This episode is brought to you by The Hidden Gems.Hiring agencies is risky — most overpromise and underdeliver. The Hidden Gems connects founders with highly vetted, brand-beloved boutique agencies across media, creative, dev/design, events, social, and more — at preferred rates.They’ve supported brands like Dr. Squatch, Monster Energy, Gorilla Mind, FIGS, and Saatva.David Drexler is offering his service free forever to anyone in the Consumer VC community who mentions the show.Learn more: https://thehiddengems.com/Most consumer brands don’t fail because of product.They fail because they forget how to connect.In this episode, Mike sits down with Craig Dubitsky, founder of EOS, hello products, and now Happy Coffee. Craig has built multiple category-defining brands by turning everyday commodities into emotional, playful, design-forward experiences.From reinventing lip balm to reimagining toothpaste — and now taking on coffee — Craig shares how he thinks about brand personality, retail, packaging, and creating products people genuinely love.This conversation goes deep into creativity, mass retail strategy, pricing, storytelling, and why joy is actually a serious competitive advantage.You’ll learn:✅ How Craig turned EOS into a cultural phenomenon✅ Why branding is about emotion, not features✅ The real secret behind hello’s success in oral care✅ How to win in “boring” categories✅ Why mass doesn’t have to mean generic✅ The role of design in driving retail velocity✅ What most founders misunderstand about differentiation✅ Why Craig is building Happy Coffee differently✅ How to build brands people feel something for👉 If you're building in consumer and want to understand how emotional connection drives scale, this episode is a masterclass. Timestamps00:00 Intro02:00 Craig’s early career & first entrepreneurial instincts05:00 The idea behind EOS10:00 Making lip balm emotional & design-led15:00 Scaling EOS into mass retail20:00 The power of playfulness in branding25:00 Founding hello products30:00 Reinventing toothpaste & oral care35:00 Competing in commoditized categories40:00 Packaging as a strategic weapon45:00 How to win shelf space in mass retail50:00 Why most brands overcomplicate messaging55:00 Emotional connection vs functional benefits01:00:00 Retail relationships & long-term brand building01:05:00 Mistakes founders make scaling too fast01:10:00 How Craig evaluates new ideas01:15:00 The origin of Happy Coffee01:20:00 Rethinking coffee positioning01:25:00 What Craig is doing differently this time01:30:00 Lessons from building multiple brands01:34:00 Advice for consumer founders01:37:00 Final thoughts📬 Subscribe for more founder stories & scaling insights:👉 The Consumer VC Newsletter – https://www.theconsumervc.com/Follow Mike Gelb:Twitter / IG / TikTok → @mikegelb / @consumervc

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

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