics, mushrooms, and 229 00:11:22,160 --> 00:11:25,480 Speaker 7: for me, it was having high anxiety and my sister 230 00:11:25,640 --> 00:11:29,440 Speaker 7: is like a holistic wellness girly, and she was telling 231 00:11:29,440 --> 00:11:33,120 Speaker 7: me that I should start taking Lion's main, Racie Turkey's 232 00:11:33,160 --> 00:11:36,040 Speaker 7: tell cordyceps and these are all mushrooms that when you 233 00:11:36,080 --> 00:11:38,960 Speaker 7: pair them together like Ashton said, they give you clarity. 234 00:11:39,400 --> 00:11:42,120 Speaker 7: So that was the initial point. And I will say 235 00:11:42,120 --> 00:11:45,840 Speaker 7: when it comes to thinking about like a non alcoholic beverage. 236 00:11:45,880 --> 00:11:49,040 Speaker 7: When me and Shannon decided to like shut down Savvy Strategies, 237 00:11:49,440 --> 00:11:51,720 Speaker 7: she had just told me I want a product, and 238 00:11:51,800 --> 00:11:54,040 Speaker 7: I literally said, okay, well when you have one, call me, 239 00:11:54,400 --> 00:11:56,400 Speaker 7: like and on that day we were both so tired. 240 00:11:56,440 --> 00:11:58,800 Speaker 7: I was just like, Okay, this is like our third business. 241 00:11:58,840 --> 00:12:01,160 Speaker 7: We're shutting it down. Call me when you have the product. 242 00:12:01,200 --> 00:12:03,760 Speaker 7: And that's exactly what she did. Like I was, I 243 00:12:03,760 --> 00:12:05,240 Speaker 7: walked out of plates. She gave me a call. 244 00:12:05,320 --> 00:12:06,000 Speaker 1: She was like, I have it. 245 00:12:06,320 --> 00:12:08,600 Speaker 7: We're going to start a non alcoholic business. And I 246 00:12:08,640 --> 00:12:12,000 Speaker 7: was like, okay, like honestly, I trust your vision. Let's 247 00:12:12,000 --> 00:12:14,880 Speaker 7: call Ashland. I trust her with marketing. And then from 248 00:12:14,880 --> 00:12:17,319 Speaker 7: there we literally started like going at it. 249 00:12:17,840 --> 00:12:21,480 Speaker 3: So, Shanna, what was your business experience like before this? 250 00:12:21,559 --> 00:12:24,480 Speaker 3: She mentioned Savvy Strategies, which I'm assuming is this PR 251 00:12:24,760 --> 00:12:27,320 Speaker 3: a consulting firm that you and Darien had here, So 252 00:12:27,760 --> 00:12:30,640 Speaker 3: what was your prior business experience and how did you 253 00:12:30,720 --> 00:12:33,400 Speaker 3: sort of parlay that into this new venture that you 254 00:12:33,440 --> 00:12:35,880 Speaker 3: guys are obviously very successful with today. 255 00:12:36,440 --> 00:12:40,040 Speaker 5: Yeah, My very first business was Savvy Strategies. It was 256 00:12:40,080 --> 00:12:44,439 Speaker 5: a PR and sort of like branding agency where essentially 257 00:12:44,640 --> 00:12:47,880 Speaker 5: I got to work alongside founders and helped tell their 258 00:12:47,880 --> 00:12:51,280 Speaker 5: story from like a PR perspective and a branding perspective. 259 00:12:51,360 --> 00:12:54,640 Speaker 5: So getting to work alongside someone like Shane Heath and Mudwater. 260 00:12:55,040 --> 00:12:57,160 Speaker 5: When I'm you know, setting up an interview and he's 261 00:12:57,200 --> 00:13:00,679 Speaker 5: talking to business insider about how he builds his business, 262 00:13:00,960 --> 00:13:03,840 Speaker 5: how he thinks about building a team, how he makes decisions, 263 00:13:04,240 --> 00:13:07,200 Speaker 5: I'm like taking notes internally because I've always known that 264 00:13:07,280 --> 00:13:11,320 Speaker 5: I wanted a product, and so really, before I started Sensory, 265 00:13:11,440 --> 00:13:14,920 Speaker 5: I'd already had experience doing all aspects of starting a business, 266 00:13:14,920 --> 00:13:19,520 Speaker 5: from finding your vendors, sourcing different things you needed, setting 267 00:13:19,640 --> 00:13:22,760 Speaker 5: up the softwares you need to run a business. And 268 00:13:23,040 --> 00:13:27,240 Speaker 5: while the second business born Collection, it didn't do well 269 00:13:27,280 --> 00:13:31,320 Speaker 5: from like a revenue standpoint, but from a branding perspective, 270 00:13:31,400 --> 00:13:33,480 Speaker 5: like it was golden and everyone always gave us like 271 00:13:33,520 --> 00:13:36,559 Speaker 5: our kudos on like wow, the branding is amazing. And 272 00:13:36,600 --> 00:13:39,600 Speaker 5: that was extremely beneficial because I got to see that, Okay, 273 00:13:39,600 --> 00:13:42,840 Speaker 5: CpG brands do extremely well if you find a product 274 00:13:42,880 --> 00:13:46,640 Speaker 5: that's a reoccurring in nature, that B solves a problem 275 00:13:46,679 --> 00:13:49,920 Speaker 5: for people, and that C has like this emotional resonance. 276 00:13:50,280 --> 00:13:53,480 Speaker 3: I appreciate that walkthrough, and before we jumped to the 277 00:13:53,480 --> 00:13:56,640 Speaker 3: next question here from Deanie, I'm really curious. I could 278 00:13:56,640 --> 00:14:01,000 Speaker 3: be wrong, but I don't remember ever hosting three co 279 00:14:01,120 --> 00:14:04,000 Speaker 3: founders for a business before on the show. And it's 280 00:14:04,080 --> 00:14:06,800 Speaker 3: really interesting to see that because normally when people think 281 00:14:06,800 --> 00:14:08,640 Speaker 3: about a business owner, it's like, oh, yeah, I started 282 00:14:08,640 --> 00:14:10,920 Speaker 3: this one company. It's me or me and my one 283 00:14:10,960 --> 00:14:13,200 Speaker 3: business partner. But there's three of you. So I'd be 284 00:14:13,240 --> 00:14:15,520 Speaker 3: curious to hear from all three of you what your 285 00:14:15,559 --> 00:14:18,280 Speaker 3: sort of role in the business or that identity, from 286 00:14:18,320 --> 00:14:21,040 Speaker 3: your own expertise, with your own background and these these 287 00:14:21,040 --> 00:14:23,200 Speaker 3: seven businesses collectively that you all have started. 