The myth-busts, hot takes, explainers, and tools worth keeping.
◆Hot Take· 2
◆Hot Take37:30
The Family Trade-Offs Behind Ellsworth's Rejection of Balance
Ellsworth rejects the idea that she balanced marriage, children, and a fast-growing company evenly. She says she and her husband explicitly lowered expectations around occasions and date nights, focused on their children and business, used family support, and sometimes extended work travel into shared experiences.
The couple discussed the trade-offs rather than treating them as accidental.
They reduced expectations around conventional romantic occasions during the build.
Ellsworth traveled more while her husband and mother provided substantial childcare support.
The children sometimes joined Poppy events or family time around work travel.
She argues that accepting chosen trade-offs can reduce guilt, not eliminate sacrifice.
“let's just focus on our kids and our business”
“don't guilt yourself. Like let the guilt go.”
#work life balance#family#founder trade-offs#parenting
◆Hot Take43:00
Why Ellsworth Says a Workplace Is Not a Family
Ellsworth says empathy and kindness can coexist with a clear commercial relationship at work. She and Grede also argue that direct, results-driven behavior is judged more harshly in women, presenting this as their experience and interpretation rather than a universal finding.
Ellsworth distinguishes friendship and care from the obligations of a family.
She sees directness, empathy, and commercial accountability as compatible.
She reports being called a bulldozer when she goes around blockers to get a result.
Both speakers contrast that response with praise they have seen men receive for similar behavior.
Ellsworth links confidence to believing she deserves to participate and succeed.
“We're not family. We work together.”
“I deserve to be here. I deserve to be successful.”
#leadership#workplace culture#women in business#directness
✶Explainer· 1
✶Explainer48:00
Why Distribution Made Pepsi More Useful Than an IPO
Ellsworth argues that global beverage growth ultimately depends on distribution controlled by a small number of large players. She says Poppy managed about 180 US distributors before the deal and expected Pepsi to replace that fragmented system with one workforce and open channels that independent soda brands struggle to access.
Ellsworth says Poppy worked with about 180 distributors in the United States.
International expansion would add further distribution relationships.
She says major soda contracts can limit access to campuses, hotels, restaurants, and fountain systems.
An IPO could provide capital without solving that distribution constraint.
She frames the acquisition as a route to wider availability rather than simply a cash exit.
“if you really want to become a global brand it all comes down to distribution”
“we are now going to go from 180 to one”
#distribution#pepsico#acquisition#beverage industry
❝Story· 7
❝Story09:00
Two Founders, Two Jobs, and Poppy's First $200,000
Ellsworth describes an early operation run almost entirely by her and her husband. They brewed and bottled during the week, sold at farmers markets on weekends, handled deliveries, and relied on his second job while she worked through pregnancy and early motherhood.
The founding couple initially handled production, sales, and deliveries themselves.
Farmers-market revenue helped them pay their mortgage.
Ellsworth says she returned to the production line two weeks after giving birth.
They hired their first full-time manufacturing help around month ten.
She estimates revenue was around $200,000 before it moved toward $500,000.
Why Mother Beverage Disappeared for a Nine-Month Rebrand
After the Shark Tank deal, investor Rohan Oza told the founders that the product and story were strong but the branding was weak. Ellsworth says the team paused for about nine months, renamed Mother Beverage as Poppy, replaced health-coded white packaging with bright color, and reframed the mission around making soda enjoyable again.
The investor's first major criticism focused on branding rather than formulation.
The company stopped manufacturing in-house and redirected founder attention toward the brand.
Poppy was named as a play on soda pop.
Color signaled fun in contrast with the earlier white, health-coded cans.
The rebrand launched in March 2020 as the COVID period began.
“You have a fantastic product, but your branding's crap.”
“instead of going with white cans which means healthy we went with color which means fun”
#rebrand#poppy#brand strategy#shark tank
❝Story16:30
Poppy's Reported Climb From $2 Million to $500 Million
Ellsworth reports a revenue sequence of roughly $2 million, $20 million, $50 million, $200 million, and $500 million across successive years. She also says Poppy helped establish the modern soda set, spending about four years persuading retailers to treat the product as soda rather than enhanced or sparkling water.
