Episode #102
Susan Petersen
Founder & CEO Of Freshly Picked Talks Her Journey From Being Broke To Running A Multi-Million Dollar Business
Guest Bio:
Susan Petersen is the founder and CEO of Freshly Picked. After becoming frustrated by the lack of well-designed baby shoes, Susan designed baby moccasins and put them on her blog in 2009. From there the company took off, with the rich and famous (or at least their kids) wearing the moccasins and Susan and her moccasins being featured on ABC's Shark Tank. Susan lives and plays at the base of the Utah mountains, with her drone-pilot husband and her two adorable children.
Freshly Picked is a leading baby lifestyle company, with over 6,000 percent revenue growth over the past three years. In 2015, Freshly Picked became the first woman-owned company to be named the number one fastest growing company in Utah Valley. The company was also recognized as having the highest revenue growth percentage to date for the honor. Leading in social engagement and community, Freshly Picked’s million social media followers love celebrating the shared experiences of parenthood with the brand. From the first the step, to the next step, Freshly Picked is there for every step in babies’ lives.
Show Links
Show Notes
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Introduction (1:53)
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What Mark Cuban said about Susan Petersen's story (2:28)
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How she started her first blog and shop (3:05)
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Not being able to afford her first product and how she made it work (6:02)
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Susan's first thought of the business on growth versus reality (8:10)
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Going on Shark Tank and the experiences (9:36)
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Why the Shark Tank deal fell through (13:10)
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How she used Instagram as her main social media profile (22:01)
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Keeping her business over 70% online vs retail (29:19)
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What it was like selling to these major retailers (30:43)
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The boost that the business saw from celebrities organically posting (30:55)
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Having mentors to help build the business (32:15)