# S'well: Sarah Kauss

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2020-04-06
- Length: 1h 06m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-04-06-swell-sarah-kauss

## Summary

Sarah Kauss, founder of S'well, explains how she launched a $100 million reusable water bottle company in 2010 by combining industrial design with a social mission to eliminate plastic waste. She details her bootstrapped journey, from designing the bottle in PowerPoint and manufacturing 3,000 units in China to securing early retail placements with Crate and Barrel and a breakthrough feature in O, The Oprah Magazine. Kauss also discusses the critical decision to remain 100% owner-controlled, the strategic use of TED conference sponsorships for influencer marketing, and the legal battles against counterfeiters who copied her logo and design.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-04-06-swell-sarah-kauss#t=0) Introduction: Sarah Kauss and S'well
- [5:13](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-04-06-swell-sarah-kauss#t=313) Background: Accounting, Harvard, and Real Estate
- [17:10](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-04-06-swell-sarah-kauss#t=1030) The Idea: Hiking in Tucson and the Water Bottle Concept
- [25:43](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-04-06-swell-sarah-kauss#t=1543) Prototyping: Designing in PowerPoint and Manufacturing in China
- [31:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-04-06-swell-sarah-kauss#t=1881) Early Sales: Door-to-Door Retailing and O Magazine Feature
- [41:19](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-04-06-swell-sarah-kauss#t=2479) Scaling: Crate and Barrel, TED Conference, and Starbucks
- [47:26](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-04-06-swell-sarah-kauss#t=2846) Counterfeits: Knockoffs, Lawsuits, and IP Protection
- [52:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-04-06-swell-sarah-kauss#t=3122) Major Retail: Pitching Howard Schultz and Starbucks Expansion
- [1:01:03](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-04-06-swell-sarah-kauss#t=3663) Current State: B Corp Status, Leadership Transition, and Resilience

## Topics

- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)
- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Retail, wholesale & distribution](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/retail-and-distribution)
- [Intellectual property](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/intellectual-property)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)
- [Fundraising & investors](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/fundraising)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- S'well (product)
- O, The Oprah Magazine (product)
- Crate and Barrel (company)
- Starbucks (company)
- TED (other)
- UNICEF (other)
- MOMA (other)
- Bloomingdale's (company)
- Paragon Sports (company)
- Ernst and Young (company)
- Harvard Business School (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [#118 From Bicycle Beginnings to Global Recognitions with Chlorophyll Water Founder, Matt Levine](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2023-12-12-118-from-bicycle-beginnings-to-global-recognitions-with-chlorophyll-water-founde) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [#004 - How one green company could beat the odds with a magical pencil and double each year, with Michael Stausholm of Sproutworld, Denmark](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-hardware-entrepreneur/2016-12-14-004-how-one-green-company-could-beat-the-odds-with-a-magical-pencil-and-double-e) (The Hardware Entrepreneur)
- [Looking on the Starryside with co-founders Liz Seelye & Erin Fasano](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2022-04-12-looking-on-the-starryside-with-co-founders-liz-seelye-erin-fasano) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [#147 - Rising Star: Simon Solis-Cohen, Huxley](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2024-06-18-147-rising-star-simon-solis-cohen-huxley) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [#065 - How to care about sustainability to get rid of plastic bottles (and still make a profit), with Moritz Waldstein of Mitte, Germany](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-hardware-entrepreneur/2018-12-19-065-how-to-care-about-sustainability-to-get-rid-of-plastic-bottles-and-still-mak) (The Hardware Entrepreneur)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2020-04-06-swell-sarah-kauss. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to How I Built This.