# Advice Line with Pete Maldonado of Chomps (April 2024)

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2024-07-18
- Length: 51m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-07-18-advice-line-with-pete-maldonado-of-chomps-april-2024

## Summary

Chomps co-founder and co-CEO Pete Maldonado advises three early-stage entrepreneurs on scaling physical product businesses. He counsels Jennifer Ballin of Badass Bagels on whether to franchise or pursue CPG, emphasizing that incremental customers are key to competing with giants like Philadelphia. He guides Brandy Shelton of Just Ed Honey Tea Company on entering big-box retail, suggesting Whole Foods as a regional testing ground and urging her to leverage her grandmother's story for brand differentiation. Finally, he advises Jake Meyer of Annie Alaska on direct-to-consumer sales, recommending door-to-door persistence and content creation to build a customer base for his wild salmon business.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-07-18-advice-line-with-pete-maldonado-of-chomps-april-2024#t=0) Introduction: Advice Line Format and Pete Maldonado
- [3:05](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-07-18-advice-line-with-pete-maldonado-of-chomps-april-2024#t=185) Pete's Retail Advice: Slotting Fees and Chargebacks
- [5:39](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-07-18-advice-line-with-pete-maldonado-of-chomps-april-2024#t=339) Badass Bagels: Franchising vs. CPG Strategy
- [23:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-07-18-advice-line-with-pete-maldonado-of-chomps-april-2024#t=1384) Just Ed Honey Tea: Big Box Retail and Branding
- [37:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-07-18-advice-line-with-pete-maldonado-of-chomps-april-2024#t=2224) Annie Alaska: Direct-to-Consumer and Door-to-Sales

## Topics

- [Retail, wholesale & distribution](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/retail-and-distribution)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)
- [Marketing & brand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/marketing-and-brand)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Chomps (product)
- Badass Bagels (product)
- Just Ed Honey Tea Company (company)
- Annie Alaska (company)
- Trader Joe's (company)
- Philadelphia (product)
- Whole Foods (company)
- Slim Jim (product)
- Chick-fil-A (company)
- Dave's Hot Chicken (product)
- Cava (company)
- Numi Tea (product)
- ButcherBox (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [#160 - Whole Foods 101 with Kristin Sherman, Kelly Landrieu, and George Daines](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2024-09-10-160-whole-foods-101-with-kristin-sherman-kelly-landrieu-and-george-daines) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [013: From Kitchen to Amazon, Launching All-Natural Cake Mix for Dogs with Kelly Costello of Puppy Cake](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2016-07-26-013-from-kitchen-to-amazon-launching-all-natural-cake-mix-for-dogs-with-kelly-co) (Product Startup)
- [#232 - 2026 Brand Resolutions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-01-20-232-2026-brand-resolutions) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [Founder Feature: Nikki Seaman of Freestyle Snacks](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2025-01-10-founder-feature-nikki-seaman-of-freestyle-snacks) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [#179 - Bootstrap Heroes: Hazard's Hop Water, SWAIR, Gourmend Foods](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2025-01-21-179-bootstrap-heroes-hazards-hop-water-swair-gourmend-foods) (The Startup CPG Podcast)

## Citing this page

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