The Startup CPG Podcast

Caitlin Bricker
I honestly don't think that my role as editor is much different than a buyer role in a retail setting. The only piece that we're missing is that I'm not directly placing a brand on a shelf, but I'm definitely helping platform brands by being an editor. We are giving you space on the Internet, so that's going to help you find retailers. I did find my way into buying after working in food service. So being a buyer, getting into that, I mean, that was some of the most exciting times in my career. I really think it was. It was just such a joy to be able to connect with brands on a daily basis and be able to identify products for a shelf, curate the selection, and really connect with brands on a one one basis. That was the most exciting part of my job.

00:57
Daniel Scharff
Hey, you guys, did you hear? We have a new editor? Caitlin Bricker joined us back in October and now that she's got her feet wet, I'm excited for all of you to get to know her on today's episode. You're going to hear about her background, how she thinks about CPG brands, how she chooses ones for coverage on our platforms, and we just kind of have a freewheeling chat and I'm excited for you to get to know her a bit through this discussion. Caitlin began her career in CPG as the body care department lead and lead buyer for legendary natural products retailer Cambridge Naturals. She's worked in Big Cannabis and has a bunch of experience you're going to hear about and she has a really deep passion for brands and founders. You're going to hear about it all on today's episode. Enjoy.

01:42
Daniel Scharff
All right, so let's get into it. Kaitlyn, what do you do here at Startup cpg?

01:46
Caitlin Bricker
I am the editor at Startup cpg.

01:48
Daniel Scharff
Okay, so what is an editor doing at a place like Startup cpg? What does that actually mean?

01:54
Caitlin Bricker
We are the types of people who are going to help you identify new and exciting products and brands in the community. So we really want to help introduce you to trends and new and exciting brands.

02:07
Daniel Scharff
What does that mean for you on a daily basis? Like, what are you going to do today, for example?

02:12
Caitlin Bricker
Today I am going to be in our Slack hardcore. I'm in there every single day making notes of every new brand that's coming into our slack. And I'm also keeping my finger on the pulse of what's going on social media, what kind of trends people are talking about. Like, right now, the hot thing is red dye is being removed from products. I don't think we're really seeing red dye too much in the community at startup cpg. But that's just an example that's all.

02:39
Daniel Scharff
Over the news cycle today. It's all over LinkedIn. I guess people are happy from a consumer perspective, but yeah, probably not a lot of brands in our community use red dye. They're probably trying to take share from the big massive brands that do use it. So speaking of taking share, you know, I think the commonality for all of the brands in our community is probably all of us are trying to take share from some of the big CPG players out there that maybe we feel like have not done as much to innovate and work towards a better CPG ecosystem. What part of that speaks to you? Because I know, you know, you're pretty passionate about these kind of brands and improving the CPG ecosystem as well. Why for sure?

03:18
Caitlin Bricker
I mean, I think it comes down to the fact that we live in a finite ecosystem. I really want to find brands that are serving a purpose, not just taking up space. And I think the better ecosystem is not only speaking to a CPG ecosystem, but how it's going to affect the planet ultimately one day.

03:38
Daniel Scharff
And this is not your first runaround being in this kind of an environment. Right. Because you actually have been in the position of the people that we revere most, the buyers. Right. So can you tell me a little bit about that and how is your role different from when you were a buyer at Cambridge Naturals?

03:54
Caitlin Bricker
Yeah, so I'll answer the second part of your question first. I honestly don't think that my role as editor is much different than a buyer role in a retail setting. The only piece that we're missing is that I'm not directly placing a brand on a shelf, but I'm definitely helping platform brands by being an editor. We are giving you space on the Internet, so that's going to help you find retailers. I did find my way into buying after working in food service. So I worked for sweetgreen as a manager in Boston and I found myself looking at natural product stores and wanting to really move into the natural product industry because for me, I had this aha moment in my life where I said, wow, if all of this is in our food, then what's in our personal care products?

