Quality of Revenue Beats Growth: Why a Quick Costco Win Can Boom and Bust

The Startup CPG Podcast · 24 Oct 2026 · 38m · Episode 389

What this episode covers

Moira O’Connell, Vice President at Astō Consumer Partners, explains the firm’s late-stage growth strategy, focusing on profitable CPG brands with $40M+ in sales and checks of $25M–$75M. She highlights portfolio companies Clean Skin Club, Bloom Nutrition, and Starface, detailing how they expanded from DTC to retail or new categories like beverages. O’Connell emphasizes that quality of revenue, particularly avoiding boom-and-bust cycles like a quick Costco win, is more critical than raw growth, and discusses the importance of aligning on valuation and growth levers early in fundraising.

Mentioned

Companies
Astō Consumer Partners, L Catterton, Bank of America, Nestle, Heaven Hill Distillery, Amplify Snack Brands, Hershey, Target, Walmart, Amazon
Products
Clean Skin Club, Bloom Nutrition, Starface, Sweet Leaf Tea, Deep Eddy Vodka, SkinnyPop, Nutribullet, C4 Energy

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • Product Startup · 26m

    111: Selling & Growing Your Product at Retail Stores

    Yohan Jacob, founder of RetailBound, explains how emerging hardware brands can scale sales after securing retail placement with major chains like Walmart, Best Buy, and Costco. He outlines three critical KPIs for buyers—top-line revenue, profit, and inventory turns—and details strategies to drive them, including marketing, sales associate training, and planogram compliance. Jacob emphasizes that early-stage companies should prioritize revenue growth and market share over immediate profitability, leveraging local PR and 'guerrilla marketing' to build momentum before expanding nationally.

  • How I Built This · 49m

    Advice Line with Sarah Kauss of S'well

    S'well founder Sarah Kauss joins Guy Raz to advise three early-stage founders on positioning and growth. She helps Chiara Moonzi of Chigi navigate grocery placement for a chickpea-based hot cereal, Jesús Rualcaba of Paper Tacos expand his Latino-inspired greeting cards beyond specialty stores, and Adam Barker of Bolt Skin and Shave determine his growth strategy for a razor brand targeting men who shave their legs.

  • How I Built This · 49m

    Advice Line with Angie & Dan Bastian of Angie's BOOMCHICKAPOP

    Angie and Dan Bastian, co-founders of Angie's Boom Chickapop, join Guy Raz to advise three early-stage founders. They counsel Michelle Pusiteri of Nana Joe's Granola on balancing mission-driven growth with outside investment, Gloria Kulb of Alida on overcoming stigma for her pelvic floor device Elatone, and Eric Poulain of Maple Rue on scaling their maple-based sports nutrition brand without compromising authenticity.

  • How I Built This · 50m

    Advice Line with Mark Ramadan of Sir Kensington's

    Sir Kensington's co-founder Mark Ramadan joins Guy Raz to advise three early-stage founders on business challenges. He helps Pat of Dripsy LLC navigate the complexities of getting a single-product sink strainer into major retail chains, Lucas of Taco Shop on how to differentiate from an impending Chipotle competitor, and Beth Benneke of Busy Baby on managing cash flow and operational costs while scaling from DTC to mass retail.

  • How I Built This · 1h 03m

    Live Episode! Angie's BOOMCHICKAPOP: Angie & Dan Bastian (2019)

    Angie and Dan Bastian, founders of BOOMCHICKAPOP, recount their journey from a $10,000 side hustle to a $250 million acquisition by Conagra. They discuss the grueling early days of selling kettle corn at Minnesota Vikings games and local supermarkets, the financial struggles of scaling production, and the pivotal decision to rebrand from Angie's Kettle Corn to BOOMCHICKAPOP to appeal to a broader, female-centric market. The episode highlights their strategic partnerships with Trader Joe's and Costco, the role of private equity firms Sherbrooke Capital and TPG in professionalizing the business, and how they maintained their marriage and company culture through intense growth.

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by The Startup CPG Podcast. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.