Schmidt sees value in building in public but challenges the idea that every founder must establish an audience before launching. She argues that audience-building can consume time and create stress, and points out that she was unknown when she started Schmidt's Naturals.

Transparency can attract people to a company's journey
The approach is easier with an established audience
Building an audience before launch has a real time cost
Schmidt built her company before she was personally known
Lacking an audience should not prevent a founder from starting

“to do that you have to have an established audience and we all we don't all have that right away”
Jaime Schmidt · 32:30

“if you don't you know don't let that stop you”
Jaime Schmidt · 33:00

#building in public#audience#launch#founder brand

Hot Take· 1

Hot Take33:30

Intuition Is Accumulated Experience, Not a Magic Formula

Asked how she makes important decisions, Schmidt describes a mix of intuition, research, other people's opinions, confidence, and risk-taking. She defends intuition as the accumulated effect of prior experience rather than something founders should automatically dismiss.

Schmidt says there is no magic decision formula
She treats intuition as accumulated experience
Research and selected outside opinions supplement instinct
A decision still requires confidence and willingness to take risk

“your intuition is the culmination of like every experience that you know that's gotten you to this point”
Jaime Schmidt · 34:00

“ultimately just having confidence and taking a risk”
Jaime Schmidt · 34:30

#decision making#intuition#research#risk

Explainer· 1

Explainer21:00

What Schmidt Looks for in Consumer Investments

Schmidt says the Color fund invests in consumer products and the technology that supports brands and buying. She highlights companies willing to consider less obvious distribution channels, and describes Haus's restaurant collaboration during COVID as an example of a startup helping partners while drawing attention to its brand.

Color focuses on products and the ways people buy them
Its interests include food, beverage, fashion, personal care, and supporting technology
The fund values brands that consider non-obvious distribution outlets
Schmidt named Alloy, Ugly, and Haus among portfolio examples
Haus shared proceeds from restaurant-created flavors with participating restaurants

“we invest we say in the things people buy and the way they buy them”
Jaime Schmidt · 22:00

“any money that was made and selling those flavors went to the restaurants to help keep them open”
Jaime Schmidt · 26:00

#investing#consumer brands#color capital#partnerships

Story· 4

Story01:00

Twenty-Two Jobs Before Schmidt Found Her Entrepreneurial Path

Schmidt says an IRS report showed she had held 22 jobs before becoming an entrepreneur. She describes the path not as a tidy plan, but as exploration driven by a refusal to settle for work that left her unhappy.

Schmidt reports holding 22 jobs
She had progressed in corporate HR but did not love the work
Moving to Portland gave her a chance to seek a fresh direction
Entrepreneurship emerged from experimentation rather than a fixed career plan

“i've held 22 jobs according to my report from the irs”
Jaime Schmidt · 01:00

“really just not settling like not allowing myself to be 01 30 complacent in my work”
Jaime Schmidt · 01:00

#career change#entrepreneurship#exploration

Story06:30

How Side Jobs and Frugality Seeded the Early Business

With household income below $35,000 and a new baby, Schmidt took a few local side jobs and treated the proceeds as seed money. She says the business remained chronically cash-constrained, and she cautions that attaching business spending to a personal bank account was something that happened rather than a practice she recommends.

The household relied on modest income while the company was young
Small local jobs created an early financial cushion
Schmidt treated side-job income as business seed money
She distinguishes useful frugality from refusing every necessary expense
She does not recommend mixing business expenses with a personal bank account

“that money you know i i really considered the seed money for the business”
Jaime Schmidt · 06:30

“you also have to be willing to spend money when you're building a business”
Jaime Schmidt · 10:00

#bootstrapping#cash flow#side jobs#frugality

Story14:00

Scaling In-House Manufacturing Without a Factory Background

Schmidt's Naturals kept manufacturing in-house until its acquisition, even as production moved through three spaces within four years. Schmidt researched machinery and production lines herself, later adding a contract manufacturer as backup and using observation of its processes to improve her own factory.