04:40
Caitlin Bricker
And I kind of went into a rabbit hole with that. So being a buyer, getting into that, I mean, that was some of the most exciting times in my career. I really think it was. It was just such a joy to be able to connect with brands on a daily basis and be able to identify products for a shel, curate the selection and really connect with brands on a one one basis. That was the most exciting part of my job. Like being able to see a brand and know, wow, there's really a spark within this brand. And I know that this is going to help connect to the community and the world at large. That is just, I don't know if there's a feeling that can compare. It's just very exciting.

05:20
Caitlin Bricker
And I think it's the same thing with being an editor because I see these brands come through on the slack and I'm like, that brand. That is it. That is a disruptor right there.

05:31
Daniel Scharff
Well, that's amazing. So let me ask you this. What is more exciting to you, the brands themselves or the founders behind them?

05:38
Caitlin Bricker
That's a really hard question. I don't think I can differentiate between the two. I think they go hand in hand. Because one of the first things that I do when I look at a brand is I want to see who's behind it. If I don't see a brand founder on your page, on your about us, it's hard for me to place what that product is doing in the world because I want to know your story.

06:00
Daniel Scharff
And it sounds like you're not speaking just as Caitlin the editor, but also as Caitlin the consumer.

06:05
Caitlin Bricker
Absolutely, as Caitlin the consumer. Because I buy and shop in a buyer's mindset, but that's also me as a consumer. Again, there's no differentiation.

06:16
Daniel Scharff
Okay. Does this apply to other categories for you? Like when you're buying home electronics, some new thing or some clothing, are you doing the same thing? And if so, or if not, why?

06:27
Caitlin Bricker
That's kind of a loaded question, isn't it? For me, if there's ingredients on a label, I am going to buy differently because it's going on my skin and it's going in my body. Sure. Should I be looking at my electronics differently? Probably, yeah. But I can only do so much as a person. That's my honest answer for you.

06:47
Daniel Scharff
I agree with you. I think that's a really interesting answer. I probably just don't care as much about the electronics that I'm going to be using or holding, whatever, as much as what's going in. Right. What is going to be inside this body. Now we're talking a little about who is Caitlyn the consumer, but let's go into who is Caitlyn the person, the full story, because I don't even think I've even really heard the full thing. So take us back, like as far back as you want to start your college days, whatever. Just the formative stuff that makes you who you are today.

07:18
Caitlin Bricker
Okay, another loaded question. But college is a good start because college is where the experimentation happens. So let's get into it.

07:27
Daniel Scharff
All right, let's go.

07:28
Caitlin Bricker
Honestly, I think my whole journey with CPG really did start my freshman year of college. I'm going to be completely honest with you who I am today. It was. And please, audience, I hope I don't lose you with this. And I promise you, I'm tethered. So just listen. Knowing that my whole journey into CPG was transformed by an experience with magic mushrooms my freshman year of college, I was completely blown away by nature and the environment around me. And it just got me to think on a much deeper level. That single experience really transformed everything for me. I then went on to question the food system. What was going in my body? What was going on my body. By the time I was in my senior year, I ended up applying for an independent research grant and I got it.

08:23
Caitlin Bricker
So I conducted independent research on the food system at my university and I ended up transforming their dining program, which was my whole focus was on plant based dining. I'm no longer vegan. I like to joke and say that I've relapsed. I'm like totally eating meat now. And yeah, I ended up getting that grant, transformed the dining program. They ended up going on to get. I think it's an A rating with PETA, if that means anything to anybody anymore. Supposedly that's good. And then from there, I really started to dive into my personal care products. And I think that's what that's made me who I am today. Being able to be independent. When I go into a grocery store or when I'm in those aisles in a store, I like to read books.

09:12
Caitlin Bricker
But if you look at the bookshelves at home, they're all resource books. Like, you will not find me reading a physical book cover to cover. All of my books are resource books. So plants have what transformed me into the person that I am today and who you will be looking at when you are looking at me from an editor's perspective, I am really looking at products that are giving back to the earth, products that are serving a purpose in life or for customers. And follow me here because I had a psychedelic experience. Another one that was related to a grant that I applied for. And luckily I got. I was able to have the opportunity to go drink ayahuasca in Peru with the Medicine Hunter, Chris Killam and Zoe Helena from an organization called Cosmic Sister that completely transformed my life.

