The MALK Organics Playbook - Velocity, Trust, and the Road to 15,000 Doors | Jason Bronstad. MALK Organics

On this episode, we're joined by Jason Bronstad, CEO of MALK Organics, the fast-growing organic plant-based milk brand built on clean, simple ingredients with no gums, oils, or fillers. Jason brings two decades of CPG experience across brands like Sara Lee, Mike's Hard, and Swell Cocktail Company.Jason initially came in as a consultant in late 2020, stepping into the CEO role in mid-2021. Two decades in bev alc shaped his CPG playbook: earn shelf space every review, obsess over velocity, protect trust with your consumer.We dive into "the Kerfuffle," the Thanksgiving 2021 reformulation to organic natural flavors that blew up with loyal fans including Food Babe, and how Jason did one-on-one CEO-to-influencer calls by Wednesday with a new vanilla extract formula by Friday. Jason talks about why they cut the SKU count from 14 to 3, the creamer whitener problem, and the year-long HPP-to-ESL shift that unlocked shelf life for Publix and Kroger.We also get into the retail strategy, touching on why you shouldn't take every door in an A-tier to C-tier rollout, and why traditional demos stopped penciling post-COVID. ---------------Episode Highlights:🥛 The MALK origin story (farmers market to 16,000+ doors)⚠️ "The Kerfuffle": the Thanksgiving 2021 vanilla reformulation that blew up with loyal fans like Food Babe🛠️ Monday crisis, Friday fix: rebuilding trust with one-on-one CEO-to-influencer calls✂️ Cutting from 14 SKUs to 3 to actually commercialize📉 Why oat fell off the cliff and where those consumers went☕ The creamer whitener problem and the coconut creamer relaunch🏭 Shifting from HPP to ESL for shelf life that unlocks mainstream retail📊 Velocity is truth: 3.5x category in natural, nearly 6x at Publix🛒 Why you shouldn't take every door in an A-tier to C-tier rollout🎪 Why traditional demos stopped penciling and the shift to festivals👥 Scaling 8 to 44 people with a remote-first Dreams workshop🎯 Extreme Ownership starting at the top🔮 More brands embracing fewer ingredients (imitation as flattery)---------------Table of Contents:00:00 – Intro00:51 – MALK origin story01:30 – From consultant to CEO02:57 – CPG fundamentals from the bev alc years04:11 – The Thanksgiving 2021 "Kerfuffle" and same-week reformulation07:02 – Cutting from 14 SKUs to 3 to commercialize08:16 – Following consumers as oat fell off the cliff10:26 – The creamer whitener problem and relaunch12:32 – Shifting from HPP to ESL for shelf life14:06 – Velocity is truth: proving out in natural before MULO15:58 – First MULO launch at Publix18:30 – Kroger banner expansion and A-tier to C-tier rollout20:20 – Pricing, calories, and the ingredient deck conversation23:42 – Demo strategy shift post-COVID27:33 – Scaling from 8 to 44 people with culture intact28:20 – Dreams workshops and a remote-first culture30:48 – Extreme Ownership and culture advice for growing CEOs35:46 – 16K to 67K doors: the next phase of growth---------------Links:MALK Organics – http://malkorganics.com/Follow Jason on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonbronstad/Follow me on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-martin-steinberg/For help with CPG production design - packaging and label design, product renders, POS assets, retail media assets, quick-turn sales and marketing assets and all the other work that bogs down creative teams - check out https://www.kitprint.co/Shout out to my friends over at Glimpse, the go-to partner for automating retail-related back-office operations and unlocking margin trapped in invalid fees and manual processes.Are you in the market for a new flexible packaging partner? Check out HD Packaging. Third-generation, family-owned and built for the needs of category leaders like Newman’s Own and A Dozen Cousins. Faster launches, lower costs, and no artwork fees.