Sean Riley: Founder & Chief Executive Dude of DUDE Wipes

Episode 398

Sean Riley, Founder and Chief Executive Dude of DUDE, and best known for DUDE Wipes shares all about how they have built this amazing and humorous brand. Wiping over 1 billion butts per year and growing, you’ll hear more about how Sean and his team have taken a taboo topic, grown a company around it, plus snagged a Shark Tank deal with Shark Mark Cuban. I love the back story, the products, the humorous marketing and more! Plus this very motivating Founder! On this episode of #TheKaraGoldinShow.

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Transcript

Kara Goldin 0:00
I am unwilling to give up that I will start over from scratch as many times as it takes to get where I want to be I want to be, you just want to make sure you will get knocked down. But just make sure you don’t get knocked down knocked out. So your only choice should be go focus on what you can control control control. Hi, everyone and welcome to the Kara Goldin show. Join me each week for inspiring conversations with some of the world’s greatest leaders. We’ll talk with founders, entrepreneurs, CEOs, and really some of the most interesting people of our time. Can’t wait to get started. Let’s go. Let’s go. Hi, everyone. It’s Kara Goldin from the Kara Goldin show. And I’m so excited to have my next guest. Here we have Sean Reilly, who is the founder and chief executive dude of dude wipes. And we are here with Sean today to talk a lot more about how Sean and his co founders have built this incredible, incredible company. Not only are they one of the funniest marketing campaigns that I’ve seen out there, but he also has an incredible product, this bootstrap company out of Chicago as a great story. Not only have they snagged a shark tank deal with Shark Mark Cuban himself, but also they’ve built a company that are you ready for this? Today? Dude wipes as wiped over 1 billion butts per year. And I can’t wait to hear more about Sean’s journey and building dude wipes. So welcome, Sean.

Sean Riley 1:44
Kara, I’m not worthy. That was an awesome intro. Really appreciate to get all those dude white facts in there, even our fun ones. And to talk to an entrepreneur like yourself today. I love I love your story and your product as well. So let me let me plug you,

Kara Goldin 2:00
I love it. Well, thank you so much. So I gave a bit of a description. But I would love for you to share as a founder. How do you describe dude wipes to people who have not heard about your company or tried your products?

Sean Riley 2:17
Yeah, I think the simplest way we describe it as like, we’re a disrupter to the toilet paper industry. So we’ve come out with something that’s cleaner, that’s better, that you can use for the same purpose, which is taken a taken upu. And anytime, anywhere, that’s what we’re always kind of laughing about it and building the fun brand around it. So it’s kind of those two of like, offering something new, you know, that’s gonna get you cleaner you haven’t tried. And then the dude wipes brand is our whole other part of the business that is trying to have a lot of fun. And, you know, some of those campaigns you talked about and just do something different from a brand perspective.

Kara Goldin 2:59
So what makes dude wipes so unique are like, Aren’t there other wipes that are out there? And like what really makes it unique?

Sean Riley 3:08
Yeah, it’s like, we are the first people to make wipes, you know, so when we set out to make them it was like, how can we make them fatter? Bigger for us? How can we build a brand around it? That’s fun, that will get people talking because we were doing something that was a taboo subject at the time. So 2012 You know, we’re coming out with butt wipes for guys. And it’s like, you know, it seemed a little awkward. We’re like, no, like, guys could get into this, obviously a cleaner way. We all believed in that. So we had to make product like different, you know, for that customer out the gecko. So came out with individually wrapped ones, which was, you know, a first thing at its time, so a guy could put one in his wallet or take it, you know, to the gym. And that was our only product for like two years was just an individually wrapped, dude wipe. I actually have a box here. So this is a box of the very first dude wipes we were prototyping and I keep it in my office just as a reminder, like when you’re an entrepreneur, things don’t get started sexy they don’t get started in any way but pencil on a piece of cardboard. So yeah, we knew we needed to be different out the gate. So we came out with this on the go individually wrapped, dude wipe. And that kind of started at all. And since then, you know, we believe we’re leaders in the category because now we’re doing everything that no one else is doing bigger product sense. You know better for you. materials, all of those things. So yeah, we’re always improving product making it better making it produce long winded answer with some dude wife stories in there, but

