Scott Dancy is the founder and CEO of Azuna, a fast-growing brand in the natural air freshener space. With a background in staffing, technology, and several entrepreneurial ventures, Scott started Azuna in Buffalo in 2019, scaling the business from hand-packaging orders to becoming the world’s largest purchaser of tea tree oil and achieving significant success in both DTC and Amazon channels. In this episode of DTC Pod, Scott shares his journey of launching Azuna, from navigating supply chain ch...
Feb 25, 2026•49 min•Ep. 368
Graham Rigby is the President and CEO of the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA), the leading trade association for the herbal products industry. With 20 years of experience across startups and industry leadership—including serving as Chief Innovation Officer at Care/of—Graham has helped shape how modern supplement brands navigate regulation, formulation, and go-to-market strategy. In this episode of DTC Pod, Graham shares what it actually takes to launch and scale a supplement brand wit...
Dec 24, 2025•54 min•Ep. 367
Natalia Chappell is the founder of Natalia Chappell & Co, a UK-based consultancy helping luxury and lifestyle brands scale sustainably. Previously, she led marketing for THG's luxury division, working with brands like Coach and Ralph Lauren across price points from hundreds to thousands of pounds. In this episode of DTC Pod, Natalia breaks down what it really takes for US brands to win in the UK—and why so many get it wrong. She shares the full-funnel mistakes she sees premium brands make ov...
Dec 11, 2025•49 min•Ep. 366
Martin Forde is the co-founder and partner at Highline Brands, a retail brokerage built for modern CPG and emerging brands. As the first sales hire at Dr. Squatch, he helped lead the brand's Walmart launch—which did over $50M in year one and set the foundation for a $1.5B exit to Unilever. In this episode of DTC Pod, Martin shares the full playbook for making the leap from DTC to retail. He breaks down how to evaluate which channels make sense, what buyers actually care about (hint: it's not you...
Nov 28, 2025•59 min•Ep. 365
Oisin O'Connor is the CEO and co-founder of Recharge, the leading subscription management platform powering 75% of all Shopify subscriptions. Under his leadership, Recharge has become a critical infrastructure partner for over 30,000 brands, reaching 100 million subscribers and $100 million ARR. In this episode of DTC Pod, Oisin pulls back the curtain on what it really takes to win with subscriptions in today’s DTC landscape. He shares insider strategies for subscriber growth, optimizing retenti...
Oct 31, 2025•44 min•Ep. 364
Zeke Bronfman is the co-founder and CEO of The Absorption Company, a brand pioneering highly bioavailable supplements engineered for optimal nutrient absorption. With a background in health and wellness entrepreneurship—including a previous successful beverage exit—Zeke leads a team on a mission to address a major gap in supplement efficacy by focusing on real, measurable impact for consumers. In this episode of DTC Pod, Zeke details the journey of building The Absorption Company from inception ...
Oct 21, 2025•37 min•Ep. 363
Danielle Kidney is the founder of The Creative Pack, a Los Angeles-based agency specializing in packaging design for CPG and DTC brands. With over two decades of experience in the industry—including work with Tesco and a diverse portfolio of well-known consumer brands—Danielle brings a wealth of expertise in every aspect of packaging, from strategy and brand storytelling to materials and production. In this episode of DTC Pod, Danielle breaks down the behind-the-scenes process of creating packag...
Oct 02, 2025•51 min•Ep. 362
Meenakshi Lala is the CEO of UrbanStems , an online floral gifting company that designs, sources, and delivers high-quality, curated bouquets and gifts across the U.S. She brings over two decades of operational experience from leading brands in fashion and retail such as Alice + Olivia, Juicy Couture, and Elie Tahari. Her expertise in scaling complex businesses and building operational excellence now fuels UrbanStems’ growth as a leader in the industry. In this episode of DTC Pod, Blaine and Mee...
Sep 26, 2025•45 min•Ep. 361
Natan Bershtel is the Director of Business Development at Pelagic , a fractional supply chain partner for growing brands and CPG companies. Before Pelagic, Natan spent nearly 20 years as a public school teacher before joining and eventually running his family’s contract packaging business—where he worked with iconic names like Seed, Liquid IV, Celsius, and Element. After his company’s exit, Natan teamed up with John Morgan to help brands avoid common operational pitfalls and build supply chains ...
Sep 11, 2025•49 min•Ep. 360
Brent Vartan is Managing Partner and Co-Founder at Bullish, a unique hybrid combining a branding agency and a consumer-focused venture fund. With decades of experience in brand strategy, Brent and his team have been early investors and builders behind some of the most iconic DTC and consumer brands of the past decade, including Peloton, Warby Parker, Casper, Harry's, Hu, Bubble, and more. In this episode of DTC Pod, Brent shares his perspective on what it takes to build generational consumer bra...