288 00:14:23,400 --> 00:14:26,040 Speaker 5: So for me as a CEO, my role in the 289 00:14:26,040 --> 00:14:28,840 Speaker 5: company really is like big vision focus, but also just 290 00:14:28,880 --> 00:14:31,840 Speaker 5: like strategic move focus. So I'm always thinking about from 291 00:14:31,840 --> 00:14:34,360 Speaker 5: a sales perspective, like what can we do to push 292 00:14:34,360 --> 00:14:37,360 Speaker 5: ourselves forward in like, you know, the retail space, or 293 00:14:37,400 --> 00:14:39,600 Speaker 5: how do we push ourselves forward in our direct to 294 00:14:39,640 --> 00:14:42,960 Speaker 5: consumer channels. And then again my two best friends, my 295 00:14:43,000 --> 00:14:45,000 Speaker 5: two business partners, they have the skill sets that I 296 00:14:45,040 --> 00:14:47,480 Speaker 5: don't have, and that was exactly why I knew this 297 00:14:47,520 --> 00:14:50,280 Speaker 5: would be like an amazing fit. So I'll pass it 298 00:14:50,280 --> 00:14:52,000 Speaker 5: to Darien to give her role because I think her 299 00:14:52,080 --> 00:14:54,600 Speaker 5: role is extremely important into what we do and just 300 00:14:54,640 --> 00:14:55,400 Speaker 5: how we're building this. 301 00:14:55,880 --> 00:14:59,280 Speaker 7: We call Stanna our dreamer, and oftentimes she'll call me 302 00:14:59,400 --> 00:15:02,360 Speaker 7: and I'm like, bring it back down, bring it back down. 303 00:15:02,640 --> 00:15:03,080 Speaker 1: That's like a. 304 00:15:04,840 --> 00:15:08,080 Speaker 7: No. It works well because like I like, I honestly 305 00:15:08,120 --> 00:15:11,280 Speaker 7: need Shannon Ashland and their roles in order to like 306 00:15:11,320 --> 00:15:15,080 Speaker 7: ground me too. When I'm being super operationalized and focused 307 00:15:15,080 --> 00:15:17,520 Speaker 7: on finances, which I guess so my background is in 308 00:15:17,600 --> 00:15:21,880 Speaker 7: product management and program management, and so for Cinceriy, I 309 00:15:21,920 --> 00:15:25,640 Speaker 7: really just focus on our operationals from a finance standpoint, 310 00:15:25,680 --> 00:15:28,680 Speaker 7: but also like our roadmaps and how we can scale 311 00:15:28,720 --> 00:15:31,920 Speaker 7: all of our products across like a twelvemonth roadmap. 312 00:15:32,360 --> 00:15:33,640 Speaker 4: That's usually what I focus on. 313 00:15:34,040 --> 00:15:37,520 Speaker 7: And so for me, I'm just always constantly thinking about 314 00:15:37,760 --> 00:15:41,960 Speaker 7: what will this all intel from paid in organic marketing, 315 00:15:42,600 --> 00:15:46,480 Speaker 7: from a sales perspective, from a branding perspective, and my 316 00:15:46,560 --> 00:15:48,960 Speaker 7: head is always in the weeds of like how much 317 00:15:49,040 --> 00:15:52,240 Speaker 7: money this is honestly going to take? So I always 318 00:15:52,280 --> 00:15:55,800 Speaker 7: make a joke that, like, I love manifesting and thinking 319 00:15:55,840 --> 00:15:59,160 Speaker 7: about being present, but with my role it can be 320 00:15:59,240 --> 00:16:01,920 Speaker 7: really hard because I'm always thinking about the future and 321 00:16:02,000 --> 00:16:05,160 Speaker 7: always trying to plan for what can go right, but 322 00:16:05,280 --> 00:16:07,800 Speaker 7: also what can go wrong and if things go wrong, 323 00:16:07,920 --> 00:16:09,080 Speaker 7: how are we going to pivot? 324 00:16:09,360 --> 00:16:11,440 Speaker 4: And now pass it to Ashland. 325 00:16:12,000 --> 00:16:15,280 Speaker 6: My role as the CMO is a lot of marketing, 326 00:16:15,280 --> 00:16:17,200 Speaker 6: but a lot of my background is in social media. 327 00:16:17,440 --> 00:16:19,760 Speaker 6: And you even said that that's the first thing that 328 00:16:19,840 --> 00:16:22,160 Speaker 6: you went to look at whenever you were looking to 329 00:16:22,240 --> 00:16:24,000 Speaker 6: learned about sensory and that's just kind of like the 330 00:16:24,000 --> 00:16:26,440 Speaker 6: way of the world now. So a lot of my 331 00:16:27,000 --> 00:16:30,520 Speaker 6: understanding from working with my client and like the CpG space, 332 00:16:30,720 --> 00:16:32,480 Speaker 6: was that was really where they were getting all of 333 00:16:32,480 --> 00:16:35,560 Speaker 6: their real time customer feedback. Like content really is a 334 00:16:35,600 --> 00:16:38,800 Speaker 6: means of a b testing, especially now with platforms like 335 00:16:38,800 --> 00:16:41,080 Speaker 6: TikTok where you can post ten videos a day and 336 00:16:41,120 --> 00:16:43,040 Speaker 6: none of it's in chronological order and you can really 337 00:16:43,080 --> 00:16:45,720 Speaker 6: see which types of messaging stick. I think that that 338 00:16:45,800 --> 00:16:47,480 Speaker 6: is a huge part of what we do as a brand, 339 00:16:47,480 --> 00:16:49,360 Speaker 6: and I think that's something that all three of us 340 00:16:49,400 --> 00:16:53,239 Speaker 6: kind of take on, is really inserting ourselves into cultural conversations, 341 00:16:53,280 --> 00:16:54,840 Speaker 6: whether it be through a person that we know in 342 00:16:54,880 --> 00:16:58,200 Speaker 6: real life or inserting ourselves into a conversation on the Internet, 343 00:16:58,400 --> 00:17:01,800 Speaker 6: sliding up on a celebrity store, sliding into their dms. 344 00:17:01,880 --> 00:17:03,920 Speaker 6: So whenever we talk to other founders that are like, 345 00:17:04,160 --> 00:17:06,359 Speaker 6: how are you guys here and there? And it seems 346 00:17:06,400 --> 00:17:09,560 Speaker 6: like you're everywhere? I think one content and then two 347 00:17:09,640 --> 00:17:10,680 Speaker 6: because there's three of us. 348 00:17:10,840 --> 00:17:13,200 Speaker 3: Sounds to me like y'all got a well oiled machine, 349 00:17:13,240 --> 00:17:15,760 Speaker 3: that's for sure. Oh my goodness. 