Beekman 1802’s founders turned crisis into opportunity, building a $92 million skin care brand by starting small, staying disciplined, and leading with heart.

For more on Beekman 1802 and show notes click here

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Peak Design has raised over $60 million on Kickstarter across multiple campaigns, making them one of the most successful crowdfunding brands in history. Their most recent campaign alone generated $13.5 million. Founder Peter Dering shares the exact strategies, lessons, and controversial decisions behind building a $100M+ business entirely without venture capital.

In this episode, Peter reveals:

• The Kickstarter Strategy: Peak Design uses crowdfunding as a fundamental building block of their brand, not just a sales channel.
• The "Omnichannel Sandwich" Approach: For their $13.5M campaign, Peak Design launched in retail stores at full price before fulfilling all Kickstarter orders, despite the backlash, they'd do it again.
• Building Without Investors: Kickstarter's upfront payment model solved cashflow challenges and allowed Peak Design to stay completely investor-free while reaching $100M in revenue.
• The Origin Story: A four-month motorcycle trip through Southeast Asia sparked the idea for a camera clip. That idea would evolve into an entire ecosystem of gear for photographers and adventurers.
• Company Culture & Transparency: The stated purpose of Peak Design is for employees to live happy and meaningful lives, and Peter shares all financial figures with his team.
• The Climate Change Project: Peter co-founded the Change Climate Project, creating the most robust climate certification now used by over 300 companies including REI, with Peak Design spending $350,000 annually on carbon mitigation.

Chapters:

00:00 Introducing Peter Dering, Founder of Peak Design

3:13 How Peter Pivoted from Construction Engineering to Being His Own Boss

4:00 Where to Find Life & Business Inspiration

5:27 Peter’s First Invention: How to Bring a Product to Life

6:55 Breaking Down One of the Most Successful Kickstarter Campaigns Ever

8:28 The Steps for Scaling Sales From $700,000-$100M

10:22 The Best (Timeless) Kickstarter Tips

13:40 How Peak Design Hit Their Best Crowdfunding Campaign To Date: $13M

17:00 Peter’s POV On VC Dollars

19:10 Company Culture: The Key to Team Building & Being a Successful, Meaningful Leader

24:20 The Impact of Climate Change & The Creation of The Change Climate Project

28:10 Peak Design’s Lifetime Warranty & How They Maintain High Customer Lifetime Value

30:00 Immersive Community Tactics That Create Value

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How Haley Pavone turned a college injury into an eight-figure convertible footwear brand built on curiosity, grit, and smart, sustainable growth.

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Rachel Hochhauser and Jena Wolfe didn’t quit their jobs to build Piecework Puzzles—and that’s exactly why it worked. The cofounders share how they turned a stormy weekend experiment into a multi-million dollar lifestyle brand, all while maintaining full-time careers. As VP of Marketing for Goop Kitchen, and renowned Author and creative agency owner, the duo are mastering the art of balancing everything, in real time. From starting with just four puzzle designs shot in Rachel’s grandmother’s garage, to spawning an entire aesthetic movement in the industry, Rachel and Jena have made their mark. They aren’t afraid to do things differently, constantly learning and iterating from production nightmares and successful campaign launches.

Discover their unconventional approach to entrepreneurship, product development, and world building in this candid interview. They both reveal why bootstrapping gave them the creative freedom they craved, how they navigate being business partners and best friends, and the unexpected pivot that led to their viral cocktail napkin line.

For more on Piecework Puzzles click here.

In This Episode You’ll Learn:

• Why NOT taking investor money gave them complete creative control
• The “advice tour” strategy that helped them solve business problems
• How they went from puzzles to viral tomato napkins (and why that shouldn’t have worked)
• What happened when their manufacturer dropped them during the pandemic
• Why working with your best friend can actually be brilliant
• Their approach to brand partnerships with everyone from Goop to Better Homes & Gardens
  

Chapters:

00:00 Introducing Piecework Puzzles and The Stormy Weekend That Started It All

3:30 How to Find Your Gap In the Market & Stand Out

6:00 Design Philosophy 101: How to Create Products That People Connect With

8:40 The Importance of Creative Freedom & How to Obtain It!

10:45 How to Run a Successful Business with Your BFF

13:50 Starting Cultural Moments: The Origins of The Tomato Craze

16:20 The Product Expansion That Shouldn’t Have Worked (But Did)

20:15 Advice for Overcoming Manufacturing Nightmares

23:00 The “Advice Tour” Strategy That Has Saved Piecework Puzzles

26:49 Brand Partnerships: From Goop to Broccoli Magazine

29:15 Addressing Dupe Culture…

32:45 Leadership Tips For Building a Lean & Productive Team

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Discover the best Black Friday Cyber Monday strategies from 13 successful founders. Get actionable tips on sales, inventory, marketing, and more for 2025.

For more on BFCM and show notes click here.

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Ridge scaled to $5M in revenue per employee using AI. CEO Sean Frank shares his tips on harnessing the power of AI to grow revenue.

For more on Ridge and show notes click here.

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Bold Bean Co grew 250% by redefining beans as a premium, building community through storytelling, and scaling with purpose.

For more on Bold Bean Co and show notes click here

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One cold email landed Elavi in more than 50 Whole Foods Market stores. Learn the three-step pitch framework that gets buyers to respond in hours, not weeks.

For more on Elavi and show notes click here.

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