# HIBT Lab! Slutty Vegan: Pinky Cole

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2023-03-23
- Length: 53m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-03-23-hibt-lab-slutty-vegan-pinky-cole

## Summary

Pinky Cole, founder of Slutty Vegan, explains how she bootstrapped a plant-based fast-food empire from a ghost kitchen to a $100 million valuation. She details the strategic use of provocative branding, the 'Purple Cow' theory, and the pivot from a destroyed Jamaican restaurant to a vegan food truck. Cole discusses her decision to raise $25 million from investors like Danny Meyer to scale operations while maintaining brand authenticity.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-03-23-hibt-lab-slutty-vegan-pinky-cole#t=0) Introduction: Pinky Cole and Slutty Vegan
- [1:58](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-03-23-hibt-lab-slutty-vegan-pinky-cole#t=118) Early Life, Discipline, and First Restaurant
- [14:41](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-03-23-hibt-lab-slutty-vegan-pinky-cole#t=881) The Fire, Loss, and Healing
- [22:27](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-03-23-hibt-lab-slutty-vegan-pinky-cole#t=1347) Concepting Slutty Vegan and the Ghost Kitchen
- [30:49](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-03-23-hibt-lab-slutty-vegan-pinky-cole#t=1849) Scaling via Food Truck and Viral Marketing
- [36:19](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-03-23-hibt-lab-slutty-vegan-pinky-cole#t=2179) First Brick-and-Mortar and Community Pushback
- [44:46](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-03-23-hibt-lab-slutty-vegan-pinky-cole#t=2686) Raising Capital and Future Vision

## Topics

- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)
- [Marketing & brand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/marketing-and-brand)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Fundraising & investors](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/fundraising)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Slutty Vegan (company)
- Impossible (product)
- Shake Shack (company)
- DoorDash (company)
- Uber Eats (company)
- Postmates (company)
- Grubhub (company)
- Mr. V's (company)
- Pinky's Jamaican (company)
- Fix My Life (product)
- Jeremy Kyle Show (product)
- U.S. Bank (company)
- Seth Godin (other)
- Danny Meyer (other)
- Richie Ludinus (other)

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## Citing this page

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