350 00:17:18,200 --> 00:17:22,679 Speaker 2: So I hear a lot of, you know, positive stories 351 00:17:22,880 --> 00:17:25,680 Speaker 2: around how you guys have found kind of your synergies right, 352 00:17:25,800 --> 00:17:28,959 Speaker 2: like your your zones of genius. But we all know 353 00:17:29,000 --> 00:17:32,760 Speaker 2: as entrepreneurs, like not every day is rosy. So Shanna, 354 00:17:32,840 --> 00:17:35,280 Speaker 2: if you could talk a little bit about what was 355 00:17:35,280 --> 00:17:39,760 Speaker 2: that first roadblock that you faced when starting Sensory So. 356 00:17:39,680 --> 00:17:43,080 Speaker 5: I would say the very first roadblock I face, and 357 00:17:43,320 --> 00:17:46,720 Speaker 5: probably like most people that get this brilliant idea and 358 00:17:46,760 --> 00:17:49,560 Speaker 5: they want to hit the ground running, was capital. Like, 359 00:17:49,640 --> 00:17:54,600 Speaker 5: to be quite honest, I didn't have capital saved. I 360 00:17:54,640 --> 00:17:57,359 Speaker 5: don't have you know, rich parents that I can just 361 00:17:57,400 --> 00:18:00,200 Speaker 5: go and say, like, hey, mom, dad, can I row 362 00:18:00,320 --> 00:18:03,760 Speaker 5: twenty thousand dollars for a business. But what I did 363 00:18:03,800 --> 00:18:07,240 Speaker 5: have was a like strong credit, Like I had taken 364 00:18:07,240 --> 00:18:09,920 Speaker 5: care of my credit for you know, years and years 365 00:18:09,960 --> 00:18:11,400 Speaker 5: and built that up to where I had a really 366 00:18:11,440 --> 00:18:14,080 Speaker 5: good credit score. So I was like, Okay, I'm gonna 367 00:18:14,080 --> 00:18:17,119 Speaker 5: go and I'm gonna get a line of credit that 368 00:18:17,160 --> 00:18:20,200 Speaker 5: could just be that initial capital to get us started. 369 00:18:20,680 --> 00:18:22,679 Speaker 5: But that was the first roadblock that honestly is what 370 00:18:22,840 --> 00:18:26,120 Speaker 5: took the longest amount of time for me to actually 371 00:18:26,160 --> 00:18:28,840 Speaker 5: get going, was this feeling like I didn't have the 372 00:18:28,880 --> 00:18:31,359 Speaker 5: money to start, and I feel like a lot of 373 00:18:31,359 --> 00:18:35,240 Speaker 5: people find themselves in that same boat. And Darien always 374 00:18:35,240 --> 00:18:37,520 Speaker 5: talks about this, like we're never advocates of just like 375 00:18:37,640 --> 00:18:39,240 Speaker 5: running up a bunch of debt, but if you do 376 00:18:39,280 --> 00:18:42,680 Speaker 5: it strategically, it works because that same debt we had 377 00:18:42,680 --> 00:18:44,800 Speaker 5: to use to start the business that's now paid off 378 00:18:45,080 --> 00:18:48,520 Speaker 5: because you know, crediting to Darien, we operated very strategically 379 00:18:48,520 --> 00:18:50,919 Speaker 5: and made sure that we put away the money to 380 00:18:51,560 --> 00:18:54,320 Speaker 5: you know, pay that debt back down. So that's the 381 00:18:54,320 --> 00:18:56,800 Speaker 5: first and foremost, you know roadblock. But I also want 382 00:18:56,840 --> 00:19:00,320 Speaker 5: to mention probably the biggest roadblock that we encountered getting 383 00:19:00,359 --> 00:19:05,040 Speaker 5: started was so we were probably a week from you know, 384 00:19:05,200 --> 00:19:08,679 Speaker 5: launching the business, and we're getting the delivery of our 385 00:19:08,720 --> 00:19:11,040 Speaker 5: first five thousand cans, and so if you can imagine, 386 00:19:11,080 --> 00:19:14,359 Speaker 5: we're like, wow, this is crazy, Like we have five 387 00:19:14,400 --> 00:19:17,600 Speaker 5: thousand cans coming in a week, and so we're planning 388 00:19:17,640 --> 00:19:20,000 Speaker 5: it all out, like I had cleared out my garage 389 00:19:20,000 --> 00:19:22,200 Speaker 5: because we quite literally have started out of my garage. 390 00:19:22,560 --> 00:19:24,280 Speaker 5: Now we have a bigger warehouse, but at that time 391 00:19:24,280 --> 00:19:26,600 Speaker 5: we just had my garage, so clear out my garage. 392 00:19:26,800 --> 00:19:27,720 Speaker 4: We're getting started. 393 00:19:27,800 --> 00:19:30,280 Speaker 5: Our truck is on the way from Florida, which is 394 00:19:30,320 --> 00:19:34,119 Speaker 5: where our beverage is made and you know manufactured. The 395 00:19:34,160 --> 00:19:36,879 Speaker 5: truck is on the way from Florida, and all of 396 00:19:36,920 --> 00:19:39,600 Speaker 5: a sudden, I wake up one morning and I see 397 00:19:39,640 --> 00:19:42,960 Speaker 5: like my community group chat and they're like, oh my gosh, 398 00:19:43,000 --> 00:19:45,360 Speaker 5: do you guys see this huge truck like tilted over 399 00:19:45,440 --> 00:19:48,120 Speaker 5: in front of our community gate, Like do we see this? 400 00:19:48,800 --> 00:19:50,960 Speaker 5: And my husband he wakes me up, He's like, Shanna, 401 00:19:51,000 --> 00:19:54,399 Speaker 5: do you see that? And I'm like my heart sinks, y'all, 402 00:19:54,440 --> 00:19:57,880 Speaker 5: Like I'm feeling the like PTSD from that moment, and. 403 00:19:58,040 --> 00:19:59,679 Speaker 4: Lo and behold it is our truck. 404 00:20:00,040 --> 00:20:03,880 Speaker 5: I see like probably a thousand cans of sensory like 405 00:20:03,960 --> 00:20:07,560 Speaker 5: splattered across the ground to enter my community gate. 406 00:20:07,760 --> 00:20:09,159 Speaker 4: A fourth of our product got ruined. 407 00:20:09,200 --> 00:20:12,199 Speaker 5: So that was at first, like our initial reaction was 408 00:20:12,240 --> 00:20:15,320 Speaker 5: like high stress. I will be honest, but I think 409 00:20:15,359 --> 00:20:18,400 Speaker 5: one skill set that each of us have is we 410 00:20:18,600 --> 00:20:20,800 Speaker 5: do have this ability to sort of regulate our central 411 00:20:20,840 --> 00:20:25,280 Speaker 5: nervous systems like pretty quickly. And so within I would say, 412 00:20:25,800 --> 00:20:28,720 Speaker 5: thirty minutes to an hour, we were like keep calm 413 00:20:28,880 --> 00:20:29,600 Speaker 5: all as well. 414 00:20:29,720 --> 00:20:31,880 Speaker 4: We are lucky girls, and great things happened to us. 415 00:20:31,960 --> 00:20:34,520 Speaker 5: And so we were on FaceTime like that entire day 416 00:20:34,880 --> 00:20:36,639 Speaker 5: and I'll pass it to ask them to continue this 417 00:20:36,680 --> 00:20:39,800 Speaker 5: story because it was like it was such a day, honestly. 