10:08
Caitlin Bricker
Again, informed who I am and the CPG ecosystem and who I am as a person. And follow me here. It's very hard to say, here's my life in X amount of minutes.

10:20
Daniel Scharff
We're with you. No, this is great stuff. We're with you.

10:23
Caitlin Bricker
So I like to say that in a nutshell, if you ask me who I am when it comes to CPG and who I am in life, it's shelf life to end of life. So we're talking about products, and we're talking about actual lived life and dying. So on my second night in Ayahuasca ceremony, I experienced my own death. And after that, I got super into how we die, how we live and how we die, not in a morbid sense. So, like I tell people, don't make a wellness call to my husband. It's in a very healthy way. But I like to look at products now and look at life as, what's the meaning behind this? Like, what's your story and why are you here? And I feel like I'm completely rambling right now.

11:09
Daniel Scharff
No, I like it. I like it. This is very interesting, and I appreciate you sharing all of that with us. And I think also it'd just be, one, I think everybody's gonna enjoy that sharing that you've done and just knowing more about you. And two, I think also it probably just helps them understand your perspective and how you look at which everybody is very unique. I am not as deep as you. I am not looking at products as deeply as you are. But I should be. I should be. Because that, I think, is a really beautiful way to, I think, really hold everybody accountable to an even higher standard of just, like, I think for me, it's even, like, how I think about startup CPG and what we do in this ecosystem evolves.

11:49
Daniel Scharff
And I didn't know exactly who we wanted to support in the early days until I went to some event where there were a lot bigger brands there. And I was like, well, I don't think they need our help. Okay. We'll be for the smaller brands. And then still sometimes there's like a smaller brand and it's just like some product, like, maybe full of sugar or just whatever it is. I'm just like, well, I don't. I'm not excited about that. But why? Okay. Oh, okay. Like, I think I want to help people who are trying to help all of us. Like, that doesn't mean they're A nonprofit. You know, I believe in for profit businesses that can do well and earn well as well.

12:22
Daniel Scharff
But I think it's really good to trace your why back to the kind of products that you're looking for and help brands understand that and push them to better as well. Because I think it's not enough, honestly, when you go out to buyers these days to just have some cool trick product or whatever that you know, just so what? Right. Like, yeah, stakes are high. There are a lot of us out there doing amazing things, and the people who are doing it from the heart with true purpose and following through on that are going to beat you every day.

12:53
Caitlin Bricker
Totally. I think it all comes down ultimately just to, like, tie back in these psychedelic experiences in cpg. It's ultimately legacy work. Who are you as a person? What is your product in the world? And what story do you want to leave behind when your product is maybe no longer on shelves or you're no longer here?

13:14
Daniel Scharff
Yeah. And I hope that's actually just motivating to everybody, because this life is not easy. The founder life, the CPG life. We all know the odds are stacked against us in the long run and in the short run, and we do what we can to help each other in the community and increase all of our chances of being successful, but that is it. So, you know, I hope you're fighting with all of that purpose because it will make you more likely to succeed. And even if you don't, I hope your days will be more fulfilling. And I really think most of us are. And that's why we wouldn't trade this for anything for any other cushy job with a higher salary and better benefits and more work life balance. But hey, it's that purpose that makes us want to do this.

13:52
Daniel Scharff
And it also makes us love it, I think, for, you know, the majority of people. Okay, so, Caitlin, you've been with us since October. It feels like a lot longer because you're so entrenched in the business and, you know, we get very busy, so it probably feels like longer to you as well. But just want to ask you now, in front of everybody, what has it been like so far? What's your experience like, maybe versus what you expected? You didn't come from this community. You weren't like, in our slack every day before and like, saw this and jumped on it. You came recommended by somebody in the community, which really grateful for.

