Hardware Podcasts

Thrive Causemetics: Karissa Bodnar. How a Beauty Business Made Millions for a Mission

How I Built This · 14 Sept 2026 · 48m

What this episode covers

Karissa Bodnar, founder of Thrive Causemetics, explains how the death of her friend Christy Lamond inspired her to leave L'Oréal and build a beauty brand with a mission to give back to cancer patients and other causes. She details the formulation of specialized false eyelashes and waterproof adhesatives free of toxic ingredients, funding early production through her life savings and a full-time job at Bulletproof while pitching major retailers like Sephora and Nordstrom who rejected the vision. After years of struggling with near-zero sales, a viral moment driven by customer advocacy for her Infinity Waterproof Eyeliner propelled the company to $30 million in revenue, leading to a strategic decision to remain direct-to-consumer and privately held to maintain control and focus.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies and companies scaling up

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Thrive Causemetics, L'Oréal, Sephora, Nordstrom, Bulletproof, Good Housekeeping, Good Morning America, Tom's of Maine, Look Good Feel Better, Allure
Products
Clara Sonic, Infinity Waterproof Eyeliner, Liquid Lash Extensions Mascara
Tools
Ship Station, Vitamix

Related episodes from other shows

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • Product Startup · 41m

    021: Using Public Research to Develop WINK Lash and Brow Oil with Megan Cox of Amalie Beauty

    Megan Cox, founder of Amalie Beauty, explains how she developed her WINK Lash and Brow Oil by applying publicly available scientific research on essential fatty acids, starting with a $2,000 budget and self-filling 500 bottles. She details her journey from prototyping in her MIT dorm room to scaling production, including a critical packaging failure in China that taught her to trust her gut over design by committee. Cox also discusses her marketing strategy, which relies on organic content and influencer relationships rather than expensive paid ads, and her transition to using a third-party warehouse in Chicago while maintaining close oversight of the customer experience.

    Prototyping & iterationManufacturing partners & offshoring
    10 chapters

  • The Startup CPG Podcast · 1h 00m

    From turning down Shark Tank offers to raising $2.7 million for Nopalera with Sandra Velasquez (2023)

    Sandra Velasquez, CEO & Founder of Nopalera, discusses her journey from a musician to launching a high-end Latina bath and body brand, her appearance on Shark Tank where she turned down two offers, and her subsequent $2.7 million seed round. She details the rigorous preparation for the TV pitch, including valuation assessments and inventory scaling, and explains how the show drove significant sales across Shopify and Amazon. Velasquez also shares insights on building a fundraising network from scratch, the importance of brand positioning in the beauty category, and Nopalera's expansion into aluminum-bottled liquid products.

    Fundraising & investorsCrowdfunding & preorders
    7 chapters

  • Product Startup · 53m

    019: Organic haircare products with Susana Stewart & Caroline Maina of Fro Butter

    Susana Stewart and Caroline Maina, founders of FroButter, discuss launching an organic haircare line for curly textures, starting from a cosmetologist-client relationship and developing four functional butters over two years. They detail their pivot from scent-based to function-based product categorization, their strategy of using micro-influencers and organic social media growth, and their decision to keep manufacturing and fulfillment in-house to maintain quality and customer service. The episode highlights their bootstrapped funding, trademarking efforts, and the importance of balancing entrepreneurship with personal wellbeing.

    Validation & product-market fitMarketing & brand
    10 chapters

  • The Startup CPG Podcast · 43m

    Founder Feature: Jesrina Arshad of PurelyB

    Jesrina Arshad, founder and CEO of PurelyB, explains how her personal health struggles led to the creation of functional herbal blends in a 'Pixie Stick' format, specifically featuring Tiger Milk Mushroom and Pegaga. She details the company's journey from a digital education platform to a product-based business, highlighting a successful pre-order launch that validated demand without upfront capital. Arshad discusses the challenges of scaling production with marginalized farmers, achieving profitability through a 5x ROAS on digital marketing, and plans for expanding into the US market.

    Validation & product-market fitCrowdfunding & preorders
    6 chapters

  • The Startup CPG Podcast · 37m

    Founder Feature: Akua Boakye Okunseinde of Karité

    Akua Boakye Okunseinde, co-founder of Karité, explains how she and her sisters—Dr. Nana Bellachi and a lawyer—bootstrapped the brand from 2013 to 2017, leveraging Dr. Nana’s dermatology practice to formulate clinically tested shea butter products. The company launched with a hand cream, expanded to body cream and lip balm, and secured early retail partnerships with Detox Market while navigating the shift to Amazon and omnichannel distribution. Akua details their ethical sourcing from women-led cooperatives in Ghana, the importance of clinical efficacy data, and their strategy of using micro-influencers and direct retailer education to drive growth.

    Starting a product companyRetail, wholesale & distribution
    9 chapters

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by How I Built This. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.