418 00:20:40,160 --> 00:20:42,480 Speaker 6: So at this time, I lived like ten minutes away 419 00:20:42,520 --> 00:20:45,520 Speaker 6: from Shanna, So I wake up, I have like seven 420 00:20:45,640 --> 00:20:48,440 Speaker 6: like miss cause and it's like eight h two am, 421 00:20:48,440 --> 00:20:50,280 Speaker 6: Like this isn't good. And by the time I got there, 422 00:20:50,320 --> 00:20:52,399 Speaker 6: I was like mentally prepared. And then Darien in New 423 00:20:52,520 --> 00:20:54,159 Speaker 6: York was like on FaceTime with us, like trying to 424 00:20:54,200 --> 00:20:56,959 Speaker 6: problem solve, like messaging like our co packer and everyone 425 00:20:56,960 --> 00:20:59,120 Speaker 6: like in the background like hey, this happened, Like what's 426 00:20:59,160 --> 00:21:01,560 Speaker 6: going on? And by the time I got there, I 427 00:21:01,640 --> 00:21:03,800 Speaker 6: was like, well, this is a content moment. So I 428 00:21:03,920 --> 00:21:07,840 Speaker 6: put up my tripod and that's literally we recorded the 429 00:21:07,840 --> 00:21:09,479 Speaker 6: whole thing. We posted the whole thing on TikTok. We 430 00:21:09,480 --> 00:21:12,080 Speaker 6: were like live posting it on our stories. I have 431 00:21:12,640 --> 00:21:15,119 Speaker 6: even the driver like he the driver that literally got 432 00:21:15,119 --> 00:21:16,040 Speaker 6: the truck stuck in the ditch. 433 00:21:16,040 --> 00:21:17,719 Speaker 4: I was like, this is a part of you know, 434 00:21:17,760 --> 00:21:18,480 Speaker 4: the storytelling. 435 00:21:18,600 --> 00:21:20,800 Speaker 6: I feel like everyone in Shanna's neighborhood has had sensory 436 00:21:21,040 --> 00:21:22,679 Speaker 6: because we were also like handing it out because we 437 00:21:22,680 --> 00:21:24,320 Speaker 6: were blocking the gate, so we felt bats We're like 438 00:21:24,520 --> 00:21:26,480 Speaker 6: handing out damage cans people in the cars. Like it 439 00:21:26,480 --> 00:21:29,040 Speaker 6: turned into an entire content and kind of like pre 440 00:21:29,119 --> 00:21:32,720 Speaker 6: launch marketing moment, especially like in Dallas, like that entire 441 00:21:32,720 --> 00:21:35,040 Speaker 6: neighborhood is now sensory advocates. We were able to talk 442 00:21:35,040 --> 00:21:36,879 Speaker 6: about it in our newsletter and stuff as well, and 443 00:21:36,920 --> 00:21:39,120 Speaker 6: it really is now just like a core memory for us, 444 00:21:39,160 --> 00:21:41,680 Speaker 6: and all of our other mentors in this space were like, oh, 445 00:21:41,720 --> 00:21:43,440 Speaker 6: you guys just wait, like you guys think that this 446 00:21:43,480 --> 00:21:46,000 Speaker 6: is the worst of it, Like you guys have no idea, 447 00:21:46,080 --> 00:21:49,080 Speaker 6: so honestly, like now we approach everything with that kind 448 00:21:49,119 --> 00:21:51,399 Speaker 6: of notion, like now five hundred cans get damaged on 449 00:21:51,400 --> 00:21:54,800 Speaker 6: the line, We're like, oh yeah, like another day, Yeah yeah, 450 00:21:54,840 --> 00:21:56,480 Speaker 6: like next point, Like let's get on to the next 451 00:21:56,480 --> 00:21:57,480 Speaker 6: part of the calle. 452 00:21:57,920 --> 00:21:59,919 Speaker 2: That is a story for the books. I feel like 453 00:22:00,040 --> 00:22:02,719 Speaker 2: when you guys write your founder's story, because obviously you 454 00:22:02,720 --> 00:22:05,840 Speaker 2: know y'all have a long life in entrepreneurship just with 455 00:22:06,119 --> 00:22:10,360 Speaker 2: your resilience and your personalities. I see you guys doing 456 00:22:10,400 --> 00:22:13,240 Speaker 2: big things. But I think it's just such a great 457 00:22:13,320 --> 00:22:18,919 Speaker 2: reminder that even if you think that the entrepreneur that 458 00:22:18,960 --> 00:22:21,159 Speaker 2: you admire out there in the world has got it 459 00:22:21,200 --> 00:22:23,960 Speaker 2: all figured out, like I promise you, every single one 460 00:22:23,960 --> 00:22:27,520 Speaker 2: of us has multiple versions of these types of stories. 461 00:22:27,520 --> 00:22:29,879 Speaker 2: And I bet in that moment you really were glad 462 00:22:29,880 --> 00:22:32,000 Speaker 2: that you had sensory on board, because I would have 463 00:22:32,000 --> 00:22:33,960 Speaker 2: been popping open some bottles of wine after this. 464 00:22:34,040 --> 00:22:38,119 Speaker 3: If not, let's talk about reinvention. So what strategies or 465 00:22:38,160 --> 00:22:42,080 Speaker 3: aspects of sensory needed to be reinvented along the way 466 00:22:42,119 --> 00:22:43,680 Speaker 3: here over the last it's called a year or so, 467 00:22:44,040 --> 00:22:44,520 Speaker 3: if any. 468 00:22:45,240 --> 00:22:47,280 Speaker 6: I think the biggest thing, especially from a marketing and 469 00:22:47,280 --> 00:22:51,120 Speaker 6: branding perspective, is constantly tailoring our messaging. We were really 470 00:22:51,119 --> 00:22:54,520 Speaker 6: positioning ourselves as like just an alternative to drinking alcohol, 471 00:22:54,720 --> 00:22:56,840 Speaker 6: but we found that people were actually drinking sensory in 472 00:22:56,880 --> 00:23:00,199 Speaker 6: many other settings. People were drinking sinceory midday while they 473 00:23:00,200 --> 00:23:03,080 Speaker 6: were working, drinking a play rather than drinking another macho 474 00:23:03,200 --> 00:23:05,960 Speaker 6: or another coffee, and things like that have allowed us to, 475 00:23:06,320 --> 00:23:08,439 Speaker 6: you know, make different kinds of content, sit down with 476 00:23:08,440 --> 00:23:11,119 Speaker 6: our designer, how can we get photos and videos in 477 00:23:11,160 --> 00:23:14,760 Speaker 6: different settings, and just constantly taking in that consumer information, 478 00:23:14,880 --> 00:23:17,360 Speaker 6: whether it's from our customers, what we just see generally 479 00:23:17,400 --> 00:23:20,400 Speaker 6: trending online and in the culture, and just being comfortable 480 00:23:20,440 --> 00:23:23,199 Speaker 6: with that consistent reinvention, because that's the only way that 481 00:23:23,240 --> 00:23:25,320 Speaker 6: you really build a legacy brand. 482 00:23:25,480 --> 00:23:26,920 Speaker 3: And I love that you all were able to sort 483 00:23:26,960 --> 00:23:29,280 Speaker 3: of reimagine the brand like that. And Darien, you mentioned 484 00:23:29,320 --> 00:23:31,719 Speaker 3: pivoting earlier before. Is that's what you were alluding to, 485 00:23:31,840 --> 00:23:33,720 Speaker 3: or maybe walk me through kind of what you meant 486 00:23:33,720 --> 00:23:35,639 Speaker 3: around the idea of pivoting along the way when it 487 00:23:35,640 --> 00:23:36,400 Speaker 3: comes to sensory. 