Kara Goldin 4:52
I love it. So tell me the story like how you were sitting around and 2012 Or I guess probably right before 20 Ah 12 And with some wipes with some buddies, so tell me how you decided that you were going to go and disrupt an industry. You know,

Sean Riley 5:09
we were basically in like an animal house after college. So there was tons of guys coming through there was, you know, five guys live in their three on the couch. And we were packed in the bathrooms of baby wipes. And we just noticed everyone was getting hooked on them, you know, a couple people had used them before I was buying them from Sam’s Club, just putting in the bathroom. Like I use baby wipes. And it became this obvious habit, people were getting this funny conversation. So we were like, Let’s make the brand dude wipes but kind of when you say disrupt toilet paper. Now, it’s always funny, because that’s like, was such a grandiose idea at the time. Like really, the idea at the time that I try and give people my view on is that you just had to execute that first batch of products, you know. And so we were like this a fun idea. No one’s doing this, like, all we wanted to do was get those first boxes of dude wipes made, start selling them. You know, you have to go so far to like, really disrupt an industry and do something big. And so that was always a Northstar. Right. Like, we think this is that good of an idea. But yeah, back in the day, we’re just a couple of Damask guys who had never done anything like this before, in an apartment joking around like other people on their couch, like what should we start, you know, and dude wipes was? Was the best idea at the time. That’s

Kara Goldin 6:36
awesome. So what were you doing before? Starting dude wipes?

Sean Riley 6:41
I was in construction management. So just kind of a different? Yeah, yes, selling construction projects in the city of Chicago, which was kind of what I went to school for. So yeah, I was just doing a nine to five. That wasn’t anything I didn’t really dislike too much. Just, you know, always wanted to do something entrepreneurial, was messing around with things creatively. Like what you know, can I do? So yeah, had the entrepreneur spirit working in a nine to five. And, you know, when you finally go in on something, you can start to see a lot of results. So that’s awesome. Was that was the goal, right?

Kara Goldin 7:20
So did you ever think that you’d become an entrepreneur in the white space? I mean, was this kind of you mentioned just now that you thought you wanted to be an entrepreneur? Did you grow up in a house with entrepreneurs? Or what kind of led you to believe that you could do it? And you wanted to do it?

Sean Riley 7:40
Yeah, no, I mean, my parents are, you know, a nurse and a teacher. So no real entrepreneurship, tons of business background coming up, but definitely always, like a believed, you know, believe in yourself kind of mentality. We were raised with and try things. And so, always had that mindset, you know, optimistic mindset, like you’re going to need in this game, otherwise, like, I’m sorry, it’s going to be pretty tough for you. And then combining that with just trying to do different creative things can kind of get you the bug of like, what can I create for myself. So I even started with things as simple as like websites, designing websites for people or Facebook pages, or just starting to get like a little creative bug. And then it was like, you know, you you are an entrepreneur when you first launch a company, but you don’t have much of a company. So that’s always the funny conundrum about it. But I think you got to believe as soon as you step into the role, like, hey, I can do it. I’m gonna have to learn some things along the way. But definitely gotta believe they want.

Kara Goldin 8:46
So you had co founders, were these your roommates that you were co founding the company with? Or how did you meet your co founders?

Sean Riley 8:54
Yeah, yeah, a couple of them were the roommates. All guys, we’d known each other since I knew one of the guys since like, second grade, the rest of us met in like Junior High High School. So just kind of getting like a gang together. Post College who also like had same ambitions, like, hey, I want to be an entrepreneur, like, Let’s get something going. So yeah, as you know, you can’t do this stuff on your own. And having a group of co founders that are buddies is, is you know, pretty cool. Because you guys can all rally together, figure it out, you know, build with each other.

Kara Goldin 9:29
That’s awesome. So in terms of dividing up your responsibilities is how did you think about that?