Jul 03, 2025•48 min•Ep. 359
Apoorva Govind is the founder and CEO of Bestever, a platform focused on helping brands and marketers generate ad creatives powered by real performance data and advanced AI models. With a background spanning technical roles at Apple, Uber, and Nvidia, Apoorva brings unique insights into the intersection of technology and growth marketing. In this DTC POD episode, Apoorva and Blaine discuss how the AI toolkit for advertisers is evolving, the reality behind AI-generated ads, and why strategic inpu...
Jun 19, 2025•52 min•Ep. 358
Chris Koch is the founder and CEO of VO/D, a venture studio that partners with massive talent celebrities to build enduring CPG brands across DTC, e-commerce, and retail. With a background in sports, investment banking, and talent management, Chris brings deep experience in identifying consumer needs, pairing them with the right creators, and executing product-first brand launches. In this episode of DTC Pod, Chris walks through Void’s venture model, emphasizing the importance of strong products...
May 29, 2025•44 min•Ep. 357
Aaron Nosbisch is the founder and CEO of BRĒZ, a cannabis social tonic beverage designed as an alcohol alternative that offers a euphoric, feel-good effect without the downsides of alcohol. He built his expertise in e-commerce from an early age, launching multiple internet brands and scaling previous ventures like MONQ (portable aromatherapy diffuser, 0 to $15 million in three years as CMO), and running Lucyd Media, the world’s largest cannabis social advertising agency, which run 80% of meta ad...
May 09, 2025•48 min•Ep. 356
Marin Ištvanić is a partner at Inspire Brands, a boutique agency focused on paid social ads, primarily on Facebook and Instagram. He has personally spent over $150 million on Facebook ads for clients and internal brands, successfully scaling Inspire's own brand to $30 million in revenue by their third year. In this episode of DTC Pod, Marin shares his insights on growing brands profitably through paid social. He discusses the importance of achieving product-market fit, crafting compelling offers...
May 01, 2025•40 min•Ep. 355
Justin Sherlock is the co-founder and CEO of Caspian , an AI-native duty drawback platform designed to help brands navigate complex global trade and tariff environments. Prior to Caspian, Justin gained deep experience in finance and logistics at Flexport, where he led Flexport Capital, and previously had several years experience in private equity. In this episode, Justin breaks down the rapidly changing landscape of tariffs, duties, and global supply chains—especially relevant amid recent policy...
Apr 24, 2025•56 min•Ep. 354
Peter Czepiga is the founder of Flighted, an agency that helps DTC brands profitably scale their advertising on platforms like Meta, TikTok, and Google. He also runs his own brand, Ando. Flighted has worked with some of the most popular DTC brands spending between $50-300k per month on ads. In this episode of DTC Pod, Peter shares his strategies for launching and scaling profitable ad campaigns on Meta for DTC brands. He covers how much to spend to prove out product-market fit, what types of cre...
Mar 28, 2025•46 min•Ep. 353
Irene Chen and Matthew Grenby are the co-founders of Parker Thatch, a luxury handbag and accessories brand they bootstrapped to 8-figures over the course of 20 years. Matt’s expertise spans tech, design, and marketing, while Irene brings deep fashion industry knowledge from working with powerhouse brands like Donna Karan and Calvin Klein. In this episode of DTC Pod, Matt and Irene share how they navigated the shift from an e-stationery startup to eventually finding product-market fit with their ...
Feb 13, 2025•50 min•Ep. 352
Caleb Alvarez is the founder of Shadow Light Studios, an agency specializing in high-converting paid and organic content. He has worked with major consumer brands like Monster Energy, Snapchat, and Samsung, as well as influencers like Tony Hawk, Logan Paul, Ice Cube, and many more. In this episode of DTC Pod, Caleb breaks down how founders can create better content, build and scale a content engine, and strike the right balance between organic and paid content. He unpacks everything from finding...
Feb 06, 2025•54 min•Ep. 351
Ben Matthews is a general partner at Night Ventures, an early-stage consumer VC fund, focused on culture, community, and creators. They have partnered with some of the most famous people on the internet including Mr. Beast, Kai Cenat, and Hasan Piker. In this episode of DTC Pod, Ben and Blaine discuss: Lessons from incubating and investing in early-stage consumer companies The key elements of successful talent-driven brands, including audience fit and long-term commitment Choosing the right busi...
Dec 26, 2024•45 min•Ep. 350
Isabel Mendez is the founder and design director at Antara Studio, an award-winning full-service design partner for purpose-driven brands. With a focus on brand, content, and design, Isabel and her team help companies create cohesive and emotionally resonant identities across all touchpoints. In this episode of DTC POD, Blaine and Isabel discuss: The three necessary phases for creating a brand identity What makes a good brand story and how brands can effectively communicate it How brands can ada...