488 00:23:36,800 --> 00:23:39,159 Speaker 7: I was mainly talking about pivoting in a sense of 489 00:23:39,240 --> 00:23:43,760 Speaker 7: operations on a daily basis, there's something going wrong working 490 00:23:43,840 --> 00:23:48,080 Speaker 7: with co packers or vendors. There's always something and we 491 00:23:48,200 --> 00:23:51,480 Speaker 7: have to always think fast, Like there are several examples 492 00:23:51,480 --> 00:23:54,800 Speaker 7: such as when we got our initial primary boxes when 493 00:23:54,800 --> 00:23:59,280 Speaker 7: we were launching Sensory, they were not the correct dimensions, 494 00:23:59,320 --> 00:24:01,280 Speaker 7: like one was the crest dimensions and they fit our 495 00:24:01,280 --> 00:24:03,480 Speaker 7: cans perfectly, but the other two didn't for our twelve 496 00:24:03,560 --> 00:24:06,600 Speaker 7: packs and our twenty four packs, and I was like, 497 00:24:06,640 --> 00:24:10,600 Speaker 7: we have to move forward with launching Sensory. We cannot 498 00:24:10,640 --> 00:24:13,119 Speaker 7: just depend on having these primary boxes when we do 499 00:24:13,160 --> 00:24:16,480 Speaker 7: have secondary boxes that fit the cans perfectly. We can't 500 00:24:16,560 --> 00:24:19,320 Speaker 7: have another week where we push to customers that we 501 00:24:19,800 --> 00:24:22,320 Speaker 7: are delaying the launch, because at some point it gets 502 00:24:22,400 --> 00:24:24,600 Speaker 7: tiring when you want to buy a product and people 503 00:24:24,600 --> 00:24:27,080 Speaker 7: are just now selling a story and not an actual product. 504 00:24:27,720 --> 00:24:32,879 Speaker 7: We sold out of our first version of Connect, and 505 00:24:32,960 --> 00:24:36,239 Speaker 7: this was on accident. A video of us telling our 506 00:24:36,280 --> 00:24:38,479 Speaker 7: story Shannon and her daughter went viral, and then we 507 00:24:38,600 --> 00:24:40,479 Speaker 7: went to Whole Foods as well in that video went 508 00:24:40,560 --> 00:24:43,960 Speaker 7: viral and we sold out of Connect overnight. So having 509 00:24:44,000 --> 00:24:46,440 Speaker 7: to pivot and spin that into a story of how 510 00:24:46,480 --> 00:24:48,560 Speaker 7: you know, we sold out of our brand in one 511 00:24:48,640 --> 00:24:52,200 Speaker 7: hundred and fifteen days and making that like a big splash, 512 00:24:52,520 --> 00:24:55,240 Speaker 7: but also in the background realizing like from an operational standpoint, 513 00:24:55,280 --> 00:24:57,000 Speaker 7: we can never let that happen again. That means we 514 00:24:57,000 --> 00:24:59,600 Speaker 7: have holes in our system. And then like one of 515 00:24:59,640 --> 00:25:01,480 Speaker 7: the big the things we had to pivot for was 516 00:25:02,240 --> 00:25:06,560 Speaker 7: for Culture Con. We had like two thousand cans shipped 517 00:25:06,560 --> 00:25:10,199 Speaker 7: from Texas to New York and they come to my 518 00:25:10,280 --> 00:25:12,880 Speaker 7: house that morning, and I'm excited because they're there early. 519 00:25:12,880 --> 00:25:14,480 Speaker 7: I'm like, oh my gosh, they're here a day early. 520 00:25:14,560 --> 00:25:17,679 Speaker 7: Like I specifically paid extra for them to bring it 521 00:25:17,680 --> 00:25:19,600 Speaker 7: to my door, for them to bring it inside, Like 522 00:25:19,960 --> 00:25:22,240 Speaker 7: I was like telling the guy, it's just me, Like 523 00:25:23,040 --> 00:25:25,000 Speaker 7: I weigh one hundred and twenty pounds. What am I 524 00:25:25,040 --> 00:25:27,040 Speaker 7: supposed to do with two thousand cans that essentially weigh 525 00:25:27,200 --> 00:25:29,920 Speaker 7: two thousand pounds? And he's like, well, I'm just the guy, 526 00:25:30,000 --> 00:25:32,280 Speaker 7: Like what am I supposed to do? And they take 527 00:25:32,359 --> 00:25:37,119 Speaker 7: the product back and I'm like, we actually have an 528 00:25:37,160 --> 00:25:41,480 Speaker 7: event in forty eight hours. And I actually paid extra 529 00:25:41,520 --> 00:25:44,959 Speaker 7: money to have this delivered in a specific way, like 530 00:25:45,080 --> 00:25:48,040 Speaker 7: I worked with the customer service. I talked to everyone 531 00:25:48,080 --> 00:25:50,640 Speaker 7: purposely on the phone. And it's one of those things 532 00:25:50,640 --> 00:25:53,080 Speaker 7: where I always say, like, focus on what you can control. 533 00:25:53,640 --> 00:25:55,960 Speaker 7: And so we start working together and I'm telling her, 534 00:25:56,000 --> 00:25:58,520 Speaker 7: you know, like I physically can't lift this, I don't 535 00:25:58,560 --> 00:26:01,080 Speaker 7: know what are the seal here, and I need this 536 00:26:01,119 --> 00:26:03,600 Speaker 7: product to be back here in twenty four hours because 537 00:26:03,640 --> 00:26:07,600 Speaker 7: this is an event worth over ten thousand dollars and 538 00:26:07,760 --> 00:26:11,800 Speaker 7: essentially what we work out is just hiring two men 539 00:26:12,400 --> 00:26:15,400 Speaker 7: to help unload two thousand. 540 00:26:15,359 --> 00:26:19,480 Speaker 3: On the street really. 541 00:26:18,560 --> 00:26:21,639 Speaker 4: Quite literally white literally some time. We also have videos 542 00:26:21,640 --> 00:26:21,880 Speaker 4: of that. 543 00:26:22,000 --> 00:26:25,160 Speaker 7: The reason I try to stay grounded and stay calm 544 00:26:25,240 --> 00:26:27,639 Speaker 7: and focus on what we can control is because my 545 00:26:27,720 --> 00:26:29,960 Speaker 7: role is focused on everything that goes wrong, like I 546 00:26:29,960 --> 00:26:31,800 Speaker 7: said earlier, and I have to be able to problem 547 00:26:31,840 --> 00:26:34,159 Speaker 7: solve because I was like, well, since I paid for 548 00:26:34,200 --> 00:26:37,359 Speaker 7: all of these extra incentives, like I want to refund here, 549 00:26:37,720 --> 00:26:41,679 Speaker 7: and the guys were seventy five percent cheaper than if 550 00:26:41,720 --> 00:26:45,000 Speaker 7: we would have went with those incentives anyways, So it's like, honestly, 551 00:26:45,000 --> 00:26:47,159 Speaker 7: a lot of times you just have to believe that 552 00:26:47,240 --> 00:26:50,600 Speaker 7: the universe is giving you something better. Anyways, and we 553 00:26:50,680 --> 00:26:52,720 Speaker 7: ended up saving money and they were able to get 554 00:26:52,720 --> 00:26:55,679 Speaker 7: the product into the house within an hour, and then honestly, 555 00:26:55,720 --> 00:26:59,040 Speaker 7: they helped us out in multiple ways for Culture Con 556 00:26:59,080 --> 00:27:02,240 Speaker 7: and made several of our initiatives so much easier and 557 00:27:02,240 --> 00:27:03,120 Speaker 7: then they became our friends. 