Sean Riley 9:39
At first, you know, everyone’s doing everything. So you know, it’s like that for years, honestly, you know, I tell people if you’re bootstrapping obviously if you’re raising some money and starting a company with a couple mil or something like that, like you’re gonna hire a little bit of a team or when you’re bootstrap it, it’s you and the co founders figuring out anything and everything with debt. For, you know, a you focus on sales, you focus on accounting, but it’s very broad operations, everyone’s wearing a lot of hats, and then it’s about sort of hiring the right people to do the things that you don’t do so well. So that’s how we, you know, have always looked at it, continue to look at it, whether it’s myself or other people at the company, like how can we just help you excel? build good people around you? So yeah, then you start letting things go, you know, handing off roles and responsibilities to other people. So you can focus on other things.

Kara Goldin 10:32
So the marketing, I touched on this at the beginning is so funny, I would imagine a lot of that is your personality, and just joking around with a group of friends, it really shines and makes people laugh. Clearly, that is, is a great aspect to your company. How did you decide to mark it that way? I mean, I would imagine you didn’t have the big budgets to hire an agency initially that said, right, this is what you should do. I mean, where did this idea come from?

Sean Riley 11:09
Well, like the brand was always so loud, like day one, like day one, it was like too loud and too early. So we always had this kind of loud brand to work with that would break through the consumer, people would talk about it, people would mention it. So we learned over time like that we could be involved in all these conversations and, you know, put out things that don’t cost a lot of money on social media or stunts, to get publicity and get the word out there. So sort of bootstrapping when you don’t have other means, you know, when you don’t have resources, you get resourceful. So that’s been our, you know, game the whole time. It’s how can we be super resourceful? And the brand lets us do a lot of things that other brands can’t. And so yeah, really have leaned into that, like the fun story. You’re in San Francisco, right? Yeah, so just last week, the San Francisco Giants went on a road trip to Mexico, they all got sick, they all got the runs. And of course, you know, our guys are all over it. We’re just on a text box, my co founder, Ryan Meegan. They’re all over things like this, like as soon as that happens, so we get them dude wipes down to Mexico, the guys are cleaning up after each other. And then, you know, Twitter’s talking about at TMZ the meat, you know, media picks it up. And that’s an example of something we’ve done currently. But we’ve been doing that all along the way. And it can get you a lot of eyeballs and like fun, organic way. So at the end of the day, like, you know, we run ads, we all run ads, but people like remember you from doing something interesting. So that’s always like a core part of our marketing, like getting involved with culture, or doing things that are interesting. And almost, you know, maybe that PC, you know, if it’s like something, oh, they shouldn’t be talking about wiping their ass on TV or whatever. It’s like, no, that’s kind of what dude wipes does. So, yeah, we can kind of go to that mindset, which has been the day one mindset almost every day and have fun with it. And then we do a lot of cool stuff with marketing too. Don’t get me wrong. But the that’s our advice for like the bootstrap mentality.

Kara Goldin 13:22
So you talk about bootstrapping, and how did you guys fund the company initially? And and I guess, how have you done it since?

Sean Riley 13:33
Yeah, initially, it was just about $30,000 for an MOQ, or the first batch of dude white. So we all just ponied in the cash, bought the dude wipes, we probably had like $5,000, leftover after we bought, you know, the 30 grand worth of dude wipes, marched them up to the spare bedroom, you know, no overhead at that point, just sell through them, take them to UPS sell them online. And so we didn’t have any costs in the business for, you know, probably close to two years before, you know, anybody started drawing a salary on it or anything like that, just cost of doing business. So we’re able to scale very small numbers, you know, do 100 grand and the first full year, they do 250 grand the next year, you know, then you do 1.5 million the next year, like you can grow like that bootstraps. If your fixed costs are like super low in the beginning, and then just getting online lenders before the banks would loan to you, and then establishing lines of credit early on, just let us fun inventory, you know, be lean Bootstrap. And then if you can start getting it to a couple of million after that. You can fund some fine growth. And a lot of people will loan you money if it’s to buy inventory and break into new places. So it’s like, kind of tell people cross that bridge when you get to it, you know? Yeah, this $10 million Pio from one Walmart and your $5 million company like, Well, why don’t you wait for that $10 million Pio to come through, and I bet you’re gonna find the money. So just like having that mindset of just being efficient with capital, because we didn’t really have much of a choice. And then three years in business, we do do a deal with Mark Cuban. So that’s our like, only outside equity check into the business is, is like an early round from Mark Cuban. So pretty cool investor, and, you know, board of dude, guy to add, and fun experience in itself.

