# Turning Customers Into Investors: A Popcorn Brand's Crowdfunding Playbook

- Show: [The Startup CPG Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast)
- Published: 2026-09-05
- Length: 38m
- Episode: 364
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-09-05-turning-customers-into-investors-a-popcorn-brands-crowdfunding-playbook
- Listen: https://share.transistor.fm/s/2b53ef04

## Summary

Tal Moore, founder and CEO of Popsmith, details his journey from selling candy as a child to launching a premium stovetop popcorn brand with his business partner Dave Stickland. He explains how $2.2 million in personal capital and a $1.6 million friends-and-family round funded the development of heirloom-quality poppers designed by Branch Creative, which nearly failed due to a massive inventory miscalculation. The business was saved by an Oprah's Favorite Things feature, leading to a successful equity crowdfunding campaign on StartEngine that allows customers to invest as little as $500. Moore emphasizes the importance of community involvement and avoiding undercapitalization to ensure long-term growth and profitability.

## Outline

1. Introduction: Tal Moore and Popsmith's Origin Story
2. Tal Moore's 25-Year E-commerce Journey and Popcorn Roots
3. Designing the Heirloom-Quality Popsmith Stovetop Popper
4. Funding Development: Personal Capital and Friends & Family Rounds
5. The Inventory Mistake That Nearly Sank the Business
6. How Oprah's Favorite Things Saved Popsmith
7. Why Equity Crowdfunding on StartEngine Was the Right Choice
8. Key Ingredients for a Successful StartEngine Campaign
9. Using the Raise to Fund Holiday Inventory and Marketing
10. Lessons on Capital Management and Avoiding Undercapitalization
11. Building Investor Relationships Through Community Involvement
12. Hiring Needs and How to Follow Popsmith's Journey

## Topics

- [Crowdfunding & preorders](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/crowdfunding)
- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Marketing & brand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/marketing-and-brand)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Popsmith (product)
- StartEngine (tool)
- Oprah's Favorite Things (other)
- Williams Sonoma (company)
- Branch Creative (company)
- We Funder (tool)
- Crate and Barrel (company)
- Sur La Table (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [233: Raising Money For Scaling Via a Crowdfunding Campaign](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2024-07-25-233-raising-money-for-scaling-via-a-crowdfunding-campaign) (Product Startup)
- [S3 E7: Building Bootstrapped Hardware That Sells with Christian Reed](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-builder-circle/2026-01-13-s3-e7-building-bootstrapped-hardware-that-sells-with-christian-reed) (The Builder Circle)
- [117: Successful Equity Crowdfunding for Hardware Startups](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2022-03-09-117-successful-equity-crowdfunding-for-hardware-startups) (Product Startup)
- [085: Scaling Your Product Up After Crowdfunding](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2021-07-21-085-scaling-your-product-up-after-crowdfunding) (Product Startup)
- [033: Top Crowdfunding Mistakes with Khierstyn Ross of Crowdfunding Uncut](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2016-12-27-033-top-crowdfunding-mistakes-with-khierstyn-ross-of-crowdfunding-uncut) (Product Startup)

## Citing this page

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