558 00:27:03,119 --> 00:27:04,960 Speaker 4: By the end of it, we were like cracking jokes. 559 00:27:05,200 --> 00:27:07,159 Speaker 7: So you know, I feel like when you focus on 560 00:27:07,200 --> 00:27:09,840 Speaker 7: what you control, there's always like something that comes out 561 00:27:09,880 --> 00:27:11,160 Speaker 7: of it that's for the greater good. 562 00:27:11,600 --> 00:27:13,600 Speaker 3: I can just tell by talking to you that you 563 00:27:13,640 --> 00:27:16,240 Speaker 3: absolutely are an operator. You figure it out, you get 564 00:27:16,240 --> 00:27:18,439 Speaker 3: things done, and it makes a lot a lot of sense. 565 00:27:18,480 --> 00:27:21,320 Speaker 3: Why you know, that's sort of your role in this business. 566 00:27:21,240 --> 00:27:24,680 Speaker 2: All right, So, Darien, as the numbers girly, you have 567 00:27:24,760 --> 00:27:28,480 Speaker 2: to be able to help the company weather these unexpected challenges. 568 00:27:28,520 --> 00:27:30,960 Speaker 2: So I'd love to know how you use quick Books 569 00:27:31,119 --> 00:27:34,240 Speaker 2: to this effect, and like how does the done for 570 00:27:34,320 --> 00:27:37,159 Speaker 2: you business tasks and the streamline bookkeeping really help you 571 00:27:37,240 --> 00:27:40,560 Speaker 2: free up your time to be brainstorming solutions instead of 572 00:27:40,760 --> 00:27:42,240 Speaker 2: like caught in the weeds of the numbers. 573 00:27:43,359 --> 00:27:46,000 Speaker 7: I would say QuickBooks is like the foundation, the first 574 00:27:46,000 --> 00:27:49,240 Speaker 7: foundation of our numbers. All of our accounts, our credit 575 00:27:49,240 --> 00:27:51,359 Speaker 7: cards are linked to QuickBooks and I check it on 576 00:27:51,400 --> 00:27:54,040 Speaker 7: a weekly cadence so that I'm able to like categorize 577 00:27:54,040 --> 00:27:56,720 Speaker 7: all of our expenses. And this just makes it really 578 00:27:56,760 --> 00:28:00,439 Speaker 7: easy for me to work with our accountant and provide 579 00:28:00,440 --> 00:28:04,960 Speaker 7: them a clear, visible insight into where our money is going. 580 00:28:05,280 --> 00:28:07,480 Speaker 7: It also is really important for me to be able 581 00:28:07,520 --> 00:28:11,480 Speaker 7: to see like our cash flow, what's going in, what's 582 00:28:11,520 --> 00:28:15,720 Speaker 7: going out, where it's going, where we're breaking even, and 583 00:28:15,760 --> 00:28:18,560 Speaker 7: where we need to like honestly like hold back on 584 00:28:18,600 --> 00:28:21,640 Speaker 7: our spending. And I will say that recently very exciting 585 00:28:21,680 --> 00:28:26,240 Speaker 7: for me. We got Forecaster and Forecaster links to QuickBooks, 586 00:28:26,280 --> 00:28:28,960 Speaker 7: and so I'm able to feed in all of our 587 00:28:30,359 --> 00:28:34,120 Speaker 7: real data into Forecaster, and it kind of just allows 588 00:28:34,160 --> 00:28:36,879 Speaker 7: me instead of just looking at what's historical, which is 589 00:28:37,000 --> 00:28:39,520 Speaker 7: very important for me. But right now I'm really focused 590 00:28:39,560 --> 00:28:42,800 Speaker 7: on us building and scaling and seeing what we can 591 00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:46,200 Speaker 7: accomplish really quickly in the future. And so with quick Books, 592 00:28:46,240 --> 00:28:48,640 Speaker 7: as I've been working through my onboarding, it's just really 593 00:28:49,640 --> 00:28:52,120 Speaker 7: important that it allows me to see like what we're 594 00:28:52,120 --> 00:28:54,239 Speaker 7: actually doing on a day to day and how that 595 00:28:54,280 --> 00:28:59,000 Speaker 7: can feed into our actual forecast. So in terms of 596 00:28:59,040 --> 00:29:02,719 Speaker 7: quick Books, I would just say that setting it up 597 00:29:02,760 --> 00:29:05,840 Speaker 7: early and ensuring that just like all of your financials 598 00:29:05,920 --> 00:29:08,800 Speaker 7: are flowing into it is imperative for you to be 599 00:29:08,840 --> 00:29:11,760 Speaker 7: able to see both what is going on day to day, 600 00:29:12,000 --> 00:29:13,840 Speaker 7: but also if you do really want to be able 601 00:29:13,840 --> 00:29:16,120 Speaker 7: to scale your business in an efficient manner. 602 00:29:16,240 --> 00:29:19,360 Speaker 2: Setting up the infrastructure for your finances as a business owner. 603 00:29:19,360 --> 00:29:21,920 Speaker 2: I think it's such an important part of the whole 604 00:29:22,320 --> 00:29:24,520 Speaker 2: foundation setting, if you will. But it's a part that 605 00:29:24,680 --> 00:29:26,560 Speaker 2: a lot of people skip in the beginning because they're 606 00:29:26,600 --> 00:29:29,480 Speaker 2: still wrapping their heads around, like, am I a real business? 607 00:29:29,520 --> 00:29:32,160 Speaker 2: Do I even have enough things to like justify signing 608 00:29:32,240 --> 00:29:36,360 Speaker 2: up for an accounting software? And as someone who led 609 00:29:36,440 --> 00:29:39,719 Speaker 2: a spreadsheet financial life for way too long as an 610 00:29:39,800 --> 00:29:42,560 Speaker 2: entrepreneur and then having to like rebuild that system into 611 00:29:42,680 --> 00:29:46,600 Speaker 2: quick books, I realized just how much more powerful you 612 00:29:46,640 --> 00:29:48,959 Speaker 2: are when you have that data in real time and 613 00:29:49,040 --> 00:29:51,400 Speaker 2: you have like the full picture of what's going on 614 00:29:51,440 --> 00:29:53,160 Speaker 2: in your business, you can be a lot more nimble. 