Kara Goldin 15:35
So, you obviously you just mentioned you were on Shark Tank. So I’d love to hear a lot more about that experience, and sort of what you learned from it to your we’ve had a ton of guests who have been on Shark Tank, some have gotten deals, some haven’t. But everybody speaks really positively about it. You know, I think it helps you to sort of organize your thinking and a crazy startup founder world that you’re living in for sure. What advice would you give to people and kind of share your experience as well, sort of how did the day go when you actually got the deal?

Sean Riley 16:19
Yeah, I mean, my advice to people is, I think they should always try to be on Shark Tank, if, you know, they’re looking for money, and they want to get an opportunity, because it’s tough to get that deal. Or finally get on the show. Take some work and a lot of applications, but what it is, is done like a Superbowl commercial for your brand. You know, that kind of lives on and in for me, especially like, we’ve had a couple update episodes run. And so like, we’re kind of involved in this whole cultural thing of Shark Tank, which has been massive for our brands. And you know, we’ve loved you know, being a part of it. So, yeah, love the Shark Tank of fact, that definitely is real. And so I always encourage people, like, why wouldn’t you go for it? You know, like, you don’t have to take a deal if you’re on the show, if you don’t like it, or you can take a deal. And yeah, as long as you’re genuinely I say looking for the opportunity to be on Shark Tank, you know, you should go for it.

Kara Goldin 17:17
And do you think you have to have have been in business for a certain amount of time? Or that you must know your financials? Before you get up there? Like what are what are sort of words of wisdom, I guess, as you even watch Shark Tank now when you say this person’s gonna get crushed?

Sean Riley 17:37
Right? Well, I try it out three times. So the first time was pre revenue, hey, dude wipes, you know, check out this cool prototype, it was just about to launch got cut. The next year, it had like 100 grand or so as sales got a little farther, but got cut. The next year, we were on pace to do like our first million dollar year, you know, a little bit of traction. So I’m glad that they cut us, you know, those first couple times because we weren’t ready. But when you’re an entrepreneur, you’re just gonna go for it. So I need to give anybody advice different than when I did just like banging at the door and frickin try. But a couple 100 grand in sales, I think would benefit you. From a timing perspective. Like it benefited me like a little bit of proof of concept. Because if you go in there without any sales, they kind of just look at you like you’re a bozo. Like, yeah. And everyone’s seen it time and time again on the show. So yeah, I would recommend at least the in market selling kind of knowing what this business if you have a product people like or not, you know what I mean?

Kara Goldin 18:42
And then they won’t take your whole company there. Yeah. Traction. Yeah, for years, I couldn’t even watch Shark Tank because I would be like, having so much anxiety over watching all of the entrepreneurs that were on there. It still is definitely there. I watch and I’m like now don’t do that deal. Or I’m like, Oh, that was so stupid. You should have done that. That was like incredible. But you obviously having Mark Cuban is amazing. So He’s your only outside capital.

Sean Riley 19:20
Yeah, correct. well funded, you know, bootstrap days.

Kara Goldin 19:25
That’s absolutely amazing. So what is what’s one of the biggest lessons you’ve learned that maybe you didn’t know going in? Obviously, you hadn’t done your own company you had worked for your work experience? What’s your What are your thoughts on entrepreneurship? Like what are what’s kind of the biggest challenge I guess, as your as you’ve been on your journey? There’s a lot of challenges, I’m sure, yeah. But what’s kind of the biggest thing that you didn’t know going into this?

Sean Riley 19:58
You know, I would think It’s kind of twofold, like business wise sales always just comes comes up as a reality early on, like, you can think and ideas great or that a product is great, but if it’s not selling doesn’t really mean anything, and you don’t have any proof yet. So like, be very focused on selling early on was something I learned over time versus like, there’s other aspects of the business you’re gonna have to worry about. But without more and more sales guys aren’t really worried about much. So, you know, sales become something that I think any, you know, founder, co founder is always innately, like, driven by from a business perspective. And then just having that from mindset perspective, like self belief, is everything, you know, if you guys don’t believe you can, you know, start from nothing, and now be disrupting toilet paper in a legitimate way at retail, if you don’t think that way. Along the way, it’s going to be really tough to get there. And so, us just learning each year, just always, you know, think bigger push ourselves, all of that becomes, you know, a huge part of what you’re going to need to and so yeah, just kind of believe in, you’re going to figure it out.