14:25
Caitlin Bricker
Thanks, Marcy.

14:26
Daniel Scharff
Yeah, Marcy, thank you. And then you got to know the community. But yeah, what's this like Versus your expectations. And don't just say all the nice stuff.

14:34
Caitlin Bricker
Yeah. I mean, honestly, it's a grind, just like it is for a brand. We are also a brand. You're not going to see products on shelves from us, but we're doing good work every day. Like, it feels fulfilling. When I shut my laptop at the end of the day, I feel good about the work that I just did. Can I say that coming from corporate cannabis? No, I cannot. So this is definitely a welcomed, good change of pace for me.

14:58
Daniel Scharff
Yeah, I feel like that one could have gone either way. Like corporate cannabis, like, for a lot of people, that would be a mission also, right? Maybe it's non elk mission or something, but yeah, I know anything is corporate anything, right? So you started with us and actually I was really excited that the first week you started working with us, you were actually able to attend one of our meetups. And not just any meetup, one of our New York meetups. And one of our goals here is to do as many meetups as possible with retailers because, you know, community is great. We can have a good time, talk to people, get ideas. But like, oh, once we actually get buyers in the mix, real stuff is happening. People are getting distribution deals.

15:34
Daniel Scharff
And we had this very cool event planned the week that you started with Gourmet Garage here in New York. So you came in for that. Can you tell me what is it like when the community comes to life and you're there and you're meeting the founders and talking to them and seeing the products, knowing that. I mean, you have done this kind of thing before at Cambridge Naturals and in other contexts. But what's different about this community?

15:54
Caitlin Bricker
Yeah, I mean, it really does come to life when you're in person. I am not exaggerating when I say that meetup was shoulder to shoulder in a very good way. I mean, it was packed in that room and basically the brands had like. It was a catwalk for the brands. All the brands were in a circle, or horseshoe rather, and everyone just got to go around and sample. I got to meet every single brand that was there. It was great. Although there were so many people there, it still felt intimate. And I really enjoyed that.

16:24
Daniel Scharff
I think that's a good way to put it because everyone was like, whoa, that was crowded. I was like, but was it too crowded? Everyone's like, I guess not. No, it actually worked pretty well. Like, you couldn't move that much, which meant you were constantly just kind of running into people that you would talk to. And I think everybody was just the vibes were very good. Everyone was excited and the brands were fantastic. I think like half of them are getting in the store from that one meetup. We love the Gourmet Garage Village Supermarket team. They are awesome. And they're just so jazzed about early brands as well.

16:53
Caitlin Bricker
The store was so beautifully fronted and faced too, which is like I still catch myself when I shop. If I take something off the shelf, I pull the products forward. I just. It looks so good in there. It is so satisfying to look at their shelves.

17:09
Daniel Scharff
Yeah, they do a really nice job, which I guess is to be expected when you have a hot location like that in Tribeca. You know, just a very, I don't know, high profile spot in New York. But that made it all the cooler that we had this very special space on the second floor which they usually use as an eating area. Like you could go in there to their cafe and grab food and go upstairs. But they cleared it out, decked it out for us. Anybody watching the video right now, you can actually see that I stole the sign from it and I have it in my background here. It says gourmet Garage. Welcome startup cpg. And it has all the brands that we're demoing on it as well. It was so fun. And we have a lot more of these coming.

17:46
Daniel Scharff
By the way. Just so everyone knows, expect events with retailers in a city near you. We're actually launching this new series called Grocery Run where me and the team, we will travel around to every major city in the US and do a panel with a local retailer in your market. You get to know, meet them and trying to demo for them, trying to get on shelf. That's what we like the best. We'll do one with that Village supermarket team. They have Gourmet Garage. They also have Fairway Market, so we'll do one with them in April. We're going to be going to Whole Foods in the first week of February to do something amazing with them that'll be focused around female founders. And then we've got Gopuff lined up in Philadelphia, we've got Gelson's in LA and so many more.