615 00:29:53,440 --> 00:29:55,720 Speaker 3: I'll tell you what I think. This is a myth 616 00:29:55,800 --> 00:29:58,239 Speaker 3: a lot of small business owners fall for, which is 617 00:29:58,320 --> 00:30:00,960 Speaker 3: the oh, but I spent money, but it's a tax 618 00:30:01,000 --> 00:30:03,200 Speaker 3: write off. It's okay. I you know what I like. 619 00:30:03,280 --> 00:30:05,680 Speaker 3: I like those after tax profits. I like money in 620 00:30:05,720 --> 00:30:08,360 Speaker 3: my bank account after Uncle Sam takes is a little 621 00:30:08,400 --> 00:30:08,680 Speaker 3: bit there. 622 00:30:08,720 --> 00:30:09,320 Speaker 4: That's what I like. 623 00:30:09,400 --> 00:30:12,640 Speaker 3: But listen, I am so excited for sensory I'm excited 624 00:30:12,680 --> 00:30:15,960 Speaker 3: to drink these and enjoy myself and really support the 625 00:30:15,960 --> 00:30:19,160 Speaker 3: business here, and I think non alcoholic beverages are the 626 00:30:19,160 --> 00:30:21,200 Speaker 3: way of the future. We're seeing gen z you know, 627 00:30:21,280 --> 00:30:23,680 Speaker 3: kind of moving away from alcohol. So how are you 628 00:30:23,720 --> 00:30:26,680 Speaker 3: all setting sensory up for this awesome secular growth trend 629 00:30:26,720 --> 00:30:29,880 Speaker 3: that is non alcoholic beverages. What's next? What are you 630 00:30:29,880 --> 00:30:33,560 Speaker 3: all excited about all at the visionary the CEO kind 631 00:30:33,560 --> 00:30:34,840 Speaker 3: of paint the picture for us first. 632 00:30:35,760 --> 00:30:38,840 Speaker 5: Yeah, So I think we are extremely excited about just 633 00:30:38,880 --> 00:30:41,520 Speaker 5: the future of drinking because I think we are clearly 634 00:30:41,560 --> 00:30:44,760 Speaker 5: seeing a shift in a society where you know, people 635 00:30:44,840 --> 00:30:48,320 Speaker 5: are drinking less alcohol, but they're not necessarily drinking less, 636 00:30:48,360 --> 00:30:51,280 Speaker 5: they're just you know, being mindful about what they drink, 637 00:30:51,400 --> 00:30:54,040 Speaker 5: how they drink. And so it's in a really exciting 638 00:30:54,080 --> 00:30:56,200 Speaker 5: time for us because we're right, you know, sort of 639 00:30:56,200 --> 00:30:59,680 Speaker 5: on the money with the trend, and so we see 640 00:30:59,680 --> 00:31:04,080 Speaker 5: ourselfs is honestly just becoming the non alcoholic option that 641 00:31:04,120 --> 00:31:08,400 Speaker 5: feels really approachable, that feels really culturally resonant. Because I 642 00:31:08,400 --> 00:31:11,840 Speaker 5: think that's another important factor of sensory is sort of 643 00:31:11,880 --> 00:31:15,800 Speaker 5: this this persona that we create where people almost see 644 00:31:15,840 --> 00:31:18,600 Speaker 5: it as like kind of like this exclusive like, oh, 645 00:31:18,600 --> 00:31:21,160 Speaker 5: I'm a part of the club. And so in the 646 00:31:21,200 --> 00:31:23,880 Speaker 5: near future, what's next for us is you know, continuing 647 00:31:23,920 --> 00:31:28,400 Speaker 5: to grow our presence online, growing our community, but first 648 00:31:28,400 --> 00:31:32,720 Speaker 5: and foremost also really growing our distribution footprint. And so 649 00:31:32,760 --> 00:31:35,640 Speaker 5: in twenty twenty six, our big goal is to land 650 00:31:35,680 --> 00:31:38,960 Speaker 5: our first big retail partnership, continue to be a part 651 00:31:38,960 --> 00:31:43,720 Speaker 5: of cultural moments like you know, south By Southwest, you know, 652 00:31:43,800 --> 00:31:47,800 Speaker 5: create and cultivate big moments, culture con again, and just 653 00:31:47,840 --> 00:31:49,520 Speaker 5: those big moments where we can really just be more 654 00:31:49,560 --> 00:31:52,080 Speaker 5: than a beverage but also sort of like a cultural movement. 655 00:31:52,960 --> 00:31:55,160 Speaker 7: Yeah, it's really important for us to not just be 656 00:31:55,280 --> 00:31:59,280 Speaker 7: seen as a wellness beverage, Like we fullheartedly plan to 657 00:31:59,320 --> 00:32:03,440 Speaker 7: insert ourselves into the social scenes and just making it 658 00:32:03,480 --> 00:32:06,120 Speaker 7: known that, like when you're out with your friends party, 659 00:32:06,200 --> 00:32:09,080 Speaker 7: you can also have an intentional option that's not alcohol 660 00:32:09,120 --> 00:32:11,760 Speaker 7: but will still give you like a luxurious, sexy fill 661 00:32:11,840 --> 00:32:12,960 Speaker 7: so you feel a part. 662 00:32:12,920 --> 00:32:13,920 Speaker 4: Of the scene. 663 00:32:14,080 --> 00:32:17,120 Speaker 7: We do want wellness and our beverage to feel like 664 00:32:17,160 --> 00:32:19,000 Speaker 7: accessible and that you can bring it to the spall 665 00:32:19,000 --> 00:32:20,920 Speaker 7: with you. You can buy it from a retailler, but 666 00:32:20,960 --> 00:32:22,520 Speaker 7: you can also bring it out to the club with you. 667 00:32:22,880 --> 00:32:25,720 Speaker 6: The more we learn about the self care moments, or 668 00:32:25,800 --> 00:32:28,680 Speaker 6: the social moment to which people may be reaching for something. 669 00:32:29,240 --> 00:32:32,080 Speaker 6: We have the opportunity to then create a formula that 670 00:32:32,160 --> 00:32:35,680 Speaker 6: meets that same energy or that same vibe. Because the 671 00:32:35,800 --> 00:32:38,440 Speaker 6: entire name of our brand sensory, we want it to 672 00:32:38,480 --> 00:32:41,200 Speaker 6: be a very sensory experience, down to the felt sensation, 673 00:32:41,360 --> 00:32:43,640 Speaker 6: down to the taste, down to the smell, than the 674 00:32:43,640 --> 00:32:45,920 Speaker 6: colors and the packaging. So yeah, I think we're also 675 00:32:46,000 --> 00:32:47,520 Speaker 6: just very excited in twenty twenty six to get a 676 00:32:47,560 --> 00:32:50,040 Speaker 6: little bit more creative and launch new SKUs and new 677 00:32:50,080 --> 00:32:52,680 Speaker 6: flavors that can really meet more consumers where they are 678 00:32:52,720 --> 00:32:55,120 Speaker 6: and whenever they are reaching for a beverage, no matter 679 00:32:55,160 --> 00:32:55,640 Speaker 6: what you know. 680 00:32:55,680 --> 