Kara Goldin 21:13
No, I think that’s that’s huge advice. So I read somewhere that selling through Amazon actually made it easier to convince brick and mortar that they give you guys a try. I’d love to share this. I think people view Amazon as I mean, many people view it, view it as their direct to consumer strategy. Right or wrong, but actually getting traction on Amazon. They’re a competitor, right to many retailers and to consumers, eyes. And so how did that help you and your experience?

Sean Riley 21:52
Well, I mean, listen, they’re all competitors, you know, and we want to serve all of our customers like really well, but, you know, entrepreneurs, brand owners have to know like, it’s your, it’s your right and responsibility to sell your product wherever your customers want it. And Amazon out the get go to launch a product. I mean, you can’t think of a better place really, it’ll tell you if you have a hit or a dud very quickly. And why do you even want that product on shelf until you’ve, you know, stress, test that real quick or DTC? Whatever you want to do. But yeah, for me, Amazon’s the best place for that. And so essentially, that’s what we’re doing entrepreneurs, nobody would let us in any retail store. Like there wasn’t any sales meetings to go do. So it was like, well, let’s put it up here. Let’s ramp this up. And obviously, it’s the Walmart of the internet, like it’s a huge place to do business. And then so just ever. From there, we’ve always grown with it. Just like we grow with any customer where it’s working with our product and the customer like double down and grow it you know,

Kara Goldin 22:56
so the the name dude wipes what? Yeah, how did you guys decide on that for name?

Sean Riley 23:07
I mean, that was just always the number one name that just came to us right away like we’re sitting around where guys were talking about making pot wipes like call it dude wipes. So that was like, there was a couple times where we’re considering something which thank God we didn’t like more planned like a swipe or like, you know, something that didn’t have the dude wipes pizzazz, but then we always double back to like, the brand the fun this like if it’s going to be a thing. You know, let’s let’s put it all in there.

Kara Goldin 23:37
Oh, that’s That’s awesome. So have you ever thought of I don’t know what the what the other side of dude wipes is? But have you thought that you’re limited and in any way just by talking about it as dude wipes because obviously there’s women who need to wipe their butt too, right? So

Sean Riley 24:01
women have had wipes forever, you know, women understand wipes. And we found that out like early on, like, women kind of got wipes they already use them. We were like teaching guys like hey, you need these wipes. And then with our brand we actually see right now 50% of usage is women. So that’s been super interesting to us. Like once they’re getting in the household. Everyone’s kind of using them. Now is calling it dude wipes are somewhat like limiting brand. Like of course it is right? Like you’re not for everybody with a brand name like that. But the way we define a dude is just anybody with kind of a fun loving, positive mindset. That’s like not going to take life too seriously. So that’s what we always kind of stay around here. And we think most people enjoy that. And that, you know, dude wipes obviously applies to all different sorts of people. But we’re okay that like not everybody likes that and That’s a little loud, like, that’s right where we want to be. And that’s what I always tell brands, like, you have to mean, you know, something to some group of people otherwise kind of mean, you know nothing to anybody. So, I’m a big proponent of like, edgy brands, and actually like having a tribe and not trying to broaden things out too much from any category, like perspective. Like, I’m a liquid death guy, you know, like, That, to me is like, perfect, like, loud edging out of a market, like you did, you know, like, had a ton of space in it. And someone could go do something completely unique. They did it, you know, with marketing, which I thought was super interesting. So yeah,

Kara Goldin 25:44
so interesting. So how have you gotten the word out about dude wipes? Besides, you know, being on Shark Tank? The how have you let more people know about your product? You’re also I guess, you mentioned social media that tech talks and stuff, but what advice would you give to new entrepreneurs who are trying to get people to know about their brand? What do you think has worked? I think you

Sean Riley 26:09
have to do, you know, the organic stuff. So you really have to, like, try and talk to people and develop something that’s conversation worthy. So social media organically, posting interacting with people is like a slow, you know, a slow growth, but you have to be doing that early on. And then I think you have to be getting like product in people’s hands. A lot of times early on more than you think. Sometimes you can think it’s all about getting the brand out there. But getting a sample, getting a product in people’s hands, ends up being super valuable, too. So always, you know, make sure people bring it back to that. And then you know, the media that you spend early on is going to have to return for you. So, you know, make sure you’re understanding if you’re spending this much money on Amazon or Facebook, you know, what sort of sales are yielding. And then, you know, you can grow from there. But like, those are some of the basics I tell people to focus on.