18:26
Daniel Scharff
So if you're not in our slack already and you're a brand that could benefit from meeting all these retailers, definitely go to the website and sign up startupcvg.com and then you'll get the invites for these events which are going to be a blast. And Caitlin set up an amazing one with her friends at Cambridge Naturals in Boston. So we'll be on the Road for that one too. What do you expect out of that one?

18:46
Caitlin Bricker
I am so psyched for that. I mean, if people have not been to Cambridge Naturals, but they are a natural products brand looking to get on shelves. Cambridge Naturals is it. I mean, when I was there back in, I think it was 2016 when I started there, we had 16,000 SKUs. It's a small store, but boy, did they use the space well. And I am so excited to be able to meet up in a larger space with these people and with brands. I think it's such a cool opportunity. I don't know if people really understand how hard it can be to nail down buyers because buyers are busy and you don't want to just walk into a store with your product because you probably won't get the time from a buyer because they are so busy.

19:29
Caitlin Bricker
So carving this time out to actually get in front of them is just chef's kiss.

19:35
Daniel Scharff
So, yes, you are right about nailing down the buyers. As the person who's doing a lot of the scheduling right now, I can tell you it's. It's very rewarding when you get it done. You're like getting the date locked in with the buyer and the venue is. It feels as good as getting a huge win with a store, I'll tell you. That's the feeling like, yeah, I did it. So I'm excited about that. We'll be learning about a lot of brands at those events, but speaking about learning about brands, okay, so Caitlin, for you will be doing coverage and content on lots of brands from the community. You've done amazing content on our Instagram. You're writing stories as well. You're one of our shellfies judges. And that's about to kick off.

20:11
Daniel Scharff
How are you actually learning about the brands that you want to try to feature in content?

20:15
Caitlin Bricker
Yeah, great question. I am going through our brand database with a fine tooth combination. I literally just started picking brands for the affinity months for all of 2025. I went through every single brand in every category. I was looking at your website, I was looking at your founders, I was looking at your Instagrams. And I'm also. I have eyes on everything in the slack. Call me crazy, but I have every single channel open. I read every single message that comes through. That's how I'm finding brands.

20:45
Daniel Scharff
I do it as well. And I love going back through the introductions channel and just seeing these incredible brands that are popping up in of just whoa. Like, this is all getting taken to the next level constantly. I'M just super excited about it and I love commenting on those ones as well and welcoming them into the community and seeing how they're going to use it. So speaking of all of the brands that you've been discovering, are there any that have just made you go nuts that you're really excited about?

21:11
Caitlin Bricker
I'm so glad you asked. And you know, talking about my story for the plant based dining when I was in college today, I never thought that I would be sitting here in front of you telling you that the brand I'm most excited about is a dairy brand, Jubilees, Ashley Waldman's brand. I am so psyched about her brand. That is a disruptor right there.

21:32
Daniel Scharff
Tell us about it and why are you so excited about it?

21:34
Caitlin Bricker
You don't even need to ask. I'm going to tell you anyway.

21:36
Daniel Scharff
Her name's Ashley. It has dairy go.

21:39
Caitlin Bricker
It is milk that's geared towards kids. But honestly, like, it has no added sugar, which I'm on such a big kick with, especially now since I'm a mom. Like I'm not going to be an almond mom. I'm going to be a cold mom. But I don't want to load my daughter with sugar. But Ashley's beverages do not have added sugar in them. They have fun flavors like banana cream pie and like strawberries and cream and cookies and milk. She sent me samples. I tested them. I had to share with my family because she sent me so much. But if I didn't have to share, I wouldn't like. I kept going back and I'm like, why do I want to keep drinking milk? That's never happened in my entire life. It is just so good. Organic too.

22:23
Caitlin Bricker
I don't know if I said that, but they have fun colors. They're completely sweetened with fruit and vegetable juices and the colors are coming from fruit and vegetable juice. It's unlike anything else you're going to find on the shelf.

