Episode description

One of the hottest topics in our Slack community is brands looking for the right co-packer, and since this is something that I often help brands navigate outside of my work at Startup CPG, it’s a topic near and dear to my heart and I wanted to bring on one of my favorite co-packers to talk with, Motherlode Co-Packing in Colorado. Our guests today are Kit Maxfield, their Chief Marketing Officer and Partner, and Adam Bender who is their New Product Development Manager. I met Kit and Adam through my work at Boyle Brands and have always been impressed by their organization and willingness to educate, so I’m so excited to share this 101 level conversation where we establish some of the basics of working with a co-packer.

Listen in as Kit and Adam shares about:

• The co-packer business model
• Day-in-the-life of a co-packer that affects communication, timing, and relationships with brands
• How a co-packer scales up a recipe for their facility
• Why co-packer relationships are different than other vendors
• Best practices for outreach to co-packers
• Tips for successfully navigating onboarding with a co-packer
• And more!

Because this topic is near and dear to my heart as an operations person and it’s the area spend the most time freelancing in, I’ve added in some extra context and term explanations throughout the episode and linked a bunch of resources in the show notes that can help you navigate the world of co-packing. Now let’s hear from Kit and Adam!

This episode was sponsored by Shopify. Go to shopify.com/startupcpg
This episode was sponsored by Maven Agency. Go to strategymavenagency.com
This episode was sponsored by Kickfurther. Go to https://www.kickfurther.com/startupcpg

Episode Links:

• Motherlode website
• Kit’s LinkedIn
• Adam’s LinkedIn
• Brands mentioned: Primal Kitchen
• Useful resource articles on co-packing: 
  • 3 Things To Have Before You Reach out to a Contract Manufacturer
  • Turnkey vs. Tolling in a Contract Manufacturing Relationship
  • The Thrill of the Search - The Journey of Searching for the Right Contract Manufacturing Partner
  • 3 Costly Mistakes Entrepreneurs Make When Working with Co-packers
  • Co-Packing 101

Shopify Links:

• Start a free trial and enjoy 2 months of Shopify for $1/month

Strategy Maven Agency Links:

• Strategy Maven website
• Book your free account audit here

Kickfurther Links:

• Kickfurther website
• See how much inventory funding you qualify here

Show Links:

• Join the Startup CPG Slack community (12K+ members and growing!)
• Follow @startupcpg
• Visit host Jessi Freitag's Linkedin or website
• Questions or comments about the episode? Email Jessi at podcast@startupcpg.com
• Episode music by Super Fantastics