Kara Goldin 27:04
So, first step one needs to bring a product idea to life and your opinion. I mean, you guys are sitting there joking about this category, and just deciding, hey, maybe we can do this. But what would you say to an entrepreneur who’s sitting here? Maybe they’ve got an idea? Not in the whitespace. But in any other space, that they’ve been like, oh, this would be great. What do you think is kind of key for them to figure out initially,

Sean Riley 27:36
to make the first product? Like, that’s just everything? So I think people people are laser focused on that, like actually materializing that first run, doesn’t need to be perfect. The brand could change nothing, you know, you just need to be in business. But yeah, bring it back this thing, I would be like, This is the first step like, Yeah, put a pen to paper, get something going understand who could manufacture it, like be ready to purchase it or have purchased it like those are two things you have to worry about. If you you know, you don’t have to worry about growing and scaling at the sales, how am I going to operate it all of those things, because you’re not in the game yet. So like, pending entrepreneurs, I always say just have to get in the game, start cutting your teeth start learning. And maybe I’m too aggressive on that. You know, I think some people may say a little bit more slow and methodical, but I’m just kind of like you’re either in the game or you’re not. And that’s I looked at as like pretty binary.

Kara Goldin 28:37
And did you How long did it take you from front? To you know, not really back. But when when you actually launched the product? How long did that take you from concept to a bullet?

Sean Riley 28:50
We were gonna land on a poop on there.

Kara Goldin 28:52
I know, I was trying really, really hard. But

Sean Riley 28:58
yeah, I would say it probably took like, close to two years, you know, probably months of like, Hey, this is an idea. We believe it’s legitimate, then you just have to find people, you have to like spec it out, get the art done, you have to order it has to show up. So, you know, realistically, I’m sure as you know, like, be hard to go from idea to product in less than a year. You know, so a new time entrepreneur, probably could be two years on average, making that up. But from when you first have an idea that you’re like committed to like moving forward. It’s probably gonna take you a couple years to launch it.

Kara Goldin 29:36
Yeah, most of it does. I launched mine in nine months. And so and I did it. Yeah. And I only did it nine months because I was having I found out I was pregnant. And so actually having a date and being and thinking, okay, my life is going to be different. This was my fourth and So I was like, how am I going to manage this? Well, I have to get it on the shelf. So they’re having a date out there definitely helped me, I probably would have taken a little more time. And to your point, it was less than perfect it was. But it gave us enough enough to actually see what worked. And one of the things that we did and sort of figured out in that first iteration was packaging, you know, we thought, we thought like, we had the perfect packaging, they were clear labels, they were beautiful, looked wonderful. And then actually, when it got on the shelf, what we realized two things, the lighting, once it hit, the packaging actually made a huge difference. We were in foods. And then if we were right next to a vitamin water, that was colored, like bright pink, versus our clear labels and clear products, we just you couldn’t see our product. Right, it’s sunk into the shelf, but no one came up with that criteria, right or, or problems in front of us. And until we actually got it on the shelf, we did a small run, we figured a lot of stuff out. And so we still sold, you know, we knew that there was that there was a market there. But, but we definitely, you know, made some quick changes, once we got it on the shelf that were that were key. So I always tell people, you know, fly the plane, as you’re building it, not literally, but you’ve got to just get it good enough that you can actually get some data off of it and consumer, you know, acceptance off of it more than anything else. So I think that that’s in sync with what you’re saying,