22:34
Daniel Scharff
I'm very excited about this because I am not a fancy person. And growing up, man, I love strawberry milk. Oh my gosh. I went to college in Ohio and there was this one gas station near the campus that had this ridiculous strawberry milk. And I'm sure it was like 90% sugar and artificial colors, but got the red dye. I almost died from it. No, I. But it was so good. So that makes me especially excited to see if I can bring back some of that nostalgia with something that's using fruits and vegetables as the ingredients and flavors.

23:10
Caitlin Bricker
I really do think you will like. It might not have that bright red color that you'd find back in the day. But the taste is just. I was blown away by it. I was excited just reading about it. And then when I actually got to try the product, I was like, okay, I have to share with everybody because it is so good.

23:29
Daniel Scharff
This is awesome. And I'll just clarify for everyone. So the brand database is something that we maintain where when you sign up for startup cpg, it'll send you the link for the Slack. It's going to send you also the brand database which says, hey, if you're a brand, put your info in here. And there's a reason that we do that. And the main one is for things like this. So when Caitlin is putting together content for what would make a good holiday gift guide and what would. Who are some founders that we really want to feature for Women's History Month? She's using that guide, right? That is our repository of all the brands who are active in our community. And we're going through there because we are looking for excuses to feature as many of you as possible.

24:07
Daniel Scharff
That is our privilege of having this media platform is we want to use it to help showcase as many of you as possible, whether it's here on the podcast or it's on our Instagram or in written content that we do or on our YouTube channel. So definitely encourage you to do that. And if you have any issues, you can message the Slack admin and she can point you towards that resource. And then also shelfies are coming up and this is really like a bonanza for us. It's, I don't know, six months of just boxes for all of us, the biggest awards program in the industry by number of submissions, and that's because it's free. We do not charge for this. There are other organizations out there that will charge you hundreds of dollars for the privilege of sending them your product.

24:50
Daniel Scharff
And we sort of cry against that and we want to make it free. We also take really seriously how much it even just costs you to ship it to us. So we try to really limit the number of people on our team who are going to get it. But for us, it's a lot of fun. It is a lot of work because we also, we really try do coverage of almost everything that we get, at least like an Instagram story showing every single sample that comes in the door, which we love to do. But it's a time of just relentless work for our team. But it's incredible, and this is the greatest chance that we have to know what products are out there in the community. We get to try everything at home where we're not going to be overwhelmed by a trade show.

25:27
Daniel Scharff
We try it. We consider things for coverage. We consider brands that we want to try to get into. Certain opportunities that we have. You see us announce a lot of these things at the trade show so that we have the dedicated sections, we have giveaways, we have all these things. And so that's really our best chance to get to know your product. So people often ask, like, how do you guys pick the brands for coverage? It is what Caitlin is saying, but it's also just stay tuned about these opportunities, because that is when our whole team. It's Caitlin. It's Kiki, our social media manager. It's Patricia, our director of marketing. This is when they all really get a chance to get to know the products and get to know you. So don't just send that box with the product.

26:04
Daniel Scharff
You know, make sure you slip that card in. That tells us a little bit about who you are. Love when there's a note, that then also even makes it a little more personal. So I love that. Caitlin, just get ready for the onslaught. You're gonna have to tip your mailman this year.

26:20
Caitlin Bricker
Yeah, I think my living room's about to turn into a fulfillment center.

26:25
Daniel Scharff
All right. So Caitlin, I guess just like, coming back to. People are sometimes curious, like, what is it that we do? Like, you know, what's this? Like when a friend of yours is like, what are you up to now? And you tell them that you're at startup cpg, how do you actually explain it to somebody? Because it's also something that's actually very hard for me to explain to my friends.

26:43
Caitlin Bricker
Yeah. I mean, I'm getting asked this question often now because I'm pretty fresh in this role still. And what I like to say is that we are a conduit for CPG brands to the greater industry. So people will usually say, well, what's cpg? And I will tell them in our minds right now, which might evolve. CPG are products that we're putting on our body or into our body. So personal care products, food, beverage, et cetera. But, yeah, I mean, we are conduits. You come to us and we're like, look at all these free resources that we have for you. I have never been a CPG brand, and I was blown away by the number of resources. So as soon as I found startup cpg, I started telling all of my CPG founder friends. I'm like, if you don't know about this already.

