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

The Startup CPG Podcast · 17 Oct 2023 · 1h 00m · Episode 57

What this episode covers

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.

Mentioned

Companies
Nopalera, Luna Magic, Nordstrom, Credo, Amazon, Shopify, Liquid Death, Estee Lauder, Backstage Capital, RangeMe
Also
Shark Tank, Target Accelerator, New Voices Foundation, Daymond John, Mark Cuban, Kevin O'Leary, Daniel Lubetzky, Arlan Hamilton, Pistolera, Breaking Bad

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