Hitting The Mark – Details, episodes & analysis

Ilay Karateke is on a mission to bring Labneh to kitchens around the United States, or maybe this is more of a sprint than a mission because her brand, BEZI, is moving fast.

Product development started in the kitchen a year ago. Today, they're in stores across New York City with e-commerce starting in December, and I can almost assure you that national distribution will follow shortly.

This is one of the very few super early-stage startup brands—BEZI has only been on the market for a few weeks—that I invited to this show. And very quickly, during this episode, you will understand why.

We talk about the power of design, data, photography, brand strategy, social media growth strategies, and so much in between. If you are a founder, a marketer, or someone working with brands, this is an episode not to be missed as it will leave you inspired and ready to push on all things 'brand.'

Together with his brother, Ben Checketts co-founded Rhone, an athleisure wear brand inspired by the quality of Lululemon and the urge to craft a stand-out label for men. 

The brand is driven by the pursuit of mental fitness and Ben’s philosophy on branding is both refreshing and insightful. 

We talk about naming, focus groups, how brands are shaped yet set free – a lot like children are being raised – and why Rhone's Co-Founders bought out their investors to see through the next chapter of the fast-growing clothing brand.   

Marco Zappacosta built Thumbtack, the marketplace for home services, over the last 15 years. In 2021 Thumbtack had a $3.2 billion valuation and the highest number of professional listings, followed by Yelp. 

In this episode, we dive into how Marco’s background from having entrepreneurial parents - his father co-founded Logitech nonetheless - and running his startup basically from straight out of college to today has shaped the Thumbtack brand. 

As you can imagine, many insights are awaiting you in this inspiring conversation.

Fabian talks with Chris Kerr, Chief Investment Officer at New Crop Capital, as we go Beyond Meat (yes, that was a brand hint). This show was recorded on May 3rd, 2019, which happens to have been the day after Beyond Meat's stunning and widely publicized IPO. This marked a first for a brand making meat-like products from plants. Chris has been involved with Beyond Meat from the very beginning and we learn what role positioning and branding played in this incredible success story that any brand, may that be food and beverage or not, can learn from.

Fabian sits down with Chris Kerr, the Chief Investment Officer at New Crop Capital, who has nearly 30 years of leadership experience with startups and venture capital investing. He has spent the last decade focused on impact investing with a concentration on the plant based foods sector.

We recorded this episode the day after Beyond Meat hit the stock market. The brand is a poster child of Chris Kerr's investment portfolio, and it also is an industry daring darling. And what went well beyond the wildest expectations with stock trading at nearly triples from the original IPO price the day after, this episode is filled with enthusiasm and learnings that go well beyond one brand.

An episode any entrepreneur should digest as we discuss the importance of naming, how you can build a company around a brand and how a startup needs to test, test, test, and then test again.

You can learn more about Chris via the New Crop Capital site.

Fabian is on the line with Ben Kneppers in São Paulo for what must be one of the most inspiring episodes to date. Ben is a co-founder of Bureo, an emerging B Corp focused on creating innovative solutions to ocean plastic pollution. The company is now collaborating with brands such as Trek, Humanscale and Jenga. We talk about how to create real, sustainable change, learn about forming a B Corp, how they secured Patagonia as 'a mentor,' and how to get a community involved in your cause. And so much more.

Fabian talks with a founder who is doing his part in keeping the ocean clean, and he's doing it through his brand that is selling skateboards, sunglasses, surfboard fins, and Jenga games. Ben Kneppers is a co-founder of Bureo, an emerging B Corp focused on creating innovative solutions to ocean plastic pollution.

Through the team's initiative, Net Positiva, Bureo has created Chile's first ever fishnet collection and recycling program. Net Positiva provides fishermen with an environmentally sound end-of-life solution for their fishing gear, while Bureo receives highly recyclable raw materials to create innovative products that bring net positive solutions to the world.

Remarkable in many ways. Ben shares his insights on how to get strangers to believe in and act upon your vision, how Patagonia got involved with his brand, how collaboration is part of his brand's success story, all the way how to score a major PR story on CBS Evening News without spending a dime and so much more.

You can dive into the Bureo universe via their site or Instagram account.

In this episode, Fabian is joined by Mark Wallace, Co-Founder of Parlor, a custom ski brand from New England that is taking the art of customization and personalization to new heights. We learn how Parlor skis are "customized for you, by you and with you, each one as individual as you are."

