Sweet Talkin’ Door to Door
We knew the product worked. We knew a lot of people. But if nobody wanted to buy a $5 berry, none of that mattered.
So we said screw it—we’re going door to door.
In 2016, I hadn’t heard of Shopify. It was 10years old, but it never occurred to us to sell online. Juliano and I had never done that before.
But we had over 30 years of restaurant experience between us and oddly enough both of us had done door-to-door sales. So what made the most sense? We loaded our backpacks and hit the streets of Santa Monica.
Smoothie shops, juice bars, cafes—you name it, we walked in. Our pitch was simple: “This berry makes sour taste sweet. Wanna try?”
We weren’t just changing flavors—we were converting believers. Watching someone’s face light up never got old. From skeptical to wide-eyed in 30 seconds.
That was our proof. That and the cameras we brought to record them. Chefs, GMs, owners—even employees—they all gave us the look we were chasing.
I got the idea from watching Gary Vee on YouTube. He’d just hit my radar when we founded the company and I loved how he pushed people to stop making excuses. Document, don’t overthink. And a flavor-changing berry? Definitely worth documenting.
But it wasn’t all magic.
At first I didn't know what to make of it. But as we moved deeper into LA it became clear we were once again drowning in our own success.
Being first didn’t mean much. After demos, places brushed us off like we were selling coupons. Others were intrigued… until they asked about sales and traction we didn’t have. We quickly learned food service wouldn’t take us seriously without numbers.
Again, I couldn’t close. No matter how sweet the pitch was, we were a risk. And they wanted a sure thing. Classic catch-22—how do you get traction when nobody will give you a chance?
If only I could ask Gary Vee. He always had advice. I figured if we landed a meeting he’d tell us exactly what we were doing wrong. So I picked up the phone and called his LA office. And that’s where we’ll pick up next week.
As for the flavor frontier, I had another test lined up.
Tart cherry juice.
It’s got a hippie reputation but I heard it helps athletes recover between workouts. Problem is—it’s SOUR. Like, warning label in the name sour. So of course I had to get the unsweetened bottle.
Would the berry make it taste sweet or leave me scarred and puckered?
I blended it with ice as Nature’s Wild Berry coat my tongue for 30 seconds then took the first sip.
So. Darn. Delicious.
And another one. If you want a new sweet craving before bed—try it for yourself. You just might sleep like a baby.
Next week I’ll share a dressing recipe that became a game-changer for my salad cravings.
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