Sean Riley 31:57
ya know, it’s a big lesson there, you know, a mom of three with the fourth on the way, you know, says I’m gonna get this done in nine months, you know, hear what I hear I was a single guy, you know, supporting myself I didn’t need much to live off of and I went out on a leap. And people are always like, Oh, how do you take that leap? How do you take that leap? I’m like, You’re in your 20s. Like, you’re single, like, you’re worried about taking a leap, you know, like, some people have real things going on, like you did. And you know, it’s a harder decision. But I think you deserve more credit for doing it. Because I’m always trying to encourage, you know, I’m always trying to encourage younger people that like, they really don’t have any excuse not to, you know, well, I

Kara Goldin 32:41
think to your point, it’s like, what’s the worst that can happen? Right? Yeah, I figured that if I had come from Tech, and was starting hand, and we didn’t even tell most of our most of my friends were in tech, and we didn’t tell people that we were actually starting a beverage company. Because, you know, in Silicon Valley, like, they would have thought we were off our rocker, right for a beverage company. And we we just decided to just go do it. And I think that it was, you know, it was crazy lessons learned along the way too. But I think it really, what we realized is that if nothing else, we would be great dinner party guests to say like, Oh, what have you guys been doing for the last couple years? Okay. Or this beverage company? We put the wrong labels on the package, they sucked, you know, they were clear, we thought they were beautiful. No one could see him. You know, it was like, the product went bad because we decided, like, who needs preservatives in the product. Like, we had all of these like, points where we were just like, okay, that’s the worst that can happen. Or we can actually be successful. And so, you know, we kept thinking, let’s just try, like, if nothing else will be like, everyone’s gonna want to talk to us for a dinner party, because we’re gonna, like, be like, the funniest gas to them because they’re gonna be like, Why did you think you could do this? Like, and, you know, maybe we couldn’t write but maybe we could. And so I think that that’s the the allure of entrepreneurship. Even if you fail, you learn a lot of things. You’ll you know, the life of the party, the butt of everybody’s joke. See, I got the butt in there. Don’t worry. All right. So funny. So next for dude wipes.

Sean Riley 34:45
Next rookie wipes. Um, you know, we just came out with some some new stuff. So I think I sent you one of the packages, which was a shea butter smooth, and that’s a new SKU that’s at Walmart. So like, we’re messing around with me. Making some new fragrances. We’re still talking to places like Costco and we’re looking to expand and Sam’s Club. So getting in more clubs, but kind of more of like a focused mindset, keep disrupting toilet paper, you know, finding little innovations and little ways to make that experience even better for you in the bathroom. We’re just going to work it on those all day and seeing which ones pop up.

Kara Goldin 35:25
I love it. Well, you guys are doing such a killer job. And everyone needs even the non dudes that are listening. Need to definitely get some dude wipes. There’s so great and love supporting Sean for sure. And thank you so much, Sean, for coming on. I love hearing your story and everything about it. And I know everybody, it really really loved hearing your lessons and your story as well. We’ll have all the info in the show notes too. But thank you again.

Sean Riley 35:58
Thank you Kara knows the blast. Appreciate you having me.

Kara Goldin 36:01
Thanks again for listening to the Kara Goldin show. If you would, please give us a review. And feel free to share this podcast with others who would benefit and of course, feel free to subscribe so you don’t miss a single episode of our podcast. Just a reminder that I can be found on all platforms at Kara Goldin. And if you want to hear more about my journey, I hope you will have a listen or pick up a copy of my book undaunted, which I share my journey, including founding and building hint. We are here every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. And thanks everyone for listening. Have a great rest of the week. And 2023 And goodbye for now. Before we sign off, I want to talk to you about fear. People like to talk about fearless leaders. But achieving big goals isn’t about fearlessness. Successful leaders recognize their fears and decide to deal with them head on in order to move forward. This is where my new book undaunted comes in. This book is designed for anyone who wants to succeed in the face of fear, overcome doubts and live a little undaunted. Order your copy today at undaunted, the book.com and learn how to look your doubts and doubters in the eye and achieve your dreams. For a limited time. You’ll also receive a free case of hint water. Do you have a question for me or want to nominate an innovator to spotlight send me a tweet at Kara Goldin and let me know. And if you liked what you heard, please leave me a review on Apple podcasts. You can also follow along with me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn at Kara Goldin. Thanks for listening

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