Fabian talks with Mark Wallace for whom skiing has always been the driving force in his life. It took him from Saddleback to Park City and then all over the world as he lived the dream as a semi-pro ski racer. Mark learned the nuances of ski building during a job at a Boston construction firm, dedicating countless hours during nights and weekends. He started Parlor with two friends in an abandoned funeral parlor in Cambridge, honing the science and art of ski building.

We discuss his company's focus and dedication to the sport and its tribe, how far the brand is able to take the important brand traits of customization and personalization and how Parlor leads with authenticity.

If you are, just like me, into skiing or snowboarding, this episode is a must. If you like to learn more about connecting with your tribe or honing in the art of customization, this is a must-listen for you as well.

You can learn more about Parlor via parlorskis.com, or as Mark showcased his approachability, you can just call him up, "anytime" at 413-884-4747.

Fabian talks with Frank Demmler, who Inc Magazine dubbed Pittsburgh's 'startup whisperer.' We discuss how branding can set the direction for a B2B brand and how vintage inspired clothing brand Modcloth used crowdsourcing on many innovative levels to turn into a brand that was worth between $51 million to $75 million to Walmart.

In this episode, we talk with Frank Demmler, who can take credit for 500 companies, some 10,000 jobs, and $1 billion of investment capital. For over 30 years he has been an investor, advisor, and educator in Pittsburgh's technology-based entrepreneurial community, which hardly existed when he first started but has grown to be one of the most active and desirable entrepreneurship hubs today.

We dive into two of the companies he assisted, Automated Healthcare, which deploys robots in hospital pharmacies and has been acquired by McKesson for $65 million, and clothing brand Modcloth. He shares Modcloth's startup story from college sweethearts to putting a few clothes online for sale to turning into a beloved brand that innovated especially through the power of crowdsourcing.

Much to absorb in this episode, especially if you are interested in leveraging the power of your tribe.

You can connect with Frank via LinkedIn.

On this episode, Fabian talks with 26-year old Dutch identical twins Raissa and Joyce de Haas, who have built Double Dutch, a London-based brand of award-winning premium mixers that sold well over 10 million bottles to date. We dive into the story from idea to shelf while building a beloved brand along the way.

Talking with the de Haas twin sisters about their brand of premium mixers: How they managed to build a beloved brand at a young age (all while finishing their masters degrees and having started careers in finance).

We talk about their story from idea to bottle to shelf, the advantages of having a co-founder, how the brilliant name Double Dutch came about (yes, it all happened at a bar), how the brand's fun copy has come together organically over the years and why Joyce and Raissa (who made it onto the Forbes 30 under 30 list this year) wish they would have paused and created a more cohesive visual and verbal brand when they saw initial interest in their products.

You can learn more about Double Dutch and see where you can get your mixers for the perfect cocktail at www.doubledutchdrinks.com

Fabian sits down with Colin Szopa, Founder of Plankk Studio, an on-demand streaming service that lets fitness enthusiasts sweat it out with on the go workouts alongside their favorite fitness influencers. We talk about the art of app naming, how to work with influencers and what branding means to Colin.

In this episode, we dive into influencer marketing with Colin Szopa, who created a brand for fitness influencers to connect in deeper ways with their tribes.

We debunk the myth that influencers are Prima Donnas to work with, learn about how personal brands support each other versus compete with each other on the same digital platform as well as the art and science of crafting a meaningful and descriptive name for the app store.

You can find Plankk Studio in the app store if you are ready to sweat it out with some of the biggest names in fitness.

Fabian talks branding with Eddie Geller who founded Tinybeans, an all in one app that provides a safe and loving space for parents to document their child's lives. We dive into the importance and power of naming and how to get it right from the get-go.

In this episode, we break new ground with Eddie Geller, a startup founder who is well beyond his brand's IPO. His app has accumulated a staggering three million users, yet many of you may have never heard of it because he has a very targeted appeal: Young parents and their parents.

We talk about the difficulty of marketing across generations, creating a brand name that can be used as a verb, and how going against users' expectations may turn into your startup's most important feature.

Learn more about Tinybeans; and also check out this episode's sponsor, Mister Maginsky, a startup that is changing men's underwear forever.