27:29
Caitlin Bricker
You should probably get in the slack or at least just look at the website because it's unreal.

27:34
Daniel Scharff
And so what do you notice about the brands that seem to use it really well? Because, yeah, we have so many resources. It would be even impossible for me to try to explain all the things that we've done out there to try to help all the brands. But like, yeah, who do you think uses it well? What do you see them doing?

27:49
Caitlin Bricker
I see persistence. That's what I see for people who are using it well. I see your name all the time. I see you applying for award submissions, applying for pitches. I see you in the brand database. I see you in the slack, whether that's answering questions or asking questions yourselves. And then I see you getting excited for online and in real life events. Like, persistence is really what it comes down to because these are free resources. I always tell people that too. There are no catches. It is free. You should just be here.

28:22
Daniel Scharff
Yes, I like that. And it's funny because, like, one of my favorite things is when we find out that were able to be helpful to somebody and we had no idea, they're like, hey, I listened to the podcast where you interview this buyer and then I reached out to that buyer and then they gave me this massive opportunity and that helped us grow and then get these other things. And I love that. I always just, like, wish I had the chance to really, like, explain to every single brand, one one, what is the intention of all of this stuff where, like, we have these amazing buyers? Come on. The reason is so that all of you guys can reach out to them afterwards and be like, that was an awesome podcast. You're so great. Like, I think we could be a great fit.

29:01
Daniel Scharff
Here's what I heard you say, here's how my brand fits that. And do you think we could send in some samples and like, great, use it that way? And then I want to explain to everybody all of the databases that we have and, like, how they could be using those. And then I want to train the muscle memory so that every time they have a question, it is in the slack and they're asking it in there. And I think we have made a ton of progress on that front. And I mean, man, Brandon's got to go and do the actual work a lot of the days too, rather than asking people how to do the work. But I think overall, I'm just so excited. Not just about the stuff that we've done, but what's to come.

29:32
Daniel Scharff
Because this is going to be a really big year for us, especially, you know, with the Grocery Run series that we're going to be running around the country doing all of the sections now that we have at all the trade shows. And I'm really excited, I think, especially for you, Caitlin, to get to be at all of these events with our team meeting all the brands. Because still, up until this point it's been three months and you've only gotten to go to one event so far, right?

29:54
Caitlin Bricker
Yes, one in person event. I did an online Zoom mixer too, but we're heading to Fancy Food and then Grocery Run pretty soon after and then Expo and then Utopia now. I mean, it's gonna be fun.

30:08
Daniel Scharff
It's gonna be fun. What's. What was the mixer like?

30:10
Caitlin Bricker
The mixer was great. I mean, I think some people might be turned off to Zoom because were so zoomed out during the pandemic, but they're actually really helpful. I learned some stuff and you get to network with people in smaller groups on the Zoom. So especially for people who are so deep into the trenches with their brand or just getting started and might not want to travel to be at an in person event, the virtual events are perfect because you can just do it from home.

30:38
Daniel Scharff
Which mixer were you on?

30:39
Caitlin Bricker
It was the, like, who is Startup cpg? Like community mixer. Get to know the Slack, which, if you're new to Slack, there's a lot going on in there. And like, back to your point about how do you even explain who Startup CPG is? There is just so much, but it's a good problem to have.

30:56
Daniel Scharff
Yeah, that was a great one. It's our new member mixer that we're going to try to do quarterly to welcome everybody into the community and do some fun breakout rooms. You get to meet people. One thing, like about me that I like to explain to people is like whenever at something, I don't want to just sit there like I'm in a classroom. I want to get a chance to talk to people. So we will always try to have some kind of engagement, some way for people to actually get to speak and tell people what they're up to. Can't always do it, but we really do try. And I mean, that's also a big reason why if you come to a show and I'm on a panel, I'm getting some brands up there to just shout out what they're up to as well.

