A Vayner Strategic Shift
Last week I left off in early 2017. We had struck out with our target: restaurants. The only sales we made were to a dispensary and a sex shop—definitely not in our go-to-market strategy but just enough to keep us going.
We finished 2016 deep in the red but it was way too early to think about quitting. I was still using the berry ten times a day and it was impossible not to feel optimistic. We cracked the code once. We’d do it again. Besides, if entrepreneurship was easy, everyone would do it.
That’s when I thought of Mr. Entrepreneur Magazine himself: Gary Vee. His content was all about being authentic, making no excuses and focusing on creative. He made me believe I could be just as fired up about a flavor-changing berry as he was about an ad agency.
But the most creative person at Vayner wasn’t Gary—it was Steve Babcock, his Chief Creative Officer. And Steve’s who answered when I reached out.
“Sounds right up my alley,” he said. “Want to swing by the office?”
It was Feb 8, 2017. We didn’t own a car so we "rented" a free electric Waivecar (another Shark Tank company) and drove up the405 to Ventura Blvd in Sherman Oaks. Picture it: Juliano, me, two camera guys and a box of berries stuffed into a Chevy Spark. It was a clown car.
We brought unsweetened cranberry juice, sour blackberries and lemon wedges. Steve graciously asked about the backstory, our goals and how we were selling. Then we demo’d the berry.
“That’s insane. What in the heck?!” he reacted. “Guys, no wonder restaurants aren’t going for it yet. This is an influencer play all day.”
As obvious as that sounds now, it was gold back then. We immediately shifted from door-to-door to sliding into Instagram DMs.
Just one small problem—we didn’t have a website. And that online oopsi, that's where we'll pick up next week.
Now for my never-ending kitchen experiments…
I needed to solve my salad dressing problem. Like some bottled juices, most dressings got slammed by Juliano’s raw chef circle for defeating the whole point of eating a salad. But with the berry, I could come up with something better tasting and better-for-me.
I now present Hank's Creamy Tahini Citrus Dressing. Before the berry, it’s tangy, nutty and a bit bitter. Afterwards it's sweet, rich and ridiculous.
Here’s what you’ll need:
• 3 tbsp tahini
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1–2 tbsp cold water
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ¼ tsp garlic powder (or ½ clove minced)
• 1 tsp white miso
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
Whisk everything until creamy. Adjust salt, water and tang (sweet) to your liking. Somehow it tastes even better after being in the fridge.
Next week I’ll be back with a new lightbulb moment after trying a pair of bulbs that I couldn't stand before Nature's Wild Berry!
And as always, your hidden 48 hr 20% off alphanumeric code is hiding in plain sight. Look closely at the text—did you spot a word that’s formatted oddly? Enter it exactly as shown!
– Hank