Manufacturing stayed in-house through the company's growth
The operation moved three times within four years
Schmidt learned machinery and line design while scaling
A contract manufacturer provided both contingency capacity and operational learning
She says this route brought major challenges, setbacks, and expenses

“within four years we had moved three times to different manufacturing spaces”
Jaime Schmidt · 14:30

“i actually had partnered up with the contract manufacturer just as a backup and kind of a peace of mind”
Jaime Schmidt · 15:00

#manufacturing#operations#scaling#contingency

Story19:00

Why Rapid Retail Growth Triggered the Unilever Conversation

By 2017, launches in Costco, Target, and Walmart had tied up much of the company's money in inventory on shelves. Schmidt's Naturals began exploring venture capital and private equity, engaged Goldman Sachs as a broker, and encountered interest from Unilever and other strategic buyers. Schmidt says an exit had not been the original goal, but diligence changed her view of what made sense for the business.

Large retail launches intensified the company's funding need
The founders considered venture capital and private equity
Goldman Sachs helped conduct conversations
Strategic buyers entered during the fundraising process
The acquisition was not part of Schmidt's original growth plan
She reports about $25 million in revenue, 150 employees, and 30,000 retailers at acquisition

“all our money was tied up on shelves you know we just it just was not available to us”
Jaime Schmidt · 19:00

“it was not in my thinking at all ever throughout the growth of the business”
Jaime Schmidt · 19:30

#acquisition#fundraising#retail growth#unilever

Takeaway· 3

Takeaway15:30

The First Hires Moved Schmidt From Making to Leading

Making the product remained Schmidt's favorite work, but it became a distraction as her responsibilities expanded. Her first hire helped make deodorant and the next handled shipping, while Schmidt continued to lead new scent and formula development from her home kitchen.

Enjoyable founder work can still become a distraction
The first production hire added hands-on capacity
A shipping hire removed another recurring operational load
Schmidt retained leadership of new scents and formulas
Customers valued continued founder involvement in product development

“making was so fun for me but definitely became a distraction at some point and so i had to hire out a team”
Jaime Schmidt · 15:30

#hiring#delegation#founder role#product development

Takeaway31:00

Why Early Friends-and-Family Hiring Became Harder to Manage

Schmidt found her first employees through referrals and says referrals can be useful. She also warns that hiring friends and family became harder to manage later, suggesting founders distinguish trusted introductions from relationships that complicate management.

Referrals supplied Schmidt's earliest hires
She still sees referrals and networking as important
Hiring friends and family introduced later management difficulty
Trusted access and a manageable reporting relationship are not the same thing

“i think it gets a little bit weird if you're starting to hire friends and family”
Jaime Schmidt · 31:30

“i did that in the beginning and that that became harder to manage later”
Jaime Schmidt · 31:30

#hiring#referrals#management#founder lessons

Takeaway35:00

Block Out Comparison Without Becoming Rigid

Schmidt advises founders to reduce the noise created by comparison and stay focused on their own vision. At the same time, she warns against stubbornness: changing direction can be the correct choice when new conditions make a shift sensible for the business.

Comparison can make building feel intimidating and overwhelming
Founders need an internal point of focus
Commitment to a vision should not become inflexibility
A shift is valid when it makes sense for the business
An open mind helps founders respond to changing evidence

“block out the noise as you're building”
Jaime Schmidt · 35:00

“focus on the vision that you have for what you're building and stay focused there but also don't be afraid to shift”
Jaime Schmidt · 35:00

#focus#adaptability#comparison#founder mindset

Frameworks in this episode

Category-Growth Retail Pitch

Market-Stall Product Feedback Loop

Opportunity-Led Omnichannel Expansion

Insights & moments

⚡Myth Buster· 1

You Do Not Need an Audience Before Launching

◆Hot Take· 1