31:30
Daniel Scharff
So always expect that from us. I was just on a mixer that we had yesterday or two days ago, which was the dry January mixer. And you know what? It was fantastic. I actually had such a good time. We had really good speakers. We had two buyers on. We had Sean from the Zero Proof and Jeanette from ncg and they're both currently reviewing non alk brands. So they gave overviews of what they're up to and how their operations work. And then we had five different brands introduce themselves and what they're up to. And then we had breakout rooms and just the trends were learning about and the topics were discussing and I think just the quality of the conversation that happened inside of the breakout rooms was so high. I think everybody just was like, this was a good hang.

32:13
Daniel Scharff
This is a great time of really good use of an hour. It was so fun. So we've got a lot more mixers coming up this year because I think Also we're in 17 cities or something, but there are many that we don't reach. And even if you're in a city like la, if you're on the east side and we're on the west side, you're probably not coming to the event. So I think the mixers still, for me, Pandemic Holdover would, whatever you call it's going to be just a great way for us to keep meeting people. And also I actually saw a lot of people at the Zoom who I've seen on the slack. I'm like, oh, you're that person. Hey, what's up? So anyways, I'm pretty pumped about it. So what are you most looking forward to this year? Is there one thing?

32:49
Daniel Scharff
Is it Expo?

32:51
Caitlin Bricker
That's a hard question. I mean, I'm really excited about the Shelfies. That is a really cool thing to me. But Expo is really exciting too. I haven't been to Expo since I want to say maybe 2017, 2018. So it's been a while. I'm excited. I mean I can only imagine it's grown since the last time I've been there.

33:12
Daniel Scharff
Yeah, you're right. This is going to be busy because I'm going to see you this weekend. We're just about to go to Las Vegas for the Winter Fancy food show. We will be very busy there. A lot going on in our section and that our topgolf party, all this cool stuff, karaoke. And then I will see you week and a half or two weeks after that in Austin, Texas when we go to Whole Foods Market for our further female Founder event and supplier showcase. And then I will see you right after that when we all go to Expo. Wow. We're going to be busy and then again after that in Boston for Cambridge Naturals grocery run. So everybody hang on to your hat. This year is going to be a wild ride.

33:52
Daniel Scharff
So buck up cowboys and cowgirls and let's get all your brands ready. Last one for you, Caitlyn. Probably a lot of brands out there when would be really eager to have you learn about their products. In addition to the shelfies and posting on Slack, is there a way that is cool for brands to try to get your attention? Do you like when they follow you on LinkedIn or you know what is a good way for them?

34:13
Caitlin Bricker
Yeah, I mean you can follow me on LinkedIn if you want to. That's, you know, obviously my more professional side of things. I'm LinkedIn.com in CaitlinBricker and then on social media like I of course will talk about my professional life a little bit, but I get super sarcastic and very dry on my social media. You can find me at Soil and Spirit.

34:36
Daniel Scharff
All right, great. Well, Caitlyn, everybody on the team is so happy to have you on the start of CBG and also as part of the community. And I hope that everybody enjoyed getting to know a little bit more about who is Caitlyn and who is the team and what are we all up to every day. So thank you so much for joining us and I hope to see everybody on the Slack. Bye everyone.

34:59
Caitlin Bricker
Bye.

35:01
Daniel Scharff
All right everybody, thank you so much for listening to our podcast. If you loved it, I would so appreciate it if you could leave us a review. You could do it right now. If you're an Apple podcast, you can scroll to the bottom of our Startup CPG podcast page and click on write a review. Leave your company name in there. I will try to read it out. If you're in Spotify, you can click on about and then the star rating icon. If you are a service provider that would like to appear on the Startup CPG podcast, you can email us@partners startupcpg.com lastly, if you found yourself grooving along to the music it is my band. You can visit our website and listen to more. It is superfantastics.com thank you everybody. See you next time.