00:32:57,360 Speaker 4: The alternative situation is. 681 00:32:57,880 --> 00:33:00,240 Speaker 3: Y'all heard it here first Sensory. I can't wait to 682 00:33:00,800 --> 00:33:03,680 Speaker 3: indulge in my own sensory beverages here. And I'm just 683 00:33:03,720 --> 00:33:05,880 Speaker 3: rooting for y'all. Y'all are so fun and I'm so 684 00:33:06,000 --> 00:33:07,800 Speaker 3: excited to see the rise of your company, and I 685 00:33:07,800 --> 00:33:09,200 Speaker 3: can't wait to see what y'all are doing in five 686 00:33:09,280 --> 00:33:09,800 Speaker 3: years from now. 687 00:33:10,360 --> 00:33:12,120 Speaker 4: No, we can't thank y'all in us. This has been 688 00:33:12,240 --> 00:33:14,280 Speaker 4: so much fun, so fun fun. 689 00:33:14,800 --> 00:33:16,040 Speaker 1: Thank you so much for being here. 690 00:33:16,440 --> 00:33:18,320 Speaker 3: Yeah, thanks so much for joining us on this episode 691 00:33:18,320 --> 00:33:20,320 Speaker 3: of Mind the Business Small Business success Stories. 692 00:33:20,920 --> 00:33:22,719 Speaker 4: Yes course, thank you guys. 693 00:33:33,440 --> 00:33:36,920 Speaker 2: Okay, can we just like cheers to these three because 694 00:33:37,000 --> 00:33:40,520 Speaker 2: they are really they're killing it in every way possible. 695 00:33:40,640 --> 00:33:43,640 Speaker 2: I mean, I was loving all the positivity today, right. 696 00:33:43,680 --> 00:33:46,120 Speaker 2: I feel like sometimes you hear like these horror stories 697 00:33:46,160 --> 00:33:49,200 Speaker 2: of like co founders that have falling out, and like 698 00:33:49,440 --> 00:33:53,040 Speaker 2: these three give me so much inspiration to be even 699 00:33:53,080 --> 00:33:55,720 Speaker 2: more collaborative in my own business. And Shanna had a 700 00:33:55,720 --> 00:33:59,480 Speaker 2: great story about overcoming difficulties and her product is really 701 00:33:59,600 --> 00:34:02,120 Speaker 2: helping people have fun and be healthy, and we love 702 00:34:02,360 --> 00:34:02,840 Speaker 2: to see it. 703 00:34:03,160 --> 00:34:06,280 Speaker 3: Overcoming difficulties, I think is an understatement. If I had 704 00:34:06,400 --> 00:34:10,080 Speaker 3: ordered five thousand cans and a thousand of them, we're 705 00:34:10,120 --> 00:34:12,880 Speaker 3: just tipped over rolling around on the concrete here in 706 00:34:12,880 --> 00:34:17,279 Speaker 3: front of my community. That is definitely a difficulty, for sure. 707 00:34:17,640 --> 00:34:19,759 Speaker 3: It's also a great reminder though, that the world we 708 00:34:19,840 --> 00:34:22,040 Speaker 3: live in is going to waiver from crazy to calm 709 00:34:22,080 --> 00:34:24,640 Speaker 3: and no matter what. Really, the only thing you can 710 00:34:24,680 --> 00:34:26,919 Speaker 3: do is roll with the punches and do your best 711 00:34:26,960 --> 00:34:30,040 Speaker 3: to succeed where you can. They mentioned control the controllables. 712 00:34:30,280 --> 00:34:32,960 Speaker 3: That's all we can do. We can just control the controllables. 713 00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:37,200 Speaker 3: Take one step left, foot, right foot breathe. That's entrepreneurship absolutely. 714 00:34:37,400 --> 00:34:40,440 Speaker 2: And now that we've given our audience plenty to think about, 715 00:34:40,760 --> 00:34:43,160 Speaker 2: what do you think about us giving them something to do? 716 00:34:43,280 --> 00:34:46,400 Speaker 3: Austin, I'm ready for it, all right, listeners. Between now 717 00:34:46,440 --> 00:34:48,640 Speaker 3: and the next episode, let's see if you can make 718 00:34:48,640 --> 00:34:52,560 Speaker 3: a list of worst case scenarios from realistic to apocalyptic, 719 00:34:52,880 --> 00:34:55,840 Speaker 3: and analyze your readiness to deal with each crisis. 720 00:34:56,280 --> 00:34:59,080 Speaker 2: Identify who in your network or your team can be 721 00:34:59,160 --> 00:35:01,800 Speaker 2: leaned on in the event of a major setback. 722 00:35:02,640 --> 00:35:06,080 Speaker 3: Also identify those different areas that your business can pivot 723 00:35:06,120 --> 00:35:08,120 Speaker 3: to in the event of a challenge. 724 00:35:08,400 --> 00:35:09,520 Speaker 1: And find at. 725 00:35:09,440 --> 00:35:13,400 Speaker 2: Least five stories of overcoming setbacks, whether that's fictional movies 726 00:35:13,440 --> 00:35:16,560 Speaker 2: and books to personal stories from a mentor or a peer, 727 00:35:16,800 --> 00:35:19,160 Speaker 2: and think about what aspect of that story you can 728 00:35:19,200 --> 00:35:21,240 Speaker 2: apply to your own business as well. 729 00:35:22,600 --> 00:35:22,839 Speaker 1: Well. 730 00:35:22,960 --> 00:35:25,640 Speaker 2: That's it for today's episode. You can find me on 731 00:35:25,680 --> 00:35:27,760 Speaker 2: social media at Jokiero Di Neto. 732 00:35:27,560 --> 00:35:30,719 Speaker 3: Podcast, and you can find me at Austin Hankwitz. You 733 00:35:30,760 --> 00:35:33,879 Speaker 3: can follow into It QuickBooks on all social media at 734 00:35:33,960 --> 00:35:37,000 Speaker 3: QuickBooks to get the tools you need to start, run 735 00:35:37,040 --> 00:35:40,280 Speaker 3: and grow your business. Head to QuickBooks dot Com, Forward 736 00:35:40,320 --> 00:35:42,600 Speaker 3: slash MTB Today. 737 00:35:43,239 --> 00:35:45,520 Speaker 2: Don't forget to follow this show wherever you listen to 738 00:35:45,560 --> 00:35:48,520 Speaker 2: podcasts so you can stay up to date on future episodes. 739 00:35:49,120 --> 00:35:50,839 Speaker 3: We also want to hear from you, so be sure 740 00:35:50,880 --> 00:35:52,520 Speaker 3: to leave us a rating and a review. 741 00:35:53,280 --> 00:35:54,120 Speaker 1: See you next time. 742 00:35:57,760 --> 00:36:00,960 Speaker 3: This podcast is a production of iHeartRadio, Ruby Studio and 743 00:36:01,040 --> 00:36:04,279 Speaker 3: Into It QuickBooks. Our executive producers are James Foster and 744 00:36:04,360 --> 00:36:07,520 Speaker 3: Ryan Martz. Our supervising producer is Meredith Barnes 745 00:36:07,920 --> 00:36:11,120 Speaker 2: Our writer is Eric Leeja, and our mixing engineer is 746 00:36:11,239 --> 00:36:11,800 Speaker 2: Eric Zeiler.