The Attractive Can Decision Ellsworth Says Cost $15 Million
Ellsworth says Poppy kept using sleeved cans for about a year too long because the packaging looked better on shelves. She estimates that switching earlier to printed cans could have cut a roughly 20-cent packaging cost in half and says the delay cost the company about $15 million.
Packaging, not the drink itself, can be the most expensive part of a packaged beverage.
Ellsworth says the sleeve cost about 20 cents per can.
She believed printed cans could immediately reduce that cost by about half.
The approximately $15 million loss is her estimate in the interview.
She describes strong brand preferences as capable of obscuring basic unit economics.
“the packaging is the most expensive part. It's not the stuff inside.”
#packaging#unit economics#cpg#business mistakes
❝Story54:30
How One Wrong CMO Hire Damaged Poppy's Culture
Ellsworth describes an earlier CMO as the wrong cultural fit and says the hire contributed to severe employee distress and resignations. Her account emphasizes that a senior hire can damage many relationships quickly and that sunk recruiting costs should not justify keeping a harmful fit.
The problem Ellsworth identifies was cultural fit, not merely technical ability.
She says some employees became depressed and others quit during the episode.
The company recognized the issue and reversed the hire.
Recruiter fees and prior commitment can create pressure to delay action.
Ellsworth defines cultural investment primarily through people, not office perks.
“she just was a wrong wrong cultural fit”
“Culture is key to invest in culture. Invest in your people.”
Ellsworth says Poppy did not run a formal sale process because the company was still growing rapidly. Pepsi initiated serious talks, made an offer in February, and the parties closed roughly six weeks later after leadership promised to let Poppy retain its identity.
The company had informal contact with potential buyers but did not hire a banker to launch an auction.
Ellsworth says timing depended partly on Poppy's global distribution ambitions.
Pepsi's promise to let the brand remain itself mattered to her decision.
She says Pepsi bought 100% of the company.
She became an adviser after the exit, with incentives tied to continued involvement.
“we got an offer in February and closed like 6 weeks later”
“they bought 100% of the company”
#m&a#pepsico#exit#poppy
❝Story1:23:30
The Freedom and Grief That Followed Ellsworth's Exit
Ellsworth describes the sale as freeing and emotionally disorienting at the same time. Ordinary family chaos continued on the day the money arrived, while the end of a seven-year build brought sadness, uncertainty, and concern about whether Poppy would preserve its identity without her.
The founders' planned celebration gave way to an exhausting evening with their children.
A quieter yoga session and lunch the next day felt more meaningful.
Ellsworth describes the exit as the end of an era and a form of loss.
She remains emotionally invested in Poppy's future success.
Her stated brand nightmare is a generic, staged soda commercial using actors rather than real creators or community members.
“life's really not that different”
“it's the end of an era of something I've been working for for seven plus years”
#post exit#founder identity#grief#brand legacy
?Q&A· 1
?Q&A1:19:00
What Working With Her Husband Required From Ellsworth
Ellsworth says mutual respect for distinct strengths made the partnership durable, but disagreements arose when each person's work felt more important. Because business conversation filled their time together, they had to notice when they had stopped discussing their marriage, children, and life outside Poppy.
Ellsworth led brand and creative while her husband led operations and innovation.
Each partner valued the other's expertise despite conflicts over priority.
Constant proximity did not guarantee meaningful personal conversation.
Her husband later challenged her travel load and absence from the children.
She cleared parts of her schedule and says being home more improved her happiness.
“we value what the other person is good at”
“sometimes I need to be checked”
#working with spouse#marriage#cofounders#feedback
▲Takeaway· 1
▲Takeaway1:11:30
Why Poppy's Founders Planned for Wealth Years Before the Sale
Ellsworth says the couple began estate, trust, will, gifting, and wealth-management planning about three and a half to four years before the acquisition. A founder friend urged them to prepare when revenue was around $20 million, arguing that even a far smaller exit would create consequential personal wealth.
The planning began well before a billion-dollar outcome was certain.
The couple consulted multiple advisers and established legal structures.
Ellsworth identifies legal fees as the major early cost of the preparation.
They skipped a vacation to fund some of the setup work.
She joins financial calls and tracks the assets while relying on specialists for detail.
“We started planning for this three and a half, four years ago”
“it doesn't have to be a billion dollar exit for you to think about financial future”