Dec 05, 2024•36 min•Ep. 349
John Sampogna is the co-founder and CEO of Wondersauce, a modern advertising agency that specializes in brand storytelling, paid media, e-commerce, and digital experiences. In this episode of DTC Pod, John discusses brand storytelling strategies across all sorts of media channels. He shares insights on crafting impactful campaigns and tips for finding and leveraging undervalued marketing gems like connected TV, static out-of-home, and podcasts. We explore the importance of understanding target a...
Nov 28, 2024•39 min•Ep. 348
Haley Weidenbaum is the CEO and co-founder of Everhem, a DTC company specializing in custom window treatments, including shades and drapery. In this episode of DTC Pod, Haley discusses the strategies that have helped Everhem grow and differentiate itself in the market. She discusses the challenges of online shopping for custom products and how Everhem addresses them through thorough guides and customer support. Haley also shares insights on Everhem's dual business mode—how they serve both interi...
Nov 21, 2024•44 min•Ep. 347
Ismail Salhi is the co-founder and CEO of Wildgrain, a fast-growing DTC subscription service that delivers artisanal breads, pastries, and pasta directly to customers' doorsteps. In this episode of DTC Pod, Ismail shares his journey of rapidly scaling Wildgrain to over 80,000 subscribers since launching during the pandemic in 2020. He shares the key strategies that have driven Wildgrain's success: focusing on product quality, customer experience, and efficient operations. Ismail discusses their ...
Nov 14, 2024•40 min•Ep. 346
Christian Rivera is the founder of The Ecommerce Accountants, a firm that specializes in tax, accounting, and business structuring for e-commerce companies. Their clients include social media marketing agencies, dropshippers, digital marketers, Amazon automation, Amazon FBA, and internet coaches/gurus. In this episode of the DTC POD, Christian explores key accounting issues that e-commerce businesses must address to succeed, such as sales tax compliance, revenue recognition, and inventory accoun...
Nov 07, 2024•49 min•Ep. 345
Zach Ranen is the co-founder of David, a protein bar brand which disrupted the market with 50% more calories from protein than any other bar and a groundbreaking dollar-to-protein ratio. In this episode of the DTC POD, Zach shares David's pre-launch and launch strategies, leading to 1M+ dollars in sales in the first week. This includes engaging with influencers like Peter Attia and Andrew Huberman and giving away 20,000 product samples. Zach also gives insights into their R&D process, how th...
Oct 30, 2024•51 min•Ep. 344
Ariana Farahani is the founder and CEO of Plant Press, a fast-growing functional beverage brand offering a healthier alternative to traditional energy drinks. In this episode of DTC Pod, Ariana shares her journey of developing Plant Press from a homemade recipe to a nationally distributed product. She discusses the importance of gathering consumer feedback and iterating on the product based on data, which led to pivotal changes like focusing solely on clean caffeine and adjusting flavors. Ariana...
Oct 10, 2024•35 min•Ep. 343
Shri Kanase is the founder of Yoru Marketing, a boutique agency that specializes in Google Ads for e-commerce brands. Prior to this, he successfully scaled his e-commerce brands to over $3.5 million in four years. With extensive first hand experience, Shri has guided 23,000+ store owners via his YouTube channel and established one of the fastest-growing blogs in the e-commerce and PPC space. In this episode of DTC Pod, Shri shares his insights on developing effective Google Ads strategies for e-...
Oct 03, 2024•38 min•Ep. 342
Sam Lee is the Vice President of Amazon DSP at Trivium, a full-service Amazon agency. With a background spanning Google Ads, Facebook Ads, and Amazon PPC, Sam has developed deep expertise in Amazon DSP and has successfully managed advertising for over 200 brands. In this episode of DTC Pod, Sam provides a comprehensive overview of Amazon DSP, its functionality, and its potential for driving brand growth. He shares practical insights on topics such as when brands should consider investing in DSP,...
Sep 19, 2024•31 min•Ep. 341
Aurelian Lis is the CEO of Dermalogica, a global skincare brand rooted in skin treatment expertise. With a background in atomic physics, laser optics, and extensive experience in the cosmetics industry, Aurelian has led Dermalogica to significant growth and innovation since taking the helm post-acquisition by Unilever. In this episode of DTC Pod, Aurelian discusses the strategies that have driven Dermalogica's success, including delegating authority to the right people, empowering employees to i...
Sep 12, 2024•38 min•Ep. 340
Benjamin Witte is the founder and CEO of Recess, a beverage brand focused on creating products that promote relaxation and mental wellness. Inspired by the rise of functional ingredients like CBD, nootropics, and adaptogenic herbs, Benjamin saw an opportunity to pioneer a category of beverages that could help people unwind in a healthy way. In this episode of DTC POD, Benjamin shares his journey of launching Recess and the key strategies that have contributed to its success, including a focus on...
Sep 